Cost of Cornish X ~ Holy COW!

[AussieSharon]

greyfields I can't imagine anything being kept in a space that small, nevermind 4.

I went ahead and purchased a dozen cobb eggs from poohevans so will also try to hatch and raise my own broilers. 1 doz plus extras was $15 including shipping, certainly cheaper than ordering day olds from my feedstore.

 

[hooligan]

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I know! And these chicks are BIG. I am a vegetarian but I say if you gotta eat meat you should raise it yourself and treat it humanely. What they do is not anywhere near that.

 

[AussieSharon]

Picked up my cornish x yesterday and thankfully only 2 of the 4 came in ( hatchery messed up the order ). Cost was $2.99 a chick!

On a good note, the Cobbs I got from poohevans are growing like weeds. They are a week old today and twice the size of the Welsummers born the same day.

 

[cjeanean]

I called a hatchery about cornish X's, and they told me that since they're a mix I wouldn't be able to breed them. They're a mix between I think white rocks and cornish somethings, and they only way to raise them would be to get the two original breeds. Unless you got something different than what I'm thinking of, but just a thought!

 

[greyfields]

Correct. A Cornish Cross is a hybrid created using a 'Cornish' sire on a 'Rock' hen. Hybrids cannot be re-bred to get more Cornish Cross. You have to go back to the original cross. Hybirds don't "breed true" in farming terms.

With that said, many sales people at hatcheries will tell you that instead that they're hybrids which won't breed true, they actually tell you that they "cannot be bred" implying they're sterile. This isn't the case. It's just your results using any F1 hybrid will be somewhat random.

 

[Moonwalker]

Isn't it also true that most "Meat birds" especially the Cornish X don't usually live long enough to breed?

 

[Cassandra]

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Sorry if I'm being a dufus. If I understand this right, you can still breed them. (so you could use those chickens to make more chickens) But they might be a different kind of chicken?

How does that work? Do they turn out more like one parent or the other? It's so weird! (does not compute)

But I would totally get one of each of the parent breeds and start making my own! (ahhh one day)

Cassandra

 

[greyfields]

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It's hyperbole, but somewhat based in fact. I have held back Freedom Rangers who are now party of my laying/breeding flock. The only difference is they weight several pounds more than any hen and have larger appetites. My neighbor has 6 Cornish Cross hens who are going on 2 years of age. He didn't realize what he was doing when he ordered them... and I'm not sure how many died up until this point. But yes, they can breed and lay eggs under certain circumstances. I don't think he feeds them much and makes them work for their meals.

 

[greyfields]

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*White Cornish Sire X White Plymouth Rock Hen = Cornish Cross (this is called an F1 generation cross breed)

White Plymouth Rock Sire X White Cornish Hen =/= Cornish Cross

Cornish Cross X Cornish Cross =/= Cornish Cross

* The sires/dames they use are highly specialized and don't resemble backyard Rocks and Cornish we may own. They also technically use 'Hybrid' purebreeds by crossing multiple strains of the same breed to get additional heterosis.

The advantage of F1 hybrids is heterosis. This is also known as hybrid vigor. All 'purebreeds' of chickens are created initially by inbreeding. Thus, any breed of animal is like a family tree coming to a single point, rather than branching out. Because of this, the genetics of any breed is limited to those present in the creation of the breed.

Suddenly, you introduce new genes into the mix by crossbreeding and you get an explosion in vigor and performance. The classic example is:

- Breed A lays 100 eggs per year X Breed B layins 200 eggs per year = An F1 hybrid who would lay 250 eggs per year.

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Breeds only "breed true" because their genes have been selected to create uniform appearance. Once you cross breed, you get a random mix of genes/genetics from two different breeds. Therefore, your F2 generation will have random appearance and performance. They'll resemble neither parent strain and may outperform or underperform either.


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Many here have done it. I have my own 'Cornish Crosses' in my brooder right now. The difference is the broiler industry has 50 years of selective breeding under their belt. Our backyard crosses are nowhere near as agressive genetically and don't grow to the same sizes. But, the advantages are we should get more vigor, disease resistance and longevity. Also, if you want a disease resistant or immune flock, you can only do this by breeding yourself. Bringing in day old chicks every year resets the disease cycle.

The largest issue is the Cornish and Rocks we get for the backyard have all been built for egg performance rather than growth rate of meat. This probably involved a lot of outcrossing at some point. So, when breeding your own, you're starting at the opposite end of the spectrum from where broilers sit.

 

[lancenone]

Cornish X chicks cost $1.76 each at our local feed store. They are $1.54 each if you get 25 or more. Unfortionatly for me, I'm raising them in my backyard so I only have space for about 10 at a time due to the garden.