How long should I feed out before killing

[mhaines4102]

I have 5 roosters the oldest of which is one year. All are pretty good size. I am going to butcher them, so I pinned them up for now and wondered how long I need to feed them out before killing to get a good quality bird. They have been free range for the most part.

 

[becky3086]

I'm not sure what feed them out means but they are too old to be tender now but you can still stew them, can them or put them in a crock pot.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

You could keep them penned up for a couple of weeks and feed them a high protein diet to add lean muscle to them. Don't wait to long as they should be butchered at 15-20 weeks.

Stay away from corn (unless you want to add a good layer of fat) This is good if you use the chickens for soup and want the extra flavor.

 

[ashera]

I like to give them plenty of water for a day or two and no food. It makes for a much cleaner job, if you have the time.

 

[Bossroo]

You may find that feeding them out to be not economically advantagous at this point in time of their maturity. Consider butchering them as soon as possible, rest them in the refrigerator for a couple of days, then cook them in a CROCKPOT untill tender . As for the quality, that will be your judgement call as each of us has a different idea sence of quality. There are some specialiszed crossbreeds of meat chickens where they are meant to be butchered ar 6-8 weeks of age for friers and roasters, and some others that are meant to be butchered at `12-16 weeks of age for the same carcass weight for friers. There are also the dual purpose breeds that will reach the same carcass weight, they will all consume similar amount of feed, but will take twice as long to reach a carcass weight of 4-5 pounds and will be mature enough to CROW like I would think yours are now doing. Please let us know what your results of your meal was.

 

[POC]

I'm in the same boat, I got 5 one year old roosters that I'm wanting to butcher, this thread was very helpful!
Chicken stew it seems....

Thanks,
Patrick

 

[mhaines4102]

Thanks guys. I will probably feed them for 2 weeks, then a couple days without food, eat them and let you know. They will all be chicken and noodles chickens.

 

[Farmerbetsy]

and if you've never butchered an older bird, be prepared that the meat may be almost black in color and stringy in texture. There is a reason "coq au vin" was invented and it wasn't for boneless, skinless chicken breast!

 

[Brunty_Farms]

I don't advise not feeding any animal for two days... where is the ethics in that?

12 hours and all of the food will be digested and out of the body making butchering easier... 24 at the most never two days.