CCX begging to be held

[VictoriaTemple]

CCX is the closest thing to a grocery store chicken that a private chicken owner can buy live. Grocery store chicken meat is from patented variants of CCX bred and held exclusively by the major chicken producers. In the US, most meat chickens are bred by Big Chicken companies like Perdue and Tyson and raised by contract “growers” to 6-10 weeks of age, when they are shipped back to Perdue/Tyson/etc for slaughter and packaging.

 

[HeiHeisMom]

@hayley3 , CCX is Cornish Cross, as in a Cornish based broiler bird bred in a terminate “cross” plan (a 4-step breeding process designed to produce an ideal final specimen that grows to maximum size in a hurry for quick high-yield low-cost butchering). Any “Cornish Cross” you can buy is the result of a terminate cross plan, so it is inadvisable to attempt breeding them, as they are kind of the Godzilla of the chicken world (meaning, a scientific experiment) and will not breed true even if they are healthy enough to attempt it. This is to be distinguished from the Cornish heritage breed, which does not get nearly as big. If you want to learn more about terminate cross breeding, you can check out the Meat Birds ETC forum.

I have been resisting getting any CCX myself for a long time, fearing their health problems, but I think @HeiHeisMom has finally pushed over the edge. Reese was so adorable, I want to be loved like that!

Our very first buy and introduction to chooks was two years ago. We bought from TSC and had four each of RIR and what we were told were buff orps... Surprise, surprise!!
The Buffs were Broilers.
As they were bought for our disabled daughter to help motivate her out of her comfort zone and also comfort her ( they became her babies), we decided to keep them.
After lots of research and loads of advice from BYC friends, I decided to monitor their feed and health and allow them to live out their lives.
Three died before 6 months of age, but Reese was the runt who refused to believe she wasn't a RIR. The RIRs became her family and they rallied around her, teaching her and encouraging her to do stuff a normal CCX would never attempt.
She was a wild and crazy hen who raised a "daughter" and "babysat" many chicks.
We were very blessed with Reese ❤❤❤

 

[VictoriaTemple]

Our very first buy and introduction to chooks was two years ago. We bought from TSC and had four each of RIR and what we were told were buff orps... Surprise, surprise!!
The Buffs were Broilers.
As they were bought for our disabled daughter to help motivate her out of her comfort zone and also comfort her ( they became her babies), we decided to keep them.
After lots of research and loads of advice from BYC friends, I decided to monitor their feed and health and allow them to live out their lives.
Three died before 6 months of age, but Reese was the runt who refused to believe she wasn't a RIR. The RIRs became her family and they rallied around her, teaching her and encouraging her to do stuff a normal CCX would never attempt.
She was a wild and crazy hen who raised a "daughter" and "babysat" many chicks.
We were very blessed with Reese ❤❤❤

OMG, I love it. I’m disabled too, my chickens saved my life. If you intend to get new chicks, try Jersey Giant (or Asian Black if you’re buying from TSC again). They are so gentle and beautiful, and just as big as your giant girl, but they grow slowly, so they are much healthier and longer lived than CCX. I can’t guarantee they’ll be as over-the-moon affectionate as Reese, but mine are very smart and lovable, and God willing they’ll last me a good 8 or 9 years.

 

[VictoriaTemple]

That’s my Hero. Guess why that’s his name? We’re watching TV.

He’s not particularly impressed with The Flintstones.