Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[chicks4fun]

I get whichever grains are on sale and in stock when I go get the grains. lol

thanks---I understand that, for sure, as it really adds up quickly. Some days I think they eat better than we do. LOL

 

[chicks4fun]

Oh, wanted to post pics of the nice(r) poos my CX chicks now have after being on ACV fermented organic starter for nearly 2 weeks, and also a pic of the feeder I built last night- a temporary solution until they are out of the cardboard box.

I just love the feeder---I really do have to make one of these

They are nice looking birds!

 

[vfem]

How do you get no flies w/ FF???  The Okie flies love FF.

Yep... I got flies all around the FF. They are flies around the cornish tractor coop too. Even though their poo is great now and they aren't smelly, the flies go for it anyways.

At least I know that certain section of my yard will have super thick grass when the chickens are gone! LOL

I was going to process this weekend, but my birds are just not holding better then 5 lbs right now. Even with the constant feed of the FF 3-4 times a day. Each bird is eating about 2-3 cups each throughout the day. Plus bugs and grass from the moving tractor. (Plus there is a pig of a duck in with them who is getting moved out to the pond next week since it turned out to be a girl.)

Right now the birds are getting 50/50 flock raiser/scratch. I'm being told no flock raiser all scratch, no scratch just corn, neither and get broiler feed or don't wait the time go back to the chick starter for the FF.

I'm about to go buy 1 more bag of feed and I need to know which one! Everyone else is on a mix of layer and flock raiser!

Or honestly, does it even matter? Seriously!??! I want these guys done in like 1-2 weeks max!

 

[bj taylor]

really glad to see beekissed back. have missed your posts. you mentioned your birds being cooped up these last two weeks. how did they handle such confinement after being free-ranged for so long? did you have unusual aggression?
sure wish i could have been with you when you processed. so much to learn.

 

[Beekissed]

They didn't like it one bit but no aggression towards each other....but I about lost a finger or two at feeding time.

I'm trying to stay off the forums for a bit...it was taking over a good bit of my mind and time for a bit. Not good.

Vfem...did you get your birds from Central Hatchery like me? If you did, no amount of feeding these birds up are going to work, I don't think. They are just substandard CX, IMO. They were fed more than my last group and my last group were 10 lbs live weight by 8 wks....these are now 10 wks and not a bird would go over 6-7 lbs, even after two weeks off free range. They are shorter, have a shorter body and breasts and just don't have the double muscling that my last CX had. It has nothing to do with the feed...both groups were fed the same feeds except the last group were only fed once a day! This group have had more feed, better nutrition of the FF, more good foraging opportunities, etc., and they still don't measure up.

I'll not buy from them again. Great foragers, great health....but small finished product.

One person stated they were not true CX but more DP birds than CX...this I can now see. They forage as well as DP, have similar body structure of the DP and, though they look like the CX in body style and ugliness, they just don't get big enough.

BJ, I thank you and I sure wish you could be here too....50 CX by myself have been no treat. After doing the first 12 as usual, plucking and all, I decided they weren't worthy of that level of care in processing. Now I just split open that breast skin, take off the breasts, take off the thighs and legs and toss the rest...I hate to waste the little bits but they don't have enough meat on them to warrant all that effort.

Sure makes processing easy now....I drop the tailgate on the old truck, bring a bucket of water and two paring knives and kill 6 birds each morning. I just use the tailgate itself to kill them and use it as my processing table as well. Clean, quick, easy, fast.

 

[shadowmane]

I think I'm getting more earwigs than flies. Though I have opened the trash can and had a swarm of tiny flies fly out.

 

[KeilFamilyFarm]

I havent had a fly problem at all in Western Washington. We are FF cracked corn, oats, barley, wheat and chicker starter non-medicated plus some bread that we recieved for free that went "bad" at the food bank

 

[Kassaundra]

I see a trend developing here, north = no flies, south = many flies.

All that oogleing (sp) the hot male actors on the crime shows wasn't for nothing!!!

 

[lprofancik]

Beekissed, where did you order you good batch of CX from? We have a group right now that isn't growing well and I need to find another place to buy from. Thanks!

 

[Beekissed]

Beekissed, where did you order you good batch of CX from? We have a group right now that isn't growing well and I need to find another place to buy from. Thanks!

Unfortunately I got them at TSC a few years ago and they can never tell you exactly where they get their chicks....they seem very vague and say they get them from various hatcheries. The chicks I saw at TSC this year were just as small as those I got from Central Hatchery, which were almost half the size of the ones I got from TSC in the first batch. Go figure!