Freedom rangers?

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Singlemaple

Singlemaple

Songster
9 Years
Jan 27, 2010
194
4
126
Merrimack NH
Right now i have 97 RR roosters that i am raising for meat... ( had 100 )

the RR roosters i have right now are around 12 wks they are about 4 lbs I'm guessing, they are heading to freezer camp first weekend in December and hopefully will be a few pounds more.


I have been reading about freedom ranger's to raise for meat and i was wondering if any of you guys had more information/experience on this breed and had any suggestions for hatchery's to buy them from in the spring.

thank you
- Hanaah
 
I've raised about 75 or 100 FR's. I've raised about the same amount of X-rocks. I prefer x-rocks over FR's because x-rocks grow bigger and quicker on less feed and they tend to mature about the same time.
 
We raised FR this spring/early summer - and like Wendy, documented it all here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/648295/freedom-rangers-in-illinois We ordered ours through www.freedomrangerhatchery.com and discovered that despite shipping only three states away (PA to IL), ours went from Philly to Boston to Fort Worth to St. Louis to Chicago. So it took a lot longer to get them than it should have. Not sure why they went that way, no one at USPS could tell me...but my favorite Postal Clerk suggested to ship the chicks Express (yes, costs about as much as the chicks did!), but that was the only guaranteed delivery option.

We *just* finished the same amount of CX's (25 birds) today, purchased through Welp Hatchery. Overall, for our situation, I think the CX are the better choice for us.
Why? Two reasons - 1. the boys didn't EVER crow. Ever. Did see some 'cockeral' behaviors (fighting, guarding hens, mounting hens), but because we're suburban, the lack of noise is a huge plus! 2. Less 'fluff' to get rid of. Yes, more poo (even using FF and ACV in water). But having less feathers about makes it easier to minimize notice from our one particularly nosy neighbor.

I'm STILL finding FR feathers about our yard (now that I'm raking leaves) - that's 4 1/2 months later! And yes, I do find feathers from our layers also....but the CX are much, much less fluffy, I think they left me a handful in the yard, not wheelbarrow-ful's!.

Why I like FR's as a bird - personality. They were chickens through and through. Busy, active, foraging, curious. Waddled around and took interest in what I was doing by being right beneath my feet. A couple of the cockerals I would have preferred to go sooner, as they became slightly aggressive and cranky towards us. Once the 'bossy boots' were gone, the flock was much better to be around. Except for being exceptionally large, these were ordinary chickens up to the end.

Why I like CX as a bird - personality. They were 'pigs on stilts' in that they didn't forage as much, were much less active, unable to roost - so ground cover became critical after week 5 or so. They did learn that bugs were tasty, grass was delicious and sunshine was fabulous. But due to their body size, found life difficult after about week 8. A lot less moving around and a lot more 'couch potato' behavior. But until that point, they acted like ordinary chickens - although they never did learn to let me INTO the gate to feed them...they kept trying to get OUT to get the feed! These were friendly also, and a few became 'super friendly'. But I could tell they were just not physically comfortable by week 10 or thereabouts. They'd waddle to a spot of sunshine, poo, take two steps forward and lie down. And stay there for an hour or more. Very interested in what was going on, but just didn't have the physical stamina to come find out.

Overall, we really liked the FR's - but because the boys started crowing at about week 9, I doubt we'll grow them again. Just not worth the risk to not be able to have any for us (zoning limits how many birds we can have). And that's a LOT of feed to try to keep them beyond table use.

The FR's got to be somewhere between 3#8oz to 4#8oz at 11wks
The CX got to be somewhere between 4#8oz to 6# at 11wks
Used about the same amount of feed; although FF and ACV certainly helped the CX's digestive 'issues'.
I hope this helps you. Keep reading here, there's much information to be gleaned from these posts!
 
It sounds like you have an interest in birds for other than just pure meat production. I snapped a couple of "poor" phone pics this afternoon out at the farm. The CX roo is from Feb. of this year and the FR hens are from early April. We just penned them off separate so we'll start saving eggs in a few weeks. The second pic is one of the FR roos. They are tipping the scales in the 12lb range. There is probably 7 or so we need to do something with. I'd like to pen off a FR roo with some of the RR hens to see what that would throw.





 
I wish I could meet you at the border with a box full (unfortunately, I'm on the Gulf Coast.) Could you "slip" the eggs back in and hatch them yourselves? (I tend to be the sneaky type)
 
"Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote"

As much as I can't advocate an illegal act . . .

The SOBs that decided this would be illegal do so with dirty hands. I'm just say'n, we could "eventually" get you eggs you could hatch that would be genetically "similar" to the FR. I think you'd be pleased.
 
I raised 35 Freedom Rangers this past summer and was pleased with the results. I lost four to a predator one night and decided to keep two of the pullets and one of the roosters but the rest were butchered and tucked away in the freezer. We've eaten at least 10 so far and they are delicious
 

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