Finally took the plunge

[yotetrapper]

Bought 15 cornish broilers from the farm store today. Right now they're alternately eating and sleeping lol. I'm sure I'll have more questions as I go along, since these are my first cornish, but the only one I have right now is when do I switch from chick food to meatbird food?

Thanks,
Angela

 

[4-H chicken mom]

You may want to give them some type of broiler booster in there water. They grow at such a fast rate, they could use a little help building their legs. Good luck

 

[Want2BFarmer]

I will get mine in a week ... where are you keeping you chicks right now and how are they doing....I have my tractor built but the brooder is still not ready. I want to keep them in the kitchen if only for a week or two just so the wife and I can enjoy them but everyone says they stink. What do you think... and best of luck...where did you get them and lets see some pictures when they get bigger

 

[yotetrapper]

I got them from a local farm store. They originally came from Welp hatchery. I have them in the house at the moment. I hear they stink bad too, and they DO poop a lot, but so far no smell. I dont plan on them being in here for more than a week though. Then they will go out in an unheated building with their brooder light.

Still wondering when to switch from chick starter to meatbird food.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

You can make the switch at 2 weeks.

Good luck.

 

[Guitartists]

Lordy... I only have 2... thank goodness as they are with my other chicks... they poop bigger poops than my adult birds!

LOL They're 4-5 weeks old now I think. HUGE monster birds! LOL The other chicks keep trying to get on and under them thinking they are hens!

 

[ibpboo]

Just keep the cage clean, and they won't stink that bad. lol
And they do grow fast. i bought one with some other chicks once, and it grew so fast, it did become their mother, sat on them every night and they all kept each other warm!

 

[jaku]

I never give mine chick starter- just broiler feed all the way through. As for keeping them indoors, if you're planning on putting them out anyway, do it now- for the first few days there isn't much smell, but after that, it's a horrible ammonia smell and it will stick in your house even after the birds are gone. Don't worry too much about them getting cold outside- I put mine out with a heat lamp in the barn/in a brooder from day one, and we have below freezing temps at night right now. Meat birds don't need careful temperature monitering like layers.