I HAVE NEVER HAD ANY CHICKENS AND WOULD LOVE SOME HELP WITH MY QN'S

[NBHomesteader]

I have done some research on chickens, but I still have some questions for people who have experience with chickens.

Firstly, what is the longest you can leave a laying hen before you have to cook it?

Does it matter how long if you have a 'Cast Iron Pot' to cook it in (which makes all meat put into it like butter in texture).

Can any chicken do for a tasty morsel, or are meat chickens better tasting?

Will I "have" to buy separate meat chickens or can I cook a laying hen when it's 1 or 2 years old?

I am trying to go as efficient and frugal as possible. I have a large family with four pets ( 70 lb Collie, 95 lb Standard Poodle, 20+ lb Maine Coon cat, and a typical cat-sized American Shorthair) all of whom eat eggs. Plus we intend to have more animals in future.
I am needing to know how to go as inexpensive as possible while having enough eggs to give us all enough, or a little more than enough eggs and meat. That's why I'd love a way to have a laying hen that I don't have to kill within weeks of it's life.

I thank all who can try and help me with one or all of my questions

 

[Duckopolis]

Certain chickens are good for meat and certain chickens are good for eggs. You can cook chickens when their egg laying starts to decrease which is normally around 2-3 years. Young meat chickens are better tasting and more juicy. It's a personally preference weather you want to get meat chickens or cook your laying hens when they retire. Get cheap chicks from a local feed store and raise them cheaply by getting a lot at once. You can make money by selling the eggs. Cook them when they are 2 years old and buy new chicks every few months to keep moving them through.

 

[bobbi-j]

There are dual purpose breeds that are OK for both eggs and meat. Not as good as breeds that are specifically bred for one or the other, but would work for what you're looking for. They don't lay quite as many eggs a week as a layer breed and take longer to get to a good butchering weight than a meat breed.

You can wait as long as you want to butcher a laying hen. Their productivity generally slows down after a couple of years, so if you want your laying flock to be as efficient as possible, you might want to butcher them in the fall of their second year. They will be tougher, stringier and more strong flavored than a cornish x that is butchered at 8-10 weeks of age. (In my opinion, this is not a bad thing) You can cook them in your cast iron pot. I love doing mine in my cast iron dutch oven. You're right - the meat is tender a butter! Another option, if you're into canning and such is to pressure can the meat. It's very tender and handy to have for a quick, easy meal. The meat can be used in soups, stews, enchilada, casseroles, salads, sandwich meat, or even just warmed and put over rice or potatoes. Canned meat is wonderful! I also can venison and beef.

Get yourself a rooster to go with your hens and an incubator and you can keep your flock going without having to buy replacements. If you don't care about when chicks hatch, you can always hope for a broody hen to set, hatch and raise your chicks for you. That's my plan...

I have Buckeye hens that are two years old this spring. We will be butchering them this year and I will be canning the meat. I was not able to keep any of the roosters from that batch, (long story), so we processed them at 5-6 months. They dressed out at around 6-7 lbs. Nice, meaty birds. This year I plan on getting Freedom Rangers and trying to keep those chickens going for a few years before I have to bring in some fresh blood. I want to get about 3 dozen, butcher two dozen and keep 11 hens and a rooster. There is a thread on them that shows the difference in the meat of the FRs and other chickens.

 

[bobbi-j]

Here is the link to that thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/698833/freedom-rangers/120#post_12745349