Cornish X Journal

[sonofabish1]

Looking Good! I just got my 30 in yesterday so they're still in the cute fuzzy stage

I scrolled through the thread quickly to see if it was already covered but what is your feeding schedule? Did you do all they can eat 2 weeks and then 12 on 12 off after that? Any free ranging or more commercial style?

Also, how do you get yours to sit still like that when weighing?! I always had to put them in a 5gal bucket so they couldn't jump out. Mine are always scared of humans from day one...

 

[CommonRookie]

I left them on free choice for 3 weeks and then they started emptying the feeders so now they get food from 8 am until they empty the feeders, usually about 1 or 2 in the afternoon and then I add what's left of a bag to feeders evening. so they get a meal before bedding down for the night. I'm less concerned with schedule than volume of consumption. The flock is eating a 50 lb bag each day now and my feeders hold 36 lbs total. I put 36 lbs in each morning and the rest of the bag in the afternoon. Next week I'll start moving to 60 lbs per day and then 75 lbs for the last 2 weeks. They are in a large fenced and netted enclosure and are outside 24/7 since leaving the brooder. There's a lot of bugs, grass and table scraps that they forage on throughout the day. I put a couple logs in there and roll the logs ever couple days which reveals bugs abd worms.

If the birds aren't cooperating for photos i calm them by tucking their heads under their wings, hold them away from body and make big circles. I learned this from how pheasants are placed on stocked hunts. The birds get calm when their eyes are covered and presumably a little dizzy from the circles. Tye more you spin em the longer they'll sit still.

 

[blucoondawg]

I talked to my feed mill guy when I went in to get pig feed today, his broiler ration he grinds is 20% protein and it's only 9 bucks and some change for 50lbs, when I order broilers this year it will cost me far less than the feed store brand I was buying last year at 14

 

[DreamsInPink]

@CommonRookie

Forgive my questions, I read your thread late last night laying in bed. And I don't think I retained much of it.

Your operation is a much larger scale than mine, I only have 6 cornish cross. But will be buying more in the future as well as experimenting with different large breeds to see which I like better as dinner.

My question is about feed. Right now, my kids are on Purina Medicated Start and Grow. Obviously the Cornish x aren't going to get much older than 8 to 10 weeks old. So, is that what I should keep them on the whole time? It is 18% protein. Also, I've been giving them pretty much as much food as needed during the day and then taking it away at night... they're supposed to be sleeping anyway. lol

 

[bluto in mo]

I just started holding feed,at night with mine. They are 4.5 wks old. I wouldn't use medicated feed. Get the non med type. I'm using 22%game bird feed crumble it's $11.50 a 50 lbs bag @ mfa.

 

[blucoondawg]

@CommonRookie

Forgive my questions, I read your thread late last night laying in bed. And I don't think I retained much of it.

Your operation is a much larger scale than mine, I only have 6 cornish cross. But will be buying more in the future as well as experimenting with different large breeds to see which I like better as dinner.

My question is about feed. Right now, my kids are on Purina Medicated Start and Grow. Obviously the Cornish x aren't going to get much older than 8 to 10 weeks old. So, is that what I should keep them on the whole time? It is 18% protein. Also, I've been giving them pretty much as much food as needed during the day and then taking it away at night... they're supposed to be sleeping anyway. lol

You could feed an 18%feed the whole time if you like but I don't recommend the medicated, I wouldn't want any sort of medicated feed going into my meat birds especially within a few weeks of butcher. I feed a broiler ration the entire time but if you wanted a little slower growth I would feed a 18% flock raiser or non medicated starter

 

[DreamsInPink]

You could feed an 18%feed the whole time if you like but I don't recommend the medicated, I wouldn't want any sort of medicated feed going into my meat birds especially within a few weeks of butcher. I feed a broiler ration the entire time but if you wanted a little slower growth I would feed a 18% flock raiser or non medicated starter

Yes, that's a very good point. I feel so stupid. The good news is we are buying feed tomorrow. No more medicated. What % is your broiler feed? Do you ever have any trouble with too much growth too fast? Leg problems?

 

[blucoondawg]

Either 20 or 21% depending where I get it, the 20 from the mill is what I just discovered and will be using that since it's only 9 bucks for 50lbs, the 21 crumble from the feed store is 14 bucks, big price difference.
I haven't raised cx chicks since I was a kid and we would do 25 at a time and usually would kill a couple early because they'd have leg issues but back then Dad left them on feed all day. Last year I did rangers and I'm planning on doing at least some cx this summer, I have to build another hoop coop and find out how many I have sold before I place an order

 

[DreamsInPink]

Ok, thank you. This is my first run of Cornish x... I haven't even weighed any of mine. I figure the next run, I'll know a bit more, so I can do things a bit differently. I've also considered trying the Rangers.. and McMurray has what they call a Cornish Roaster, maybe? I can't remember now.. but supposedly they are a little different than the Cornish Cross.

I'm also interested in trying some other breeds... heavy breeds, but I know they will cost more to raise, as they'll live longer.

 

[CommonRookie]

Blucoon pretty much said everything I would in response to your question. I'll add that these birds aren't really rocket science to raise and you can easily over think it. 18% feed is fine. It's short of the recommended protein by 3% but I raised a flock on 18% last year no problem. I only feed medicated for a couple days when they arrive but if i only had a few birds I wouldn't feed it at all. Rooster booster in their water really seems to help them get a good start if they went thought the stress of shipping. After a couple runs of them I have yet to see them put on too much weight too fast and most often i'm behind the growth chart by a bit. My birds are outside all day and go to bed when the sun goes down so they are on roughly a 12 on 12 off on their own.

As far as different breeds goes I think it's great to experiment but I like Cornish x for the same reasons the factory farms do. The meat is tender and can be cooked in a variety of methods, you don't have to caponize the males, the birds are ready for slaughter quickly and the flavor and texture is what most people are used to eating. I raise a bunch for friends and family so tougher birds or older birds would not be as appealing to them. If you do end up getting a larger run of Cornish x you may see that you get a variety of sizes as I do. I suspect Mcmurry's roasters are just larger cornish x's or perhaps just cornish x cockerels. Roasters are the biggest birds that don't cook well on a grill or a fryer, Fryer/broilers are smaller and cook through more easily so you can expose them to high heat without burning the bird trying to cook the thickets parts and stew birds are basically just good for slow cooking, braising etc. I'll end up with roasters and fryers as some birds are naturally bigger or smaller and my flock isn't completely uniform. Some of my flock is already over 6 lbs at 5 weeks some are under 3 lbs. I'm not sure if this is due to competition at the feeders or just natural inconsistencies in behavior but I really like the variety of sizes since we use these birds for everything all year.