Delaware's for Meat

[enel 1]

I have raise thousands of Cornish X Cross broilers. I have found the best ways to raise them, the hatcheries I do well with, and the hatcheries I don't. However, my customer base is now under the impression that it is in-humane to raise these Cornish Crosses. I was wondering if anyone had any experience in Raising Delawares for meat. I am a numbers guy. Any numbers regarding feed intake, the final weight of the bird, how quickly they are raised. They are fairly good for egg production, and if the meat numbers add up I may just switch my entire operation to purebred Delawares, so I can save a few bucks and hatch my own hens. Share some numbers with me, and I'll be happy to share my numbers with you. Us local farmers have to stick together, sharing knowledge and information is hard sometimes, but it's something we all need to do. Best of luck to everyone, and I hope someone can help me!

if your already buying broiler chicks but your customers think its crule to raise commercial birds and your looking for an alternative, then what about the ranger type birds, they grow out a little slower but still have good feed convertion, I've been working on a range type roaster and am making good progress, but it still has grandparent and parent lines to produce them. I'll pm you some pics and maybe, over the next several months together we can work something out.

 

[Clsikes]

Did you find out any more info on the Delawares?

 

[Coles FreshEggs]

I have not. I am currently doing a trial for Barred Rocks though. I'll keep you updated if you want.

 

[Clsikes]

Yes, please. I am going to try out some barred rock crosses for my meat birds. I found some heritage birds, that I will breed to some heritage Delawares, and them cross those with some pure white Cornish chickens that I have. I hope to wind up a meaty bird that lays plenty of eggs, and grows fairly quick.

 

[Coles FreshEggs]

Goodluck!
Keep track of those numbers!

 

[LindaB220]

You might try breeding dels with a plymouth white rock. Hybrid vigor. Bigger, faster. Just a thought. I'm considering it.

 

[Coles FreshEggs]

That's a great idea! It's tough to keep the breeding stock around all year round, and justify the cost just to produce a couple hundred chicks twice a year.

 

[ijon]

If you want beautiful Delaware, try http://eight acres farm on the internet. I was there when I was in Florida. The lady has huge birds. One of her roosters was twelve pounds. She works to improve the breed.

 

[AlbionWood]

I grew some Delawares for meat and eggs a couple years ago. The hens are great layers of large eggs and excellent foragers, and I hope to always have some in my flock. The cockerels are relatively mild-mannerd, and those that went into the freezer did make excellent quality meat, fine-textured and flavorful, with carcass weights of 4 to 5 lbs at around 16 - 18 weeks. I cannot imagine trying to do that commercially though! The feed conversion ratio is terrible, and you have to hold the cockerels for at least a month after they start crowing... managing them seems like it would be a nightmare. Hens aren't going to produce much meat until 6 months, I suspect. Processing them is MUCH more difficult than CX - the feathers are tight, the body cavity is narrow and the breastbone is rigid - so it's difficult to get your hand inside for evisceration - I couldn't beleive how much easier the CX were.

I'd say try a small batch if you can, to get the feel for it and to test out your market. Everyone likes to hate on the CX until they are presented with a heritage bird carcass... and the price.

 

[sepaditty1]

I'm a newbie with a question. This is my first year raising birds for meat, so any & all advice is welcome. I was sort of encouraged to look beyond the cornich cross. I heard it called the frankenchicken. So, I ordered an assortment of heavy breeds from McMurray. A couple didn't make it, so I now have 24. I'm expecting these to be personal use, so customers opinions don't matter.

They are only 7 weeks old, so I'm. Not expecting to process them for another 5 weeks. (Tell me if that is correct.) Even though its my first time I. Am realizing that processing sooner would be more convenient. I'm ready for them to be out of my yard.

I guess my main question is, what is it about the cornish cross that everyone frowns on? Obviously the name itself denotes that it is not a purebred bird. What breeds are crossed to make then? Is there anything wrong with them?