Freedom ranger report 7 weeks in

[Poupoulles]

This is our third time raising FR, we got fifty biddies March 15th. They are all roos somehow.
They have been on range for 2.5-3 weeks at this point.
We feed a 20% protein, though sometimes it has run to 24% when we had to give them the turkey feed like when we run out, oops!

-I just weighed the biggest- a monster named "mister speckles" and he weighs seven pounds!

-I noticed one cannot walk today he is small and puny. He weighs five pounds. Most are closer to Mister Speckles size.
-They are starting to crow!!
-They are scheduled to be processed May 24th.

Here are some things I have noticed. They are much much more like the CX than the first batch I raised a couple years ago. I guess JM hatchery has been "improving" its lines. They are much so that I went ahead and ordered CX, for my next batch (in the brooder now) something I swore I would never do again. But the FR seem every bit as gross as the CX, have somewhat smaller breasts and they are somewhat mean and bullyish to boot! So why even fool with a less pretty carcass if I still have the yuk factor?

Which puts me back to square one in the meat department. I have talked to poultry associations about getting into heirloom dual purpose breeds. This only seems economical as a breeder, not as a grower which I consider myself. We sell at farmers markets and this is not Manhatten nor yet DC, so I cannot charge crazy premiums for something that looks like a rubber chicken. It seems that if I wanted to do the dual purpose route, say, Delawares. I would need to breed my own and raise a certain amount for meat and keep some for breeding. I still need to work some numbers and would appreciate any direction there. But to raise between 100-200 meat birds per year it seems like I would have to have a pretty big flock. As an example my laying flock is only about 25 hens and two roosters. And I don't know bubkiss about breeding. I just let my laying hens make more laying hens and live and let live. (though I eat those little roos)

Anyway, thats the word here on FR version 3.0!
back to the drawing board.

 

[Beekissed]

What causes them to be gross?

 

[Buster52]

Yours is a compromise I have reluctantly decided to accept this year. The Cornish Cross is not a sustainable bird and it comes from a factory farm breeding system, both of which I was trying to avoid. But alas, it is important to me to give the folks in my community a local choice, raised humanely and in a sustainable manner. In order to sell to the public, I must give them what they are looking for, and do it without breaking the bank.

Mine or theirs.

So, sometimes compromises must be made. I have launched into raising CX this year and am selling at the farmers market. It's going okay so far, but whether or not it will be practical or economical remains to be seen.

Interesting comparison between CX and FR meat birds. This is the first time I have seen an assessment like this.

 

[Peruvian]

Yours is a compromise I have reluctantly decided to accept this year. The Cornish Cross is not a sustainable bird and it comes from a factory farm breeding system, both of which I was trying to avoid. But alas, it is important to me to give the folks in my community a local choice, raised humanely and in a sustainable manner. In order to sell to the public, I must give them what they are looking for, and do it without breaking the bank.

Mine or theirs.

So, sometimes compromises must be made. I have launched into raising CX this year and am selling at the farmers market. It's going okay so far, but whether or not it will be practical or economical remains to be seen.

Interesting comparison between CX and FR meat birds. This is the first time I have seen an assessment like this.

Thank you for the excellent perspective, Buster.

As small producers we can not expect to break a 50 year old system quickly. The general public is just again starting to learn that there is another source of food beyond the supermarket. Providing them with items that they are familiar with in the setting of a farmer's market, direct sales, etc. is an initial step. Most folks won't purchase a bird that has been ethically raised on pasture, etc. if it doesn't look like what they think a chicken should look like.

 

[Poupoulles]

What causes them to be gross?

They super fast digestion means they poop about three times as much as a laying hen. They also live their lives to eat. So they hang out close to the feeders. They dont run around the yard or play in the grass. They sit in their own feces rather than get up and move. They are couch potatoes to the core. They are Americans, basically.

The brooder is inevitably disgusting and has to be changed almost constantly, as opposed to layers who scratch and fluff their bedding and you only have to get the clumps up. (I do deep bedding in the brooder)

I have their number though! I put the food out in the pasture and make them come and get it. The next day I move it to a different place. (I have to put some shade over it of course because they will just sit there and bake rather than be away from the food!) Sometimes I go out there and just herd them along like sheep, just to make them walk through the grass. Poor things!

I also feed 12 on, 12 off. And I make sure and have lots of feeder space for them.

When I got FR two years ago they ran around the pasture quite a bit. This batch are behaving exactly like CX, with a few exceptions. (sigh)

 

[Beekissed]

I've solved the gross factor on CX by feeding once or twice a day, feeding regular protein levels and feeding fermented feeds while offering free range. The FF reculture their bowels so that the stool aren't so frequent, aren't so liquid and stinky and look like regular chicken poop~in essence, they are able to retain more of their moisture and nutrients feeding in this manner. They still poop as frequently, I'm sure, but it lacks that nasty factor. They don't sit by the feeders because there is nothing in the feeders unless I place it there, so their excess hunger drives them out to forage and this they do for probably 50% of their daily nutrition. Most of their feces is dropped out on pasture, thereby placing it just where it needs to be.

No gross or lazy CX here at my place.

 

[Birde]

Those cornishrock I call superpoopers. They are gross. You can't let them range feed when they are young. Mine will be harvested at about 3 months. Basicly when they are big enough, so they live in a run 10 by 25 with a few other babies. I try to confine them at night because when they sleep they poop a lot. It cuts done the yuck factor & that hay I dry for fertilizer. I can't wait till they are gone!

 

[Poupoulles]

I've solved the gross factor on CX by feeding once or twice a day, feeding regular protein levels and feeding fermented feeds while offering free range. The FF reculture their bowels so that the stool aren't so frequent, aren't so liquid and stinky and look like regular chicken poop~in essence, they are able to retain more of their moisture and nutrients feeding in this manner. They still poop as frequently, I'm sure, but it lacks that nasty factor. They don't sit by the feeders because there is nothing in the feeders unless I place it there, so their excess hunger drives them out to forage and this they do for probably 50% of their daily nutrition. Most of their feces is dropped out on pasture, thereby placing it just where it needs to be.

No gross or lazy CX here at my place.

Now that is terrific! Is there a post about how to ferment the feed? I have added ACV to their water and noticed some reduction in yuckiness. I would love to be able to make my life more pleasant. it bugs me that industrial turkeys are so responsive and charming and fun and LOVE to be on pasture, while the industrial chickens have just not responded to my attempts to improve their lives. I will look at the fermented feed option.
THANKS!

 

[Beekissed]

Here's one of them:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/644300/fermenting-feed-for-meat-birds

Not only does the FF seem to keep their digestion healthier but it really extends the feed and saves money. It's really a win/win situation with these birds and I wish I had been doing it all along with my layers and the CX I did last time. I'll probably not go back to regular dry feeding after trying this.

 

[Life is Good!]

Your FR came from JM Hatchery? This site: http://www.freedomrangerhatchery.com/ ?
That is where our 25 came from and they act every bit like our layers, except they love the feeder a bit more! Otherwise, they run around, chase and eat bugs - yes, poo everywhere (but so do the Black Java's we raise as layers).....I've had to put a top on their tractor, as they're FLYING over a 40" tall fence! Go figure.....
Sorry to hear your batch are unusual....