GRAPHIC PICS of my day learning to caponize

[LindaB220]

BCMariniac, being totally newbie on this I'm very interested in the Marins. You seem to love the taste of them. Are they easy to raise or noisy? I'm wanting to try white rocks and light sussex (very tasty I hear). I don't have my kit ordered yet but soon. Ahhhh, money constraints. ha

 

[BCMaraniac]

Linda,

In all reality, I am a newbie as well, I just jumped in with more than two feet a year and a half ago!

I don't really have experience with meat birds other than the CX and the Red Ranger. I decided to learn to caponize, and the first attempts were black and blue copper marans. They were unsuccessful, but I raised the birds, who developed all of the characteristics of a rooster. I butchered them at 8 months of age, and they were much more flavorful than the hybrids. However, keep in mind that the CX are butchered as babies, really, and the Red Rangers only a few weeks older than the CX at processing time. So the flavor could have to do with age, which many will say is better in the older birds. The downside to the age and increased flavor, however, is the tenderness of the meat......which is where the caponizing comes in. I have not eaten a Marans capon yet, so the verdict is not in yet.

They have been easy to raise, and are actually very quiet.....and they even go to bed early.

If you decide to get Marans, just be prepared for the hens to go broody, which happens frequently. If you are raising chicks, that is not necessarily a bad thing....but if not, it can be a pain. I like the thoughts of a broody hen......she does my work for me raising chicks. I had 3 sets of chicks from two hens this past summer.

Marans are good foragers too.

 

[BCMaraniac]

Hi BCM. We just don't have anything to keep any chicks in at the moment. DH is working on finishing up the 2nd chicken tractor, but it is for a breeding duo. I want ti see if I can get some Barred Rock babies. After that, we have nothing to put an order of chicks in. I will just keep reading here and learning as I go along. Both of the first hatches this past summer had too high of a ratio to cockerels and hens.

My very first brooder was a watering trough that we had when we had horses. It was made out of rubberized material, not metal. Then my husband saw some heavy wooden shipping crates at work that were opened and discarded. So his boss let him have a couple of those, which he modified a bit to put a wire mesh lid on top of. He got another one a few weeks ago, and I think he and my son are going to work on it in the basement tomorrow since the weather will likely be too wet to do anything outside.

He must think that I am getting ready to have a new career raising chicks.....or he want a lot of chicken in the freezer!

 

[Bitterroot]

BCM, you wouldn't happen to sell hatching eggs from time to time, would you?

I've been itching for some blue coppers.

I've got a big box brooder built, but am going to turn it into two separate brooders and place them out in the garage for older chicks. I found this design while surfing youtube one night and really like the idea of a wire floor that can be removed to be cleaned.

I purchased the plans from them, here:
http://www.northwestredworms.com/Pages/Chickencoopsandchickens.aspx

And while I can say I'm not terribly impressed with $7 for plans that ended up being mailed to me and amounted to one sheet of paper printed on both sides with an aging color cartridge and pictures that could have been larger/more detailed, there is enough there that I think I could build this easily. I've brooded in the house before, and I figure I'll keep chicks inside for at least the first week, until I feel like they're past that delicate first week when I check on them constantly.

Anyhow, just wanted to toss another option out there for anyone eyeballing brooders.

 

[AletaG]

BCM, you wouldn't happen to sell hatching eggs from time to time, would you?

I've been itching for some blue coppers.

I've got a big box brooder built, but am going to turn it into two separate brooders and place them out in the garage for older chicks. I found this design while surfing youtube one night and really like the idea of a wire floor that can be removed to be cleaned.

Anyhow, just wanted to toss another option out there for anyone eyeballing brooders.

Heya... good idea! I'd love to build something from scratch but for now I'm working with what circumstances landed me at the mo'... The 2nd refridgerator died, so I am making the 'freezer' into a sick bay... got a young chkn in it at the moment who seems very happy as long as it over 30deg, and it's been 15 or so at night outside. Since he's destined for the table as a capon, going to keep the little booger around. The bottom half I'm playing with a heating system. As soon as I can maintain 85 or so, will move the 3 chicks from my first hatch evah from the hatcher finally. I've got them down to about that temp already, so that's good.
Reminds me, I need to go back out to the garage and check temps, it's been 12 hours since the last fiddle attempt...

 

[BCMaraniac]

BCM, you wouldn't happen to sell hatching eggs from time to time, would you?

I've been itching for some blue coppers.




.

I tried to get blue coppers earlier this year, and ended up getting only 1 pullet, and the rest were cockerels, which are in the freezer. I think that these birds were feather sexed early, and pullets were bought by someone before I got there....so the long and short of it is that I am going to try to get eggs from the same person this year, get the full hatch, keep the pullets, and caponize the cockerels. So, I am not going to have any eggs, and will be lucky to get blues myself this coming year since I only have one blue pullet.....

I wish I had some to send you. We could do a little bartering with FW rabbits.....I am thinking (not quite to the itching stage...LOL) about them.

 

[BCMaraniac]

I tried to get blue coppers earlier this year, and ended up getting only 1 pullet, and the rest were cockerels, which are in the freezer. I think that these birds were feather sexed early, and pullets were bought by someone before I got there....so the long and short of it is that I am going to try to get eggs from the same person this year, get the full hatch, keep the pullets, and caponize the cockerels. So, I am not going to have any eggs, and will be lucky to get blues myself this coming year since I only have one blue pullet.....

I wish I had some to send you. We could do a little bartering with FW rabbits.....I am thinking (not quite to the itching stage...LOL) about them.

Bitterroot,

I just texted my source, and he isn't going to sell any eggs......just chicks.

 

[BCMaraniac]

I tried to get blue coppers earlier this year, and ended up getting only 1 pullet, and the rest were cockerels, which are in the freezer. I think that these birds were feather sexed early, and pullets were bought by someone before I got there....so the long and short of it is that I am going to try to get eggs from the same person this year, get the full hatch, keep the pullets, and caponize the cockerels. So, I am not going to have any eggs, and will be lucky to get blues myself this coming year since I only have one blue pullet.....

I wish I had some to send you. We could do a little bartering with FW rabbits.....I am thinking (not quite to the itching stage...LOL) about them.

@Bitterroot , I have a possible lead on a couple of splash roosters, so if that pans out, I will cover my black coppers with the splash which would give me all blues! I will keep you posted on the egg situation.

 

[Bitterroot]

@Bitterroot , I have a possible lead on a couple of splash roosters, so if that pans out, I will cover my black coppers with the splash which would give me all blues! I will keep you posted on the egg situation.

Squee! Yes, please do!
I hope your search for local FW breeders is turning out to be equally as fruitful.

 

[BCMaraniac]

I made a picture of one of my 25 week old capons:



Sorry Kaussandra, but I am not a photographer.....LOL

I weighed him today and he is 8 pounds 3 ounces.

UPDATE: I weighed this guy again today. He is almost 29 weeks and weighed in at 9 pounds +/- 1 oz. That would give me a gain of about 3 ounces per week over the past 4 weeks. Not too bad, I guess. I will see where he is in another 4 weeks.

I have another that I weighed today for the first time and he topped out right at 8 pounds. Still decent size, I think.