Are my birds suitable for eating?

[TarynH]

As @JacinLarkwell says, you can eat any bird at any time - the question is really what purpose they serve in your flock. If they were purchased as layers, get the first year out of them, at least, then turn them to stock when their production drops off - likely year two or three.

If they were purchased as true duals, and you want/need the meat, cull one and feed yourself. Start culling others as their growth rate slows and feed efficiency drops.

If you expect to get some genetics out of your DP first, then cull slowest growing, non layers and breed the faster growing, already laying birds.

If they were purchased as meaties, I'm not sure why you chose the breeds that you did.

I tend to see small flocks of one or two birds ea of numerous breeds as primarily pet/appearance flocks with some egg laying for the table, so its hard for me to infer exactly what your meat plans are/were when buying those birds initially. I'm just guessing here.

Almost all were given to me trading guinea fowl or needed a home for. We recently decided to raise meat birds but just wondering if any of these were suitable or if I should purchase chicks specially for eating.

 

[TarynH]

I also think those Sumatra are 99% likely males. Seem awfully handsome. (Also just curious, why wouldn't you eat the chicks from them?

Well I read that they are not good to eat. And they are just so damn pretty. If they are males they are currently with another rooster and 1 hen. No crowing from them or aggression. The blue one Scares easy.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Well I read that they are not good to eat. And they are just so damn pretty. If they are males they are currently with another rooster and 1 hen. No crowing from them or aggression. The blue one Scares easy.

They take a bit longer to grow out and mature. Taste fine though

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Both the Sumatras and at least one of your speckled sussexes are cockerels. Also, your Dominique isn’t purebred.

 

[TarynH]

Hi there and welcome to BYC!

As stated by other posters ALL birds are suitable for eating that you have listed including the Sumatra AND their offspring. Whether you choose to eat them or not is a personal choice.. Even Silkies dress excellent for the table.. None of the breeds you mention would be breed I would keep IF I TRULY cared about putting meat on my table. But if they were basically a pet flock and you're just gonna eat what you hatch in order to be a more responsible and reasonable choice than expecting every male that hatches to become a flock leader of his own, then sure why not!

It's entirely possible to keep two roosters in a single flock without excessive mating or excessive fighting and I do it often! I also have a stag pen.. where ALL boys go and get a chance to grow out with each other for my dinner table OR to be selected for breeding qualities.. since heritage breed birds are almost always actively attempting to mate BEFORE harvest age. I put my selected breeding rooster with the flock when desired for hatching. Stag pens or bachelor pad.. NOT without it's challenges BUT highly recommended as a viable means of cockerel/rooster/flock management.. If you have the resources. I agree with those Sumatra looking like they have pointy saddle feathers and likely being cockerel.

Notes that were given and I'm affirming.. age of bird determines preparation method.. Older birds need slower and lower cooking with moisture added (or pressure cooking).. make for good stews, casseroles, ground meat fried up for spaghetti and tacos, or shredded meat for sandwiches or burritos, YUmm!

Older birds also NEED to be rested for about 3 days.. more is acceptable and they stay fresh in MY fridge for 2 weeks after harvest with no slime, smell etc. (small batch harvesting from a single flock makes a huge difference of standard market cross contamination practices regarding bacterial growth) Allowing rigor to pass is one key but also a little cellular breakdown for lack of a better term really helps tenderize the meat.. (dry aging beef for example). If you are much faster than I and can get the bird in the pot before rigor sets in.. acceptable results have been reported.. Cooked at the wrong time.. there is NO saving the toughness of the bird with any method.

Younger (more tender) birds and birds that will never reach a "roaster" size or the lighter breeds like leghorn are sometimes harvested as "fryers". For ME.. it often comes down to convenience either of time or freezer space as to when or WHO I harvest, sometimes flock antics determine who MUST go.. so age and such might get labeled on the package,, since most my birds are heritage breeds.. it's also key to me NOT to harvest during any mini molt period as pin feathers are a time consuming pain to pluck. I have skinned birds before when needed but prefer plucked. Different breeds or individuals can sport these at different timing. A decent read..
https://www.peninsulapoultrybreeders.com/cooking.html

With what ya got going on.. you won't have a lot of consistency in offspring or carcass size.. breast verses thigh qualities.. and levels of fat etc.. you just get what you get.. and that's okay if YOU are okay with it! You are the ONLY limiting factor in THIS scenario. Wrapping your head around what you will and won't allow to be harvested. Some ladies get harvested if their time has come.. Euthanasia is kindness. NO reason to let anyone die slowly or waste their contribution.

For eating, are your bird breeds ideal.. maybe not.. but suitable.. 100% yes!

So your two flock might not go back together since you separated them.. or you might work to reintegrate them.. OR come up with a plan be for the extra boys you may have now that haven't yet had scuffles with more dominant flock mates.. Some roosters have waited until 18+ months to start crowing while others have started trying at 3 weeks! All the breed you have should be showing pointy male saddle feathers starting by about 12 weeks..
View attachment 2462219

Happy chicken adventures!

