First time with meat birds... A couple of questions

[Dogfish]

I like the CX, but if you plan to keep birds for up to a year or so, go Freedom Rangers.

Me, I'll deal with the pain twice a year, raise two batches of CX and be done with it. A total of 4 months dealing with poopy birds. Two days of butchering vs. butchering on a regular basis. My only planning on having a chicken meal is to have the boys pull a chicken from the freezer and place it is a water bath after they get home from school. With Rangers, you would have to plan a day or two ahead to let the bird rest after you butcher. My feed cost will be less than yours, and I will spend less time setting up and breaking down my butchering stuff than you. My total time raising the birds will also be less than yours.

I like your idea, chicken "on the hoof", but you will spend more time and money on your birds. The birds towards the end of your cycle will be bigger than mine, so there is that plus, and your birds will not be frozen.

I'd be interested in seeing what process you go to.

 

[jettgirl24]

Seems like I need to do some thinking about how we want to do things. I can see where it's much more cost effective to do a breed like the cornish X and raise what you need then process all at once. I'm definitely going to think about doing dual purpose birds or the freedom rangers. I may be leaning toward a good dual purpose just because I could hatch my own after the initial investment in bird. My new bator can hold about 4 dozen eggs at a time, so I think with some planning we could easily have what we need all year round. It seems like the downside of the dual purpose would be the slower growth rate. Freedom Rangers might be a good middle ground at least to start out with. I'll keep researching and thinking about it and I'll definitely update you guys on what I decide to do.