Delaware roo X Cornish hen...will I get a decent meat bird?

[Cason]

YAY.. for you! I have five dark Cornish.. (can't tell sex for sure yet, but I think ONE is a rooster) Also have Delaware hens.. and a Delaware rooster. I'm going to be doing some experimenting too

 

[greyfields]

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Generally the cross goes the other way.

My Dark Cornish hens are average layers. They are not "poor layers", they just aren't spectacular. The eggs are more medium in size than large. They also do tend to go broody and I had at least 4 hens this year hatch their own clutches. They weren't even their own eggs by the looks of the offspring.

Your homegrown crosses will outperform any standard heavy breed chicken. However, you will not get 4-5lb birds and 8-10 weeks. Only custom bred broilers will give you those results. But, in the 12 week range I could see you getting 4 pounders.

 

[smith2]

I just crossed a big buff orpington roo with some red sex link hens and got some pretty big fryers/broilers. My dressed roos from that cross were in the 7# range. We were very happy with the result. I think the roos needs to be the bigger of the breeds to really help get the weight of the offspring up there. 'Course, my 17 yo son will eat anything without mold or moving on the table.

I have taken this child to the doctor twice to check for parasites because he is so skinny, but they have assured me there is NOTHING wrong with him. He is just a skinny eater.

 

[estpr13]

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At what age did you process them? 7# dressed is a great weight! Congratulations.

 

[shelleyb1969]

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I haven't found out yet about their lineage...but I will. I'll be posting pics of them this weekend to get some opinions of them. This trio is still very young, so it will be spring before any type of breeding happens with them anyways.

 

[shelleyb1969]

Now my next question. I've read that most of the time, when using a cornish roo for breeding, AI is best since the body structure of the cornish roo makes it difficult for them to service a hen. Is this somewhat true? I have really been thinking about this, and I just think that it would have to be very difficult for a cornish roo to chase down a Delaware hen and breed her. That is another reason why I was considering the Delaware roo/Cornish hen cross.

 

[greyfields]

I have Cornish roos. They have no problem mating at all. I have no idea how they would have gotten that reputation. Sure, they're a little more erect than your average chicken, but if that were true we wouldn't have Asils and all the asiatic breeds.

I think the biggest issue is most people don't know the difference between a "Cornish" and a "Cornish Cross". To add to the mystique, Cornish are known as "Indian Games" most everywhere else in the world.

 

[shelleyb1969]

Thanks, greyfields, for answering my question. That's why I initially started this post...to prove/disprove a lot of the info I have found by getting feedback by those who have first hand knowledge of this breed. It's actually very difficult to find information on the internet about the standard cornish breed. It's almost like the breed has become non-existent since the cornish cross were introduced. As well as doing a delaware/cornish project, I do plan on raising pure standard cornish as well.

 

[greyfields]

Well to make it even more confusing the "Cornish" and "Rock" they use to make a Cornish Cross are nothing at all like the standard breeds you get from hatcheries.

 

[Hattie the Hen]

Here in the UK They used to cross them with the Dorking to get a good table bird. I might have a go at it myself. The Dorking puts on weight very fast.