Help!first time to raise cornish X.

[yook2000]

I will go to pick up my cornish X chicken this afternoon. I try to raise them more organic. So I only buy the cracked corn and soy bean meal from the feed store. Can I only feed them these two feed, and what is the ration between them? Should I add oyster shell or vitamine too? Thank you.

 

[homestead tim]

I'm not sure that your mix will supply the protein they need to grow.

 

[krcote]

I think you should feed them a balanced commercial diet. A homemade diet like the one you mentioned will lack in protein and many other essentials. These birds grow so quickly that they will need something much more complete for their very short lives.

 

[turtlebird]

There are many organic broiler/grower feeds available. Does your feed store offer any of these? (I didn't look to see where you are posting from) The prepared grower feeds have the proper ratios of protein/carbs/fats/essential vitamins, etc.
Oyster shell is a supplement that provides calcium to laying hens for strong egg shells. It is not necessary for cornishX broilers.
Do some more reading on these Meat Bird threads in regard to feed choices and feeding schedules to have the best success.
Have fun with your project and watch them grow (and grow and grow!)

 

[yook2000]

Yes, my local store does have organic feed. But they are much more expensive than the commerical. I want to raise my meat birds more organic, but don't want to pay too much. That is why I choose to use corn and beans. The soy bean has 47% protein. They may have enough protein to the cornish. I used to feed soy bean only for my meat quails and get a very good meat. While I know they are much different from the cornish.
I am in new haven county, CT. Any one know the cheaper organic feed sold in this area?

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

Soybean meal is high protien 44-48% and corn is on the low end likely down near 12%. However, even if you did blend to get something closer to 18-20% the diet may be lacking in other nutrients. Another problem is rough mixed food gets pecked through. Funny the X rocks I have right now won't touch cracked corn and will go to great effort to pick out the feed pellets and then will even go and eat grass before choking down the corn, yet layers and turkeys go nuts for cracked corn... weird.

Certified organic feed can be a problem to find in some places and the price can be plain stupid, if you are going to mix your own likely be well worth the effor to do some reading, look at the ingedients of commercial rations and come up with a mix that will cover the nutritional needs of the birds. A lot of time has been spent working out feeding programs for the broilers, best stick with what has been shown to work, too rich a feed and they flop over dead or run into leg problems, too much corn, grain or starchy fillers and they get fat without producing quick lean mass which is the very reason to raise a fast broiler in the first place.

 

[jenny_kap]

well, people used to grow chickens much before the chicken food factories showed up. so, it is possible to grow them with cracked cereals, as i do too. it is true, my birds are not 7-8 pounds big at 8 weeks old, but they are decent size. i'm happy with them as they are. i will butcher on saturday, i hope.

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

Very true, if you don't put in the right food you sure don't get market sized birds with low losses in 6-8 weeks. That said if getting quick gains are not priority enough to feed them accordinly then the whole idea of raising fast broilers comes into question. Might be better off with old school traditional breeds with are more hardy and adaptive feed wise.

When a batch of 100 broilers eats over a half ton of food it starts to make a lot of sense to look at bulk food, I am thinking on getting a 1000lb tote of 12% all stock feed next go and build on that with soy, flax and some other stuff to balance it out. But have some reading to do and going to talk to some farmer friends that mix their own for different animals.