cornish in winter

BirchHatchery

Songster
10 Years
Nov 2, 2009
384
2
121
indiana
what do yall think of raising 15 a time starting them in a inclosed box in the barn with 2 heat lamps untile they get to big for it the box is probly 4x5 then when they get to big for that move them on the floor with straw for bedding i can hang a lamp in their also for them if they need it i figured they can stay in the box for a good 2-3 weeks i live in indiana my barn is inclosed unless i got the door open Draft free ive raised barred rocks in the dead of winter got them in january on a day that was 17 degreese i reared them in the box for a month untile they were big nuff to be without added heat but i no the cornish x will get bigger faster and will need to be moved outta the box on the floor sooner
 
You've got to have them under heat for the first few weeks, anyway. But it's cold in Indiana, right? Cornish don't get a warm coat of feathers, so you might have to provide heat the whole 8 weeks.

If you can afford it and you've got good shelter, it will work out just fine. I don't raise Cornish in the winter because I don't want to pay for the electricity to keep them warm. I'd rather pay for the electricity to keep them frozen in my freezer.
 
i thought that maybe i should feed them 24/7 access to feed with the cold tempratures i contacted the hatchery who i would be getting them from Mt healthy and they said they would let them eat 24 hrs a day unless i find that they are having leg problems
 
You might be hard pressed to keep them in the 4 x 5 box through day 21. At that time they will be just under 2 pounds a piece. Keeping in mind that your initial feed and water dispensers will need to be larger also, thereby increasing the space demands. Currently we have 25 CX birds at Day 44. Only half have feathered out enough to be in the tractor at night temps of 27 degrees. The remaining almost bald birds are still in a covered utility trailer brooder with minimal heat lamp. We did a sampling weight check today of 5 random birds for an average wieght of 6#15 oz. The other thought to keep in mind is the smell. Unlike your Barred Rocks or other chickens, the manure from CX birds starts me to gagging worse than when mucking out old pig stiles. Hope your barn has good ventilation, or exhaust fans.
 
the smell doesnlt bother me their barn is insulated Rarely drops below freezing exspecially with 2 heat lamps runin i put a thermonoter out their to test to see how cold the barn actuly got it has to at least drop to 10-15 degress outside before the barn drops below 32 degrees and then the temprature in the barn is 20-25 degrees
 
Honestly it would be cheaper to grow them out in the fall or late summer for the freezer. The electric for the freezer will be cheaper to run than the two heat lamps. I've done it, they do just fine and can handle the cooler weather. They just take a little longer and since I do my own processing I hate cutting chickens in the middle of January/February!
 

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