Choosing that Dual Purpose meat bird......................

[MovieFanz]

I think Dorkings make great dual purpose birds. They are also know to be tops for meat quality. I had some from a hatchery years ago but not recently. I still have some offspring.

 

[Bearsfan]

Here's my WR from Cackle. They towered over the other birds for a while and are still the biggest in my flock. The BO come close now on size, but the WR got bigger faster.
I'm thinking about getting some of them to try for the meat next year.


Here they are at about 14-17 weeks.

Here I think they are around 20-22 weeks.

 

[Jared77]

Those are nice

 

[Neil Grassbaugh]

Quote:
Prepare yourself for disappointment.

 

[price403]

I've got some Redbro breeding stock, 5 hens and a rooster that were given to me by a breeder I met by chance at an auction while on vacation. When they molt he usually gets rid of them but after talking with me he offered to give a few for free. I gladly accepted. They lay well and the chicks I hatch out keep my family supplied with free range chicken.
I also have New Hampshire Reds. I have trouble telling them and the Redbros apart when full grown. Thay grow a little slower but that could be because they're from a commercial hatchery. I've crossed New Hampshire Red roosters with the Redbro hens. The resulting offspring grow faster than the pure bred Redbros and have the same meaty bodies but are a little heavier in the same amount of time.
If you want some Redbros order Freedom Rangers. A gentleman who works for Hubbard Breeders, owner of the Redbro line, suggested I buy Freedom Rangers from www.jmhatchery.com. He told me that they have pure bred Redbro chicks in their Freedom Ranger assortment. I already had my 6 breeders but ordered 30 freedom rangers to compare. Out of the 30, 19 are Redbros as far as I can tell. Identical growth and appearance anyways. The others are golds or tricolors. A few look like they could be Redbros but have black feathers in their neck hackles. I was unsure about those so I butchered them. I kept another 5 hens and 1 rooster from the Freedom Ranger order to add to my Redbros. Now I'll be able to produce all the chicken my family can eat without having to buy chicks. That alone saves about $2.00 from the cost of a chicken.

 

[FarmerRob]

If it were me I would save the Delawares and the New Hampshires for layers since they both tend to produce large eggs with good frequency. For Meaties that are going to mature fairly rapidly and reach a good size I would go with the Freedom Rangers from J.M. Hatchery. You will get the meat production you want without all the shortcomings of the Cornish X.

When the Delawares and New Hampshires are done laying in a couple of years they will go nicely into the crock pot for some yummy stew.

 

[Tiffrz-N-Kidz]

Really, Neil? What exactly is dissapointing about raising your own meat from non-perfect stock? The resulting carcass may not win any prizes but it will still cook up just fine and nourish the family. Don't you have a puppy to go kick or something?

I haven't gotten to the harvest part, but the last batch of 'surprise' pullets contained some white rocks that are growing at a nice rate. They are intended for egg-laying homes, so I won't have any carcass data on them.

For my meat endeavor, I have selected a 'surprise' batch as well. This way I can see myself how the different breeds grow.

I understand the desire for hatchery chicks, some of us don't live in the country where y'all have chicken farmers out the wazoo. We are dependant on these hatcheries to supply us with reasonably priced chicks. (For those who argue that heritage breeders will ship eggs, I spent a FORTUNE on breeder eggs and ended up with NOTHING! There's no guarantee so I was SOL.)

So for my $0.02, I'd suggest one of 2 paths. One is to order a "heavy surplus special" from the hatchery of your choice and learn by raising them which breeds YOU like. Or, if you really want to pick one breed, just for the sake of having one breed, I'd suggest the white rocks. They are pretty, mine are growing well, and all data here suggests they dress out nicely.

 

[phasianidae]

breed your own meat birds. thats what i do. from EE, BO, NH, and others.

 

[Dandelion Acres]

Really, Neil? What exactly is dissapointing about raising your own meat from non-perfect stock?.....

I couldn't agree more. We are also in the process of getting away from the Cornish X's. I had 2 Dark Cornish roosters that I recently butchered and they may not have the breast meat, but one is definitely large enough to feed our family of five. There is something to be said about raising birds on pasture that actually...dare I say it....EAT Pasture. Give me a chicken that acts like a chicken any day over one that was raised to be put in a cage with a conveyor of feed running by it all day.
Unfortunately, I will still raise a few Cornish, because we have customers that really like them. We are going to put forth a serious effort to educate customers this year on differences in various breeds. We will also be trying Freedom Rangers this year. It seems no matter what we raise there are going to be trade offs. We either absorb a longer grow out time, or deal with Cornish X's issues.​

 

[Rooster#3]

i was thinking the same thing...