How long do Barred Rocks take to hit Broiler Weight

[Crashnot]

I'm raising a dozen barred rocks for my family for eggs and a little meat (6 are cocks). My goal is to start raising enough to sell commercially. We have a large Asian population nearby, and they prefer the dark meat birds, so the Rocks seemed like a good way to enter that niche market.

Does anyone know how long it will take the barred rock roosters to hit a broiler weight of 4 pounds after they're processed? At four weeks my little group is barely up to a pound (guesstimating, haven't put on a scale), so I'm assuming I need a bit more than eight weeks to reach broiler weight!

I will be putting them in tractors and letting them manage the insects in our apple orchard and horse pastures, so lots of buggy protein, along with a standard grower mix from the feed store.

Any input is appreciated!

Lisa

 

[CoopCrazy]

I have heard 14-18 weeks for heritage breeds...

 

[petrelline]

My barred rocks were 4 lbs at 16 weeks on a high protein (22%) diet. They would have probably gotten there faster if I hadn't let them run around quite so much.