I hope this works this time. We still have seven Cornish Xs. They have to be some of the healthyist on earth of this breed, after all I've read about their mortality rate. Ours are 23 weeks old, today. LOL!! As I said, they are quite healthy!! They run, fly, fight, & yes, even try to mate. ROFL!! The mating part is a sight to see. They are so heavy that they just end up both falling on the ground & panting. LOL!! Nothing ever really happens. Anyhoo...This is my test to see if we can finally post pics. Hope this works.
OOOPS!! Wrong critter...lol. These hopefully will be some shots of our Cornish Xs. Like I said, 23 weeks & still lively....These creatures are a crack up. They all have a personality of their own. It's almost a shame to take them out. We tried not to get attached to them but, they are just too funny. Our laying hens don't have this much personality. Unfortunately, they will be culled tomorrow. I just wanted to get some last shots of our first meat chickens. The biggest roo weighs a little over 22lbs. live weight. I think we have our T-day turkey...lol! http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/18008.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/18006.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/18005.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/17006.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/17005.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/17003.jpg
Clean cornish x's. I haven't had bad mortality with them... but like you are dong, I raise in small numbers. Don't forget to age really good now since they are older. Running around = tough. Let them sit in the fridge at LEAST 2 days... if no more, else you'll have 10 lbs of rubber.
These are a couple shots of our PROTECTOR!! His name is Lancelot. He is such a great roo. While he will attack the other roos, he will still protect them from danger. If there is even the slightest squack, he is running for it. He will even attack our pitbull....lol The pics don't show it well but, he is losing feathers on his wings & neck, badly. He is starting to look half plucked. Is this molting? None of our hens are doning this. Could it be fleas? We are worried about this. He is the Protector of the flock. http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/17001.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/17002.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/17007.jpg http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff118/jameskirk78/17008.jpg
Thanks for the comments, ppl!! These birds are our first chicken raising experience & we are rather proud of them. We diefinitely won't have Cornish this long again. Them critters can eat their weight in food. LOL!! As far as aging them, YEAH, I know. I have a feeling the stew pot & the hand grinder are going to be used for these birds. We call them tanks. LOL!!