Getting my first Cornish X tomorrow. Am I ready?

[jossanne]

I've got 10 cornish X chicks coming tomorrow from Ideal. I've got their brooder set up. It's a wooden enclosure that' about 3.5 ft. by 2 ft. I'm hoping this is big enough to keep them in for 2 weeks. What do you think? Will it work for a couple of weeks?

I've got 27% protein turkey feed for them. This is what my feed man recommended. Can I feed them this until butcher day?

I've read in McMurray's catalog that they recommend broiler booster to get the meaties started off right, but I didn't buy anything like that for these little guys. Will they start out ok on plain ol' fresh water? Or do I need to pick up some electrolyets for them or add sugar? Do they handle shipping as well as egg birds do?

I ordered straight run to save a few pennies. What will the size difference be between males and females come butcher day? Will I need to give the females any extra time to grow to butcher size?

We just butchered our first 12 packing peanut cockerels a couple of weeks ago, and I'm looking forward to seeing the difference between the CX's and the BR's dressed out. If this experiment with the meaties goes as planned, we plan to start buying them on a regular basis to feed our family.

 

[Mahonri]

Sounds to me like you've got it figured out.

 

[Want2BFarmer]

I have my first batch coming on March 31....let me know what you learn since I will be following in your footsteps

 

[obsessed]

I am 5 weeks into my first batch. I am feeding chick starter/grower cause that is all I can get. I think there will always be a debate about food and the protien ratio. I have this conversation with dog breeders as well. I think turkey food will work. It is more of a bigger faster thing with protein.


I started with 25. Three got eaten by the cat (bad kitty can jump). They need a heat lamp and the poop a lot. I ordered mine from Mcmurry and they are vigorous all made the trip healthy and happy. I am getting tired of them cause they smell. Good Luck.

 

[Harp Turkey Ranch]

Yeah you can feed them the higher protein, They will grow FASTER and get big !! You'll need to make sure to only feed them 12hrs a day NO MORE, with that high of protein. But all the 4H kids grow theirs with the high protein and it works, cost more to raise them and they get big fast that is about the only difference. The cost of the high protein feed is the big kicker for most!!!

 

[Want2BFarmer]

Do you keep yours outside in a tractor or do you just have a fenced in pen area?

 

[Harp Turkey Ranch]

Do you keep yours outside in a tractor or do you just have a fenced in pen area?

We don't raise the Cornish anymore after finding the Rangers, but at any rate they where always raised in a pen area. We don't believe in tractors/pasture pens. We feel that they are a glorified caged raising, not too much better then the conventional methods. The birds are not free to do what they want when they want. We feel they should be able to go where they want when they want and do what they want when they want. Plus the birds are way healthier and alot more happier in our eyes. Plus they get a ton more exercise then the tractor/pasture pen ways, making the meat way better.​

 

[jaku]

Your brooder sounds fine- just be sure to keep it clean. I always use the Broiler Booster- I don't even order birds from McMurray, just that. I don't know if it really does anything, but I've never had a single leg problem, and my losses have been minimal. It's only vitamins, so it's not like there are any chemicals you're adding. I don't know that it's crucial though. I'd add sugar for the first couple of days. They usually handle shipping fine. There will be a size difference, but not anything you need to worry about. You can always butcher your males a week early or the females a week late, but I personally don't mind a slight variation in size.

 

[jossanne]

Thanks all for the replies. They are very helpful.

Just for kicks, we paid $13.95 for 50 pounds of 28% turkey/game feed yesterday, and $14 for 50 pounds of 20% chick starter. So it doesn't look like it'll be much of a price difference to go with the turkey feed.

Growing fast is what we want... I'll be sure to limit the feed starting on day one.

 

[Want2BFarmer]

I planned on using chick starter for my birds .... is there any benefit to using turkey food. I have never heard of this before I started this post.