Feeding cornish x rocks...

[ameador1]

I have 13 cornish x's and need some info on their feeding and habits.

They are now 10 days old (hatched 2 Saturday's ago). They are growing much faster than the egg-layers I got at the same time from MM (egg layers are Buff Orpingtons, Barred Rocks, and Black Austrakorps).

The cornish x's have been drinking more from the beginning and have only today, for the first time, surpassed the egg-layers in the amount of food they are eating (13 cornish x's, 13 egg layers).

I have noticed over the last day or two that the cornish x's seem to be breathing a little hard. Thay have always layed around quite a bit more than the others, but this heavier breathing - even when they are laying around is new. Is this normal? Is this just because of their size/weight?

Is there anything I should be doing special with their food and water? I have a supplement called Broiler Booster (from MM) that the cornish x's get in their water and I am feeding them Dumor Chcik Starter (24%).

 

[chicknhawaii]

I'm not sure if you're raising your Cornish X's for meat or pet...

They are prone to heart attacks and other maladies due to their speedy growth. They're bred to grow quickly and their systems cannot handle it sometimes. Cornish X produce A LOT of body heat so they could be panting to stay cool.

My Cornish X is a pet approaching 8 weeks old. She's not free-fed, we feed her 3-4 times a day in small amounts so she doesn't gorge herself. She eats Triple duty, like diet food I guess you could say, and has shade and water all the time. I don't put anything special in her water. I let her out several times a day as well for exercise and variety in her diet.

I do notice that since we changed her feed and let her exercise more, she's not panting as much and is moving around more than before. Maybe it's due to her new friends too lol...