Bad wrap for Cornish cross/Cornish rocks

[Feathers of Eden]

Bad wrap for Cornish cross/Cornish rocks​

A bad wrap is an unappetizing sandwich made of fillings wrapped in a tortilla. A bad rap—otherwise known as a bum rap—is dishonor resulting from false accusations or trumped-up charges. No hyphen is needed in this noun phrase.

There’s also bad rep (where rep is short for reputation—an abbreviation that dates back centuries), which makes more sense than bad wrap. To have a bad rap is to have a bad rep, but bad rep appears only rarely, and some readers might interpret it as a misspelling of bad rap.

The rap in bad rap is related to an American sense of the word dating from the late 18th century—namely, a reprimand or a criticism. It’s closely related to the rap in rap sheet, which refers to a list of one’s past criminal offenses. All these senses of rap probably descend from older senses relating to blows and strokes delivered as punishment. The fact that rap sounds like rep might also have contributed to the modern sense of bad rap.

Sorry I couldn't resist to be smart Alec.

 

[Feathers of Eden]

Cornish Cross feed to meat production ratio: around 2 to 1 ready in 8 to 12 weeks

Bresse Chicken ratio: 4 to 1 ready in 12 to 16 weeks

most dual purpose breeds: 5 to 6 to 1 ready in 12 to 16 plus weeks.

This means to me that the relative affordability of chicken meat is mostly due to the superb selective Genetic modification of Cornish Cross.

Without Cornish cross we were not consuming this much affordable chicken meat.
Chicken is a daily food due to mainly Cornish cross efficiency to convert 2 pound of feed to 1 pound of meat.

Thank you Cornish Cross.

 

[KevinT]

Cornish Cross feed to meat production ratio: around 2 to 1 ready in 8 to 12 weeks

Bresse Chicken ratio: 4 to 1 ready in 12 to 16 weeks

most dual purpose breeds: 5 to 6 to 1 ready in 12 to 16 plus weeks.

This means to me that the relative affordability of chicken meat is mostly due to the superb selective Genetic modification of Cornish Cross.

Without Cornish cross we were not consuming this much affordable chicken meat.
Chicken is a daily food due to mainly Cornish cross efficiency to convert 2 pound of feed to 1 pound of meat.

Thank you Cornish Cross.

 

[KevinT]

We raise Cornish Cross for meat birds and on pasture in a tractor moved 3 times a day for 3-4 weeks. We feed 12 hours on and 12 hours off with 22% protein. Our birds are finished in 5-6 weeks and the last batch was 6 weeks and a few days and we had 6lb dressed birds. They were very tender, juicy and very flavorful.

 

[Ozarkoak]

I love everything about Cornish X. I will raise them every year until they are not available. Their ability to turn grain into meat is unmatched. The ease in raising them is also amazing. The difference in taste between a tractor raised meat bird and a factory meat bird is night and day. Just like the difference between your own eggs and store bought. I'm not saying I would never try any other type of meat bird, but for my yearly freezer stuffing it will be Cornish X.

 

[cassie]

You have some very good points, but commercially raised birds are not unhealthy. If they were the producers could not stay in business. Hormones are never used in commercial meat bird production. One, because it is illegal, and two, because of advances in genetics it isn't necessary and is counterproductive. The commercial producers I know don't use antibiotics either. I don't think any of them do at this point in time.

People run into trouble with the Cornish X because they do not accommodate their quirks and they try to make the birds into something they are not. I had good luck with my Cornish X. I never tried a tractor because for me it just wasn't practical. I raised mine in a 12' x12' box stall in the barn that was well ventilated but not drafty. I bedded them on shavings, and I added shavings as necessary. I did not clean the stall until the chickens were gone. I had the feeders and the waterers hung on chains so the height could be adjusted as the chickens grew. They were high enough so the chickens had to stand tall to eat and drink. I had the feed on one side of the stall and the water on the other so the birds had to walk some to get from one to the other. They had feed available from seven in the morning to seven at night. I raised two batches a year. I ordered the first batch early enough in the spring so they would be gone before it got hot, and I got the second batch in the fall after the worst of the heat was gone. I lived in the San Joaquin Valley of California, and summers were very hot. I added Broiler Booster, a vitamin electrolyte supplement available from Murray McMurray to the water from start to finish. It really seemed to help with the leg and other issues the Cornish X are heir to. I kept my chickens longer than most people because I liked big roasters. I liked my chickens to dress out between 10 and 12 pounds. The biggest one dressed out at 16 but that is another story. When I processed them, I did not try to do them all at once. I just did two or three a day.

If you want plenty of meat in a short period of time, the Cornish X just cannot be beat. You will get more pounds of meat per pound of feed with the Cornish X than you can with any other chicken. However, they do have their quirks, and if you are unable or unwilling to deal with them, the Cornish X is not for you. I know this is a little long winded, but I thought some people might find it helpful.