Color Range Broilers arrived

[greyfields]

Came May 23rd or something like that. Same day as the original post.

 

[AnthonyT]

Mine came in the same day yours did Uncle Hoot and I am noticing the same growth rate. Some fast, some slow, but all of the slower ones appear to be hens. Many of the cockerals are approaching a pound or so. They take to the range very well and can even fly a bit, right over the fence to get to more greens! Its kind of funny to see broilers flying but they can to a limited extent. They are definately cricket killing machines.

 

[UncleHoot]

Quote:
11 weeks, if I counted right. I've got mine scheduled for a 12 week processing date (Oct 9th), so hopefully they'll be all around 4 pounds at that point.

They're actually rather similar to the layers that I've raised along with Cornish X's in that they normally avoid the morning "Rush to the feeder!" and instead take their time walking around and eating grass and such. Once the feeder space clears up a bit, they'll take their turn.

I haven't noticed any flying behavior, but they don't really have anywhere to go inside the pen, unfortunately. I can already hear PETA, "Growing up inside the enclosed pen, the chickens have nowhere to fly..."

 

[AnthonyT]

I noticed that in the morning also. They all rush out the door and eat forage and bugs before they go hit the feeders. It is a mad dash out the door when you open it.

 

[greyfields]

I sold just about all of them yesterday at the market. the largest was 4.5 lbs dressed. The smallest 2.8 lbs. So, real nice range there and affordable for most poeple. Some people grow them really large to the point where a family is droppign $30+ bucks on a chicken, which can be a hard sell to people who view chicken as cheap meat.

 

[SimplyAbundantFarm]

I processed mine at 12.5 weeks and ended up with an average between 4.5 - 5.0#. I had some monsters who we ended up quartering for personal use, because I agree that it's a tough sell to sell them at $3.50 - $4.00/lb if they get to a dressed weight of 7-8#. The biggest one I kept whole was 6.2# and it will be a feast when we eat him.

I have to tell you that I absolutely LOVE the skin on these birds. What a difference from anything else I have ever raised. My customers are happy...I'm happy...and I'm probably going to sell out my first 80 birds within the next few weeks. They are coming back for more and referring their friends and I just do on-farm sales, so I am thrilled - no extra costs, no extra work! I'm probably going to raise another batch for fall if they keep flying out of the freezer the way that they have been these past few weeks!

 

[greyfields]

Chicken skin is proof god loves us. I can't believe the people on here skin their birds. It should be a criminal act.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Good thread. I'm happy to hear the weights and I'm laughing at the skin jokes.

My little Colored Rangers are doing well. We lost 2 out of 50 birds total. They are
3 weeks old now and fat. Mine are in a small tractor inside my barn so I'm not doing
the free range thing with them. We do put them on the grass but they don't do much.

They are quick little chickens and a few are friendly.

I need to go buy a scale.

 

[AnthonyT]

Well a coopers hawk got after the color ranges out on the pasture yesterday. Amazingly they all survived. They have great survival instincts and scattered everywhere when she (it was a BIG coopers, most likely female)made her strike. Some ran into the range shelter, some flew over the fence, others dove under the fence, and the coopers left empty handed. I actually think the hawk hit the door to the house and then landed on the 5,000 V electric fence. It looked pretty dazed as it left. The rangers filtered back to the house over the next several hours. This morning they were all ready to go out when I opened the door. They are definately more range savy then a standard Cornish X.