Heritage Large Fowl - Phase II

[bnjrob]

No, Black Penedesencas. They are very rare now.

Ah ok. I understand that rare thing. Finding Javas for people is difficult enough, I would hate to have to find Penedesencas.

 

[MagicChicken]

Quote:
My Javas have huge keels, but not that much breast meat yet. I was hoping the breasts would fill out as they get older. They do have lots of leg meat!

The oldest one I have butchered was a 10 month old cockerel. He was small (hence the cull). He dressed out at 4 pounds. I took off the breast meat and thigh meat. Everything else went into a stock pot. When the stock was done I picked all the meat from the carcass. The stewed meat retains a surprising amount of flavor. I separate that stewed meat into several packets that I will use in soups and stir fries. I am going to get at least 7 meals (for one) out of that one bird. Two meals with just the breast & thigh meat, and five meals of soup or stir fry. Plus a quart or more of stock left over when I'm done.

Guess I could encourage these birds to fly more to develop more breast meat, but then I'd have trouble keeping them in the yard and out of the garden. Think I like them better the way they are now - respectful of the garden fence!

 

[Regin]

I have a friend who encourages the meat birds to exercise by locating their feeder at the top of a ramp. This is done by starting at a low level as chicks and raising the feeder / and ramp incrementally.

 

[bnjrob]

My Javas have huge keels, but not that much breast meat yet. I was hoping the breasts would fill out as they get older. They do have lots of leg meat!

The oldest one I have butchered was a 10 month old cockerel. He was small (hence the cull). He dressed out at 4 pounds. I took off the breast meat and thigh meat. Everything else went into a stock pot. When the stock was done I picked all the meat from the carcass. The stewed meat retains a surprising amount of flavor. I separate that stewed meat into several packets that I will use in soups and stir fries. I am going to get at least 7 meals (for one) out of that one bird. Two meals with just the breast & thigh meat, and five meals of soup or stir fry. Plus a quart or more of stock left over when I'm done.

Guess I could encourage these birds to fly more to develop more breast meat, but then I'd have trouble keeping them in the yard and out of the garden. Think I like them better the way they are now - respectful of the garden fence!

10 months is the oldest that we've butchered too. Have also found a good size keel but not as much breast meat in proportion to keel as what you see with commercial birds bred for lots of breast meat. Our oldest ones were about 5 lbs dressed. Our Javas still need more size on them to get to SOP wt.

Ours fly when I let them out for ranging - they can only range with supervision due to predator hazards. They like to do a lot of flying in summer to scare the grasshoppers out of the grass. I'm with you - I don't know if I would want them flying all over the place just to get more breast meat.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

It's nice to remember the value of the smaller breeds, and that small doesn't need to mean scrawny. One can have a nice meaty carcass on a smaller bird. Bigger has advantages, but it also has disadvantages. Here's a comparison pic:





The bird to the right is a Dorking; the one to the left is an Ancona. They're both great birds.

 

[bnjrob]

Here is the smaller one (3.5 x 6.5 feet) that was put in this summer for the youngest hatch. The open front faces south. The roof is now covered with shingle sheeting and it is painted white. For winter I have a sheet of rubber matting that is 1/8 inch thick hanging from the front from three nails leaving 12 inches open on each end.

The second photo shows how the 2 x 4 roost bars are inserted. When I hang the feeder inside for inclement weather, I attach a piece of plywood to the top roost in front to protect the feeder from poop. For winter, I have added a thick layer of hay in the floor

Made from 4 x 8 sheets of 1/2 plywood and 2 x 4 lumber. The larger coop 3.5 x 7.5) will have a nest box on the east end with a lift lid for collecting eggs as soon as I get it finished.

Because coyotes have been traipsing outside the pens at night, I have a 2x4 welded wire cover that encloses the front of the coop at night.

Easy to clean out, and light weight enough that two people can move it about. it also goes thru a 4 foot gate easily. One person using PVC sections can roll it Egyptian style.

These are the new open air grow out pens we made earlier this year. Did not anticipate using them during winter, but I still have not culled my late hatched pullets and cockerels, so they are still living in there. And doing great even with the ice and cold we've been having - not quite as cold as OK but pretty chilly for TX.


The Mottled Java cockerels inside. The "apartment" is 4 feet deep. It started out as 2 ft deep but then we decided to expand it to keep more older birds in there while giving them more room. You can see the hanging water bucket and the string for the hanging feeder that come from the ridge pole.


Back of the pen. This is actually a chicken tractor and has wheels and pull cable to attach to tractor/riding mower/truck to move it. The footprint is 8' x 10' and 6 feet tall (not 8'tall like I was thinking). The back here has a flap that is opened and hung on chains when it is hot to allow air to flow through while giving sun shield during the late afternoon/evening. These are situated with the front facing south/southeast. The flap is down now as a winter wind break for the run.


Front and sides. Tarp is on for the winter, under it and on the front, you can see the shade cloth - necessary for about 10 months out of the year because there is no other shade available. I leave a 2ft space open at the bottom to allow better air flow but the shade cloth can be dropped to the ground if necessary.

We have several different styles of large chicken tractors. So far this is my favorite. I prefer the good breeding stock to have a coop that they can be shut in for predator safety - and hope to be culling soon and getting the chosen "keepers" into a tractor with a full coop on it. This design will be easy to put a wall onto the front of the apartment along with a chicken door. And the back wall can have a door for easy cleanout. This style has been the cheapest and fastest to build of all of the designs we have tried out.

 

[MagicChicken]

Quote:
Two of my cockerels finally hit SOP weight (for Java cockerels) at 10 months - just in time for the Tucson show last month. Those two are now in breeding pens for individual pairings. None of my pullets are at SOP weight. The heaviest was still 3/4 pound under weight at 10 months. One of my best-conformed pullets is busy raising a brood of chicks. Unfortunately I don't think any of the chicks are actually hers. Sigh.

 

[lualshannon]

Kind of pretty in a way. My poor wife is doing the chores. I had surgery this week and recovering. I sure do appreciate her.

Scott

I wish you fast and full recovery, Scott. How nice that your wife is doing all the chores so you can rest.
Beautiful photos of a lovely place.

Lual
..

 

[BGMatt]

No, Black Penedesencas. They are very rare now.

They are rare, but not a Heritage Breed. Heritage includes Standard as part of the definition, and Penedesencas are not a recognized breed in the US.

 

[Maggiesdad]

It's nice to remember the value of the smaller breeds, and that small doesn't need to mean scrawny. One can have a nice meaty carcass on a smaller bird. Bigger has advantages, but it also has disadvantages. Here's a comparison pic:





The bird to the right is a Dorking; the one to the left is an Ancona. They're both great birds.

Hear Hear! Don't forget - Bob himself had his Mohawks and I would hazard a guess they tasted just like chicken...