BREEDING FOR PRODUCTION...EGGS AND OR MEAT.

[JRNash]

My advice is NOT to wait list birds from Ideal unless you are ready for them. I have OCD,so this lack of a set order date was too much for me. I will wait till spring to order them.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

For our large fowl, dual purpose birds that we breed and have for both eggs and meat, we use a 24% protein feed until 4 months old and then drop them down to a 21% protein feed. It has worked well for us and the only birds that have gotten actually fat deposits on/in them, were some cockerels kept in smaller quarters than we normally keep them in, who did not fight with each other, and were also getting a good bit of corn fed to them. Otherwise our birds are lean but still have decent amount of muscling for eating.

Very helpful!!! Thanks!

My advice is NOT to wait list birds from Ideal unless you are ready for them. I have OCD,so this lack of a set order date was too much for me. I will wait till spring to order them.

Yeah, I'm realizing this now. That being said, I DID actually wish that I could start with the NN this year, so I'm glad about it. I'm going to call them tomorrow to cancel the CX orders and confirm the NN and add New Hampshires...

- Ant Farm

 

[draye]

Ideal is pretty good at that. I waitlisted some birds for 2016,they called one week later.

Good luck with the Ideal birds. I've never gotten too much raised from them. Out of 75 birds ordered I have raised a total of 2 birds to adulthood.
My best birds I've ever gotten is from Cackle hatchery.

 

[JRNash]

I've ordered from Ideal with no losses or complaints.AT ALL.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Good luck with the Ideal birds. I've never gotten too much raised from them. Out of 75 birds ordered I have raised a total of 2 birds to adulthood.
My best birds I've ever gotten is from Cackle hatchery.

I've ordered from Ideal with no losses or complaints.AT ALL.

I appreciate the shared experience (on all sides) - I'll keep everyone posted on how it goes with them. I should add that I am probably going to drive to pick them up rather than having them shipped (Ideal is about 2.5 hours from me). A little bit of a haul, but easier on the chicks and on my nerves.

- Ant Farm

 

[JRNash]

Good luck Ant Farm

 

[Beer can]

I got my chicks at our local feed store usually, excellent. Last yr, Meyers Hatchery, no complaints, no casualties. I was going to order from Cackle but they didn't have everything I wanted at the same time. This yr, SandHill, ughh, can't give a review...will not good or bad, not sure, read their website, I knew what I was in store for...wait, they give date, wait months more,
22 chicks, 4 deaths, but it happens, just never happened to me before. They are definitely the most lively hardy rambunctious chicks I've ever had, I'm waiting for them to fly out of their four foot fence! They jump over their three foot high dog house temp coop and fly. I picked up the cinder block I have their waterer on and they went bezerk on the worms underneath, they have pecked and scratched a fifty foot fenced in area to death in two weeks. Just have not seen this much action in chicks before, and like I said, hardy, I kicked their butts out to the garage when we couldn't stand the stench and constant noise at night with the brooder light on anymore. I did not put the light on them in the garage, temps dropped down into the 40s, could see my breath one night, 30s! This summer!

 

[JRNash]

Mine go over the 4ft fence also. When they go back in its with clipped wings

 

[Beer can]

Mine go over the 4ft fence also. When they go back in its with clipped wings

Lol! Never clipped chick wings before, might have to on this bunch. My big coop I had to put a top on the run cause the brownleghorns and on EE kept getting out and I only clip one wing to make them unstable, tried both wings, still got out! Doing away with all of them soon, spring probably, don't want to have to buy eggs, will miss the green and olive and the white, but they all taste the same. Going to focus only on the sussex, giants and my silkie giant project. Mostly the red sussex, looks like I have some good ones, white giant capons, side project, silkie giants, side project, red sussex, main focus, and I didn't order them and they were free, but I think it will be a good one, main focus.....
I do free range also, but I will NOT lose anymore to predators! WIILL NOT lose any of these to predators...

 

[ronott1]

Lol! Never clipped chick wings before, might have to on this bunch. My big coop I had to put a top on the run cause the brownleghorns and on EE kept getting out and I only clip one wing to make them unstable, tried both wings, still got out! Doing away with all of them soon, spring probably, don't want to have to buy eggs, will miss the green and olive and the white, but they all taste the same. Going to focus only on the sussex, giants and my silkie giant project. Mostly the red sussex, looks like I have some good ones, white giant capons, side project, silkie giants, side project, red sussex, main focus, and I didn't order them and they were free, but I think it will be a good one, main focus.....
I do free range also, but I will NOT lose anymore to predators! WIILL NOT lose any of these to predators...

Even without flight feathers on one wing, they jump high. Make sure they cannot jump to low heights, then a bit higher and then jump out of the pen, run or whatever.