Giving Cornish Rock X Chicks Extra Calcium???

[Egg_newton]

We got some meaties Friday and I know they can have a lot of leg and joint problems from growing so fast. Is it safe to give them oyster shell for extra calcium to help prevent the bone and joint issues?

 

[Sam208]

good post ive got some comeing in about 2 weeks i was wanting to know the same thing.
sorry it not the answer you wanted

thanks

 

[mmwb]

It'll be interesting to see what some "in the know" will have to say. I can only speculate, but expect that the leg problems are a congental defect, not due to a deficit in diet.

CornishXs are a specialized breed. Many specialized breeds have a genetic propensity to some problems. For example, it is my understanding that labs have a tendency to hip problems.

I've not raised a lot of cornishXs, but I never have had leg problems. Some other posters, I've noted, don't appear to either. I'm curious if the rate of both leg problems and heart attacks varies among chicks from different hatcheries. I've been told that the dark cornish have fewer problems than the white cornish, though they tend to lag a couple of weeks behind in growth rate. I tried the dark cornish this year and they are--at 6 weeks--between two and thre times the size of our RIRs of the same age.

Sorry, I wandered off topic a bit...

 

[cassie]

I can tell you this. The broiler feed rations are designed for raising meat birds. If you start fooling with the calcium ratio you can cause a lot more harm than good. I have seen puppies and colts with skelatal problems that looked like rickets but were instead caused by too much calcium given to them by well meaning but misinformed owners. I cannot believe that chickens would be any different. You can minimize the leg problems in meat chickens by doing the following. Have the feed and water on opposite sides of the pen so they have to walk a bit from one to the other. Limit the feed to twelve hours on and twelve off starting at about a week to ten days of age. Supplement the water with Murray McMurrays's Broiler Booster or the vitamin pak mad for broilers from Welp Hatchery.

 

[jaku]

Quote:
I completely agree with Cassie. Give them broiler feed and use the Broiler Booster from McMurray. That's exactly what I do and it works great.