Thank you sooo much for all this info. Wow. I’m glad I posted the photos because I was told those Sumatras were female. So that means I have 4 roosters! I think I will continue doing what I’m doing and make room for meat birds later on. Now I feel overwhelmed with knowing I have all these boys!

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Almost all were given to me trading guinea fowl or needed a home for. We recently decided to raise meat birds but just wondering if any of these were suitable or if I should purchase chicks specially for eating.

For pure efficiency as a meat bird, nothing compares to the feed conversion or growth rate of a good CornishX hybrid - those are what you find (almost exclusively) in most supermarkets. Butchered very young, not kept as breeders (host of reasons, too long for this thread). Also, cheap - these are mass produced birds in quantities unimaginable compared to almost any other "breed", apart from sex-linked egg producers like the Comet (hybrid) used for commercial egg production.

Most hatchery birds, even the dual purpose like some of those I have, have been bred to favor egg production. There have been strides made lately with various "rangers" and similar named birds to put some meat back on their bones, though they won't have the breast/leg ratio of a CornishX. Your local breeders... ...who knows? You could have some spectacular options out there, or not. But its worth looking if you decide to make a lifestyle of it.

 

[TarynH]

W

They take a bit longer to grow out and mature. Taste fine though

well now a couple people have said they are males. I dunno how I end up with these roosters hahaha I’m just worried have 4 roosters and 6 hens in two pens. Ugh

 

[JacinLarkwell]

W

well now a couple people have said they are males. I dunno how I end up with these roosters hahaha I’m just worried have 4 roosters and 6 hens in two pens. Ugh

I would take the male's all and put them in a seperate space, or leave the one you hope to be flockmaster and seperate the remaining males. Tale pictures of the tails for the others and we can find how many males you actually got XD

 

[TarynH]

Whe

For pure efficiency as a meat bird, nothing compares to the feed conversion or growth rate of a good CornishX hybrid - those are what you find (almost exclusively) in most supermarkets. Butchered very young, not kept as breeders (host of reasons, too long for this thread). Also, cheap - these are mass produced birds in quantities unimaginable compared to almost any other "breed", apart from sex-linked egg producers like the Comet (hybrid) used for commercial egg production.

Most hatchery birds, even the dual purpose like some of those I have, have been bred to favor egg production. There have been strides made lately with various "rangers" and similar named birds to put some meat back on their bones, though they won't have the breast/leg ratio of a CornishX. Your local breeders... ...who knows? You could have some spectacular options out there, or not. But its worth looking if you decide to make a lifestyle of it.

When my husband was young his grandparents had the Cornish cross and they butchered those. He watched them eat themselves to death and we are worried if we can’t butcher them in time (like we are sick or something) he doesn’t want them to suffer. We also want to be able to hatch eggs ourselves instead or ordering from a hatchery. But these seems like a much bigger project and I’ll need more time/space to do it all. Thank you for all the info.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Whe

When my husband was young his grandparents had the Cornish cross and they butchered those. He watched them eat themselves to death and we are worried if we can’t butcher them in time (like we are sick or something) he doesn’t want them to suffer. We also want to be able to hatch eggs ourselves instead or ordering from a hatchery. But these seems like a much bigger project and I’ll need more time/space to do it all. Thank you for all the info.

If you look at my signature, below, you will see that I have a CornishX (hen) in my flock right now, it was purchased on my flock inception date of April 9, 2020 - so its 8.5 months old right now, and a regular layer of large, cream colored eggs. I've bred it (NOT expecting to get more CornishX out of it, that's a virtual impossibility - but to roll the genetic dice as part of a project I've started, search "lemonade"), and will continue to do so. She lost her sister to a predator attack while my electric fence had suffered a freak mishap. Her brothers were both culled for meat, one at 26 weeks, one at 30 weeks. I believe it was 11.8# for the one, live weight, and 13.2# for the other, but could check my notes.


The point? Even with their odd genetics and real concerns about excess growth rate, careful raising can have good results in terms of longevity, even with CornishX - I used a combination of restricted feed and encouraging them to free-range with my flock by feeding only once daily.

If you wanted to hatch your own CornishX for meat, you would need to maintain multiple flocks, at much higher investment and much greater space needs. and you still might not be able to do it as cheaply as simply buying replacement birds from hatcheries periodically. Which is why most of us who are lucky enough to have the space still choose to go with some dual purpose if we try and keep it all in house, or stick with layers for our egg needs, then buy CornishX hatchlings, raise, and process in bulk for meat (requires a big freezer, too - and I suggest at least a 5 gallon pot).

By asking questions and reading up first, you are already ahead of the curve. Fortune favor your future chicken endeavors.