I haven’t had Plymouth Rocks, but Bielefelders are sloooooow to mature lol. My girl is 27 weeks and hasn’t laid, and that is when Velee’s pullet laid her first egg as she posted above. I like to watch homesteading YouTube channels, and KC Farms really touts how good they are at foraging and how that brings down their feed costs.
I'm trying them out for that purpose, as well. From searching around what little info I can find on the forums, I am guessing they'd be at a decent processing size between 20 and 28 weeks. I ordered some from Cackle this year & plan to weigh them at 20, 24, and 28 weeks to see how big they are by then. Generally, processed whole chickens weigh about 75% of their live weigh. Next year, we hope to hatch out our own batch of beils and keep better records on their feed consumption for broiler purposes.
Well, that gives me hope that my two girls that are 25 weeks will get busy soon. Their combs have turned bright red though.
Yes, I watch KC farms, too. Personally I won't be able to free range much bc of predator load in my area. Just last night my neighbors hunting dogs got into a scrap with a few coyotes. The noise was aweful! Dogs ok tho. So my flock will depend of feed.
Good idea. I think I will end up getting a few biels, rocks and orps; make a feed chart to weight like you but start at 16,20,24 weeks and see who comes out on top. Thanks for the advice.
I can't find any of the crele in the southern part of WV. I'll probably have to buy hatching eggs if I want any of these beautiful chickens! I need a solid color rooster rooster for sex linked chicks or an auto-sexing breed .I have Dominiques so crele works for me.
Probably a stupid question, but our “creles” the normal Bielefelders?
If you need hatching egg's for these, there are some on ebay here:
Thank you! Much appreciated!
I didn't know there was another color until now.I love the crele and barred look .The Genetic Hackle roosters are gorgeous(raised for their feathers)but all their energy goes into producing feathers so their poor layers.
