Crossing my Red Ranger Hens.

[Compost King]

I don't have time for pictures because I am prepping for a winter storm, however while i was prepping some chickens I could not recognize were scratching through a compost pile ... it was the Ayam Cemani x Red Rangers, they grew so much in the past 2 days that I didn't know it was them. I will try to get pictures of them after the storm. They are free ranging better than expected and are really starting to grow fast. It will be 10 weeks come monday. The Dorking x Red Ranger is clearly larger than his (or her) brooder mates, before you had to stare at them for a bit to notice now it is clear he is the big one at first glance. He will be four weeks old come Tuesday.

 

[Compost King]

I was too busy to be patient for a good picture. The Ayam Cemani x Red Ranger is heavier than he looks, I picked them up on the roosting bar just now and I would say they are a decent size to dress out but they still have some growing to do. In the brooder the Dorking X Red Ranger significantly larger than its brooders mates. Not the best pictures... I have a big storm headed this way so not a lot of time to spend taking pictures.

 

[Morrigan]

Thanks for the pictures. I hope you and your birds weather the storm well.

 

[ijon]

Good heritage Dark Cornish and Red Ranger good heavy bird.

 

[Compost King]

If I can get a good one I will definitely try that.

Good heritage Dark Cornish and Red Ranger good heavy bird.

I received hatching eggs from eBay for Dark Cornish and... as with most mailed hatching eggs they were scrambled on the inside. Packed great but obviously not handled well.

 

[ijon]

I ordered Dark Cornish eggs. Not a one was fertile. Never again. I will find the chicks and pick them up. Road trip.

 

[Compost King]

I will have a Cornish X hen from McMurray come February. I need to make a coop/run strictly for her and her regulated feeding needs, there will be a nice compost pile for scratching in the run. I may add some Dorking X Red Rangers as coop mates.

Update on the Cemani X Red Ranger. I went through a slush Blizzard on Sunday and the free ranging meat birds were coop bound for most of the day due to not liking the slush. I got a chance to pick them all up and feel them to see how well they fleshed. While they are larger than the Heritage breeds their age they aren't meaty enough for me to get excited. At 10 weeks old they wouldn't do much for the table at all. 10 weeks is very early but unless they fatten up rapidly in the next 2 months I would say they are not worth it especially with only the females carrying the all black traits of the Ayam Cemani.

The Dorking X Red Ranger is at 4 weeks today, if it wasn't winter he would be out of the brooder. The brooder he is in does not allow me to grab them unless I have a fishing net so I can't feel him to know if he is fleshing up but he is outgrowing his brooder mates at a much more obvious rate than the A Cemani X R Rangers. I may be taking pictures later. Tonight is the last night below freezing for the next 10 days and that brooder could be emptied out after the frozen slush melts and the melt flooding stops.

 

[dan26552]

I will have a Cornish X hen from McMurray come February. I need to make a coop/run strictly for her and her regulated feeding needs, there will be a nice compost pile for scratching in the run. I may add some Dorking X Red Rangers as coop mates.

Update on the Cemani X Red Ranger. I went through a slush Blizzard on Sunday and the free ranging meat birds were coop bound for most of the day due to not liking the slush. I got a chance to pick them all up and feel them to see how well they fleshed. While they are larger than the Heritage breeds their age they aren't meaty enough for me to get excited. At 10 weeks old they wouldn't do much for the table at all. 10 weeks is very early but unless they fatten up rapidly in the next 2 months I would say they are not worth it especially with only the females carrying the all black traits of the Ayam Cemani.

The Dorking X Red Ranger is at 4 weeks today, if it wasn't winter he would be out of the brooder. The brooder he is in does not allow me to grab them unless I have a fishing net so I can't feel him to know if he is fleshing up but he is outgrowing his brooder mates at a much more obvious rate than the A Cemani X R Rangers. I may be taking pictures later. Tonight is the last night below freezing for the next 10 days and that brooder could be emptied out after the frozen slush melts and the melt flooding stops.

The Cornish cross Red Ranger mixes are an interesting cross. I’ve got a rooster of that mix. He was in a pen with other grow out roosters and had free choice feed, he wasn’t as sluggish as his mom but he hit 20lbs at 6 months when everyone else was 5lbs.

 

[Compost King]

The Cornish cross Red Ranger mixes are an interesting cross. I’ve got a rooster of that mix. He was in a pen with other grow out roosters and had free choice feed, he wasn’t as sluggish as his mom but he hit 20lbs at 6 months when everyone else was 5lbs.

Oh wow, great info. I hope you made a thread about it. If not it's our loss. I would love to read more about such a cross. 20 pounds in 6 months is definitely impressive. I wonder what my Red Rangers weigh. I don't even reduce their feed because I wanted to see how long I could get away with giving the unlimited feed. So far 10 months and they still lay. The one in the Dorking pen flies up an down from a 4 ft high roost too. I made a smaller roost for her and she doesn't even use it as a step to get to the high roost.

 

[dan26552]

Oh wow, great info. I hope you made a thread about it. If not it's our loss. I would love to read more about such a cross. 20 pounds in 6 months is definitely impressive. I wonder what my Red Rangers weigh. I don't even reduce their feed because I wanted to see how long I could get away with giving the unlimited feed. So far 10 months and they still lay. The one in the Dorking pen flies up an down from a 4 ft high roost too. I made a smaller roost for her and she doesn't even use it as a step to get to the high roost.

Unfurtunatlt I did not have the foresight to make a thread about it
I only started feeding free choice at about 4 months, he grew more like a ranger up until that point. I think if he’d been given free choice to start with he probably would’ve been about 8lbs by 12 weeks or sooner. He dwarfs even his dad who’ve I’ve weighed at 15lbs He’s not currently as heavy as he was, I had to implement a new feeding regiment for him as I want to use him for a project. I’d say he’s around 15lbs at the moment. He’s my only one as I’ve had some trouble with his mom being a little big for even my ranger and so I get about 50% clear eggs and the others just don’t seem to be too thrifty when hatching. I had three make it to lockdown, externally pip and then quit on me The most interesting thing to me is I believe my hen throws sex links. The first time I hatched from her I got a black and a white chick. The black one died and the white one turned into Hulk, as I’ve named him The second time I put her under my Australorp rooster instead of my ranger and though none of those hatched when I cracked open the pipped eggs there were two colors, black and white. I don’t know if that’s true for any other hens but it was an interesting observation I think.
My red ranger hens will be 2 in March and are some of my better layers, 5 eggs a week on average. The biggest is about 10lbs and the other two are around 8. I’ve never withheld food from them and they’re just as active as everyone else. Yeah, they seem to be able to get up with everyone else just fine! I’ve had mine fly 4’ Fences before. Mine started laying last November and didn’t quit till this fall when they went into molt. I know at least one is laying again.

This is Hulk, he’s 8 months in these.

He makes normal sized hens look like bantams!