am i feeding wrong

[choctaw chicken]

i have 30 Cornish rocks the first batch was born on august 11 when should i be processing these birds because they are no where near 5 to 6 pounds like the hatchery's they would be by this time is it the feed i am still feeding starter which is what they said to feed until the end bought from Randell burkley said they were Cornish rocks

 

[bluebirdfarm]

hi , i processed my jumbo cornish crosses at 7 weeks and they were about 5 pounds:yiipchick

i fed starter the whole 7 weeks free choice

 

[Poler]

Im feeding mine starter feed which is 16% protien for 4 weeks, then i switch over to the layer protien 22% for the last four weeks. They plump up pretty well, but they start to develop leg issues at about 7 weeks.

hope this advice helps.

 

[mikarod]

Are you letting them have access to the feed at all times? Or only throwing some feed into the pen with them?

 

[choctaw chicken]

in the morning i feed 3 32 oz cups of food on ground they are out for rest of the day feed 32 oz cup lunch and two 32 oz cups when i put them in pen my confusion is did i order Cornish game hens or broilers would someone go one Randell burkley and tell me the difference between the broilers and rocks its the same picture are they the same chicken one says mature in about two months the other does not

 

[mikarod]

That could be the issue. These birds are designed to eat food from a single source. Most usually a galvanized feed container. This makes is so that they don't move around too much and gain the maximum amount of flesh possible.

Constant food (other than at night of course) and constant water will cause them to speed up their growth.

If they ARE confused with the other birds (which I wouldn't be surprised), the feed conversion just isn't going to be as high as with the Cornish crosses.

 

[silkiechicken]

Throwing the feed on the ground for this meat type of chicken to grow probably isn't going to be very efficient and I think is your main issue. That can work for layers but often is still not optimal because moist food on the floor can spoil, and make birds sick if they eat it later. Most of it is going to be lost into the poo and these birds do not make the best foragers. Provide feed in a dish, pan, bowl, or something in one spot at their back level so they can "shovel" the clean feed into their bodies. That will probably help them grow ALOT faster and healthier. I feed mine on a 22-24% meat bird starter/grower