Cornish-X Egg Laying?

[gilariversun]

I have a question......

I realize a Cornish Cross is a meat bird, and most live only a few weeks before they are slaughtered for meat.

I also realize that it is very difficult for these birds to live to 6 months unless they are free ranged or fed extremely little.

However - it is possible.

*IF* it were accomplished - I would *suppose* by their breed genetics they would lay large brown eggs. I would also *suppose* that because the female lines must produce high volumes of eggs to most economically produce chicks for sale - that even when crossed to a cornish one might expect 3 to 4 eggs a week. These are *guesses* on my part with nothing at all to substantiate it.

So has anyone out there kept the hens beyond 6 months who has practical real world expereince? If so - what type of laying ability do they have? Size of eggs? Frequency of Lay? How well did they do overall in this regard?

 

[Chotii]

A ha! A question I can answer!

When I was a teenager (25-odd years ago now) we had a bunch of cornish cross chicks we raised and butchered....all except one. Her name was Scrambles. I do not know why she was allowed to survive, but survive she did, and she became a very good layer.

She laid large (and frequently double yolk) brown eggs, reliably although of course not every day. She did this (as far as I remember now) for about 2 years (she may have lived and laid longer, but I went away to college and did not get updates). More than once, she even laid eggs ON THE COW who was lying down to chew her cud...she just sat on the cow, laid her egg, and got up and walked away. Sometimes we could sneak up and get the egg off the cow's flank, and sometimes not. Funny hen.

She really was a good chicken, more reliable as a layer than we'd been given to believe.