HERE is where we are going to talk about a sustainable meat bird flock

[Brunty_Farms]

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It's fine... most people think that way. Which is why I'm breeding these hens over a buckeye rooster, I want people to see how they can benefit from using these crosses in some of their own. I would have loved to keep back some cornish x roosters but none were good enough to make the final cut. So I settled with the buckeye Rooster.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

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Dead serious... where did you get the hogwash from? I don't have to AI anything... they breed just as natural as any other chicken... Cochins have lower fertility rates than the hens I'm dealing with.

The legs will not give out? Again where did you here that from? "some tube of some sort" Come on... they are chickens not lab rats.

All natural here... what point would I have if I didn't do things the natural way?

I think what many have a hard time wrapping their head around, is that the X, if pastured, have extremely good health. They in fact are capableof roosting as well.
We have done it, and only had one problem out of 48.

Regardless, this is heading off topic again

Your right... being able to forage for pasture and insects plays a huge role... I think that goes really with any animal that everyone has been talking about in this thread.

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

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Are quail good? How would someone describe the taste?

I gotta admit I havent tried em but I have learned,even if you eat an old bird it will not be tough,you can cook the meat a but rarer than chicken.They are very easy to butcher,start laying eggs at 6-12 weeks of age.Im pretty sure if your just looking for meeat and dont mind to spend alot more money go for bobwhite,if you want a fast growing bird go for coturnix.They taste mainly like chicken with a touch of gaminess to them.

You can now buy quail at most Walmarts. Try them, you will like them and home grown is better!

 

[pringle]

Imagine crossing a cornish x with a leghorn whoa!

 

[Overeasyplz]

I don't know if I mentioned this in my quail meat post but not only am I working to make big quail (lol) but I'm doing it to add variety to our diet. Who doesn't like dark meat? I love turkey and would eat it everyday if I could. I am going to raise some royal palms this year. For me, it's enjoyable work and I love birds. I love having them around. I like the feathers and use them in various art. I know I can go to the store and buy cheap chicken and turkey, but I like knowing where my food is from. The quail will be a treat as I never had them before, just as pets as a kid. Never knew you could eat them until a few months ago! This is a very good thread btw.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Here ya go... here is what the buckeye roosters from my lines dress out to look like.... (that's not me in the picture just FYI)

ETA.... look at the size of those thunder thighs...

 

[dancingbear]

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Why would you want to do that? Wouldn't it be sort of like breeding the fastest horse to the slowest horse? You could get the most average horse.

That's probably not what you were envisioning, but I'm thinking that's what you'd get. Well, a third (or a quarter?) anyway. some would be like the sire, some like the mom, some would be more like a mixture of the two. A few might have the best of both, but are just as likely to have the worst of both. But maybe I'm wrong. I'm sure somebody's tried it. Maybe they'll see this and chime in. Or, maybe you'll try it and tell us what happens.

So Jeff, you haven't actually bred the Cornish X hens yet, right? So you're still waiting to see what will happen? None of the roos were worth keeping? I thought you had some roos too, I haven't been keeping up with the other thread. No roos doesn't say much for the supposition, so far. How would crossing the CX hens with Buckeyes show the CX's to be sustainable? Wouldn't it just show the hens could live long enough to breed, and then maybe the offspring, sired by another breed would probably be sustainable? I'm confused here about what you're trying to do. I thought you wanted to keep and breed a line of CX's to see if you could get them stable and sustainable? I probably missed something somewhere, this isn't what I thought your experiment was.

 

[Buster52]

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I've been thinking the same thing. That is certainly what most of us are describing at any rate. Many times, they end up accomlishing the same thing, but not always.

Besides, it is probably easier to grasp. Seems some folks are having a hard time understanding sustainability.

 

[HallFamilyFarm]

Perhaps it is late and I am a bit tired, but what does "DP's" mean? Have tried to figure that out.

We have some bantams coming this week from Ideal. Chose two Buff Cornish feamles and 3 Buff Cornish males as my "packing peanuts". Am thinking of mating them this fall to some of my ALBC line Buckeyes. Anyone using Standard Cornish males on Buckeye females? Note: Will also keep a pure line of both!

 

[Buster52]

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Which would at least be on-topic.

Enjoyed your long post earlier in the thread. Dancingbear. Lots of good information there.

I have to confess I was skeptical about the motivation for or the prospects of this thread when it first started, but it has turned out to be quite a gem, at least for the most part. I'm glad CARS started it.

I'm gonna bookmark it.