Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[RoseMarie1]

Here is a link to one of the caponizing threads, be advised before clicking the pics are graphic.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/675898/graphic-pics-of-my-day-learning-to-caponize

Thanx I think.....lol

 

[Kassaundra]

So crowing is the real issue and not so much the taste? Guess I never really thought about keeping roosters past 6 mo. anyway if they are extras, because you have to feed them past that age as well and I find the expense of feeding a bunch of roosters vs. gaining a little extra meat is not in my wheel house. I'd just break down and get meat birds if I was going to have to feed roosters for a year. I can't imagine a DP bird, capon, hen or rooster, getting more tender the longer you keep them around.

So the real issue is having birds that crow on the property but not so much about the taste of the bird. I can see where that doesn't compute with me because I don't use an incubator, nor do I hatch out large batches of chicks under a broody, so the issue of having a lot of crowing birds on hand has never really arisen. When you have an older rooster and then raise up younger ones, they don't often crow much...just the big cheese crows when crowing is to be done. Out where I live, I'm the only one to object if a rooster crows.

Neutering roos will not be in my game plan but I guess it's nice for folks who live in urban areas...I'd probably be more interested in it if I had to worry about neighbors or hatching with incubators and such.

Lack of crowing, lack of mounting and harassing females, lack of males aggression on male, more fat throughout meat, no testosterone making meat tough at older ages, get to hatch out your own chicks w/o having to buy new from the hatchery everytime.

 

[RoseMarie1]

I have some hens that have been trying to push me at the feed bucket lately..that's a first but has been happening since I cut rations. The rooster never dares to get that close to me when I'm bent over and working and that is the desired result. I wouldn't take it lightly next time it happens with your roo and I'd do more than knock him off...I'd give him a lesson in the pecking order he'd not soon forget. It's never too soon to start teaching good manners and never too late, even for old boys like my Toby and my old fat girls. I teach them if they get close enough to get handled, by golly, they are getting handled. Manners! They are important.

As it is, I am now training these hens to refrain from jamming in to the feed bucket when I am dishing out feed...I just "peck" them in the side when they do it and they get the message pretty quick. I had trained these cheap meat birds in this extra pen by touching them with the scoop when they'd rush the feeder while I was still dishing out the food. I wouldn't let them approach the feeder until I was out of the pen and closing the gate. They learned pretty quickly.

yeah I got him with my stick....but he is a determined one but I am also! LOL

 

[Kassaundra]

When I first got my chickens and discovered I had a boy in w/ my sexed girls, I wanted him (and all of them) to be my pets. After dealing w/ the aftermath of that, I have not made that same mistake twice!!!!! I don't want my roos love, I want his fear and awe! If I take a step in his direction I want him to trip over himself trying to give me all the room I need, and everytime he forgets his place (long before he thinks about attacking me) he gets water boarded, just b/c I can. I would actually eat this mistake but my husband is his grand protector and doesn't want me to kill him.

 

[Triple Willow]

When I first got my chickens and discovered I had a boy in w/ my sexed girls, I wanted him (and all of them) to be my pets.  After dealing w/ the aftermath of that, I have not made that same mistake twice!!!!!  I don't want my roos love, I want his fear and awe!  If I take a step in his direction I want him to trip over himself trying to give me all the room I need, and everytime he forgets his place (long before he thinks about attacking me) he gets water boarded, just b/c I can.  I would actually eat this mistake but my husband is his grand protector and doesn't want me to kill him.

Amen sista! LOL The other day my pullets were being pushy pigs at feeding time and I wasn't in the mood for it so I was shoving them out of the way and they were squawking about it sooo Big Roo comes over thinking about straightening me out. Before he could get that thought settled in his pea brain I whacked him with a plastic feed pan and he had a quick change of mind. LOL

 

[RoseMarie1]

Amen sista! LOL The other day my pullets were being pushy pigs at feeding time and I wasn't in the mood for it so I was shoving them out of the way and they were squawking about it sooo Big Roo comes over thinking about straightening me out. Before he could get that thought settled in his pea brain I whacked him with a plastic feed pan and he had a quick change of mind. LOL

lol I heard that.

 

[Darkangael]

Learned something else new today I did not know what Shmaltz was

 

[jajeanpierre]

Caponizing a Cornish cross is foolish in my opinion. The whole reason for caponizing is to allow the roo to grow past sexual maturity and gain weight and fat w/o the added boy hormones mucking up the meat keeping it tender and tastey. No crowing or hassle w/ the female chickens and no fighting between the males. None of these are a problem w/ cx as they are harvested long before any of this is a problem.

Anything castrated grows bigger.

 

[TexasLisa]

Good Morning Fellow Fermenters!!

I need some advice. I have two roos (20 weeks) and 12 girls (7 poults--20 wks, 7 hens--4 yrs). My boys have decided they are men. Out of 12 girls, they have zeroed in on one of my Australorps, Lena (4 yrs). Hellooooo, there are 11 other females in the flock, but they want her. What do I do? (I am watching her for stress, blood, etc.)


Lisa

 

[Triple Willow]

Good Morning Fellow Fermenters!!

I need some advice.  I have two roos (20 weeks) and 12 girls (7 poults--20 wks, 7 hens--4 yrs).  My boys have decided they are men.  Out of 12 girls, they have zeroed in on one of my Australorps, Lena (4 yrs).  Hellooooo, there are 11 other females in the flock, but they want her.  What do I do?  (I am watching her for stress, blood, etc.)


Lisa

Good morning Lisa. I've got one pullet that most of my roosters seemed to fall in love with. It was so weird, they treated her like a little queen. Do you plan on keeping both roos? Maybe it is compitition between the two of them. I would try taking one of them out and see what happens. Then maybe in a few days you can put him back in. Roosters are some strange creatures. I wish I knew how to get my two thugs to stop picking on the one Delaware roo that they have singled out..