Just How big...

[LilBizzy]

My neighbor( an elderly woman who loves my chickens) adopted an oven stuffer roaster that appeared in her yard one day. It must have fallen off the truck. I know there is a difference between a commercial purdue chicken and a farm fresh cornish x in how they were bred and all, but.. does anyone have an idea how big this bird might get? Do you think they stop growing at some point, or do they continue to grow and grow until their heart gives out?
She's had him for maybe a month now- he's probably about 4 months old .He is happy and healthy, but huge. His legs are extremely thick, which is good because he needs strong legs to support himself. He can walk fine and can even run( it looks funny and he can't run far, but he can run). I would estimate him to be around 18 pounds right now.
I have already warned her that he probably won't live long, or might need to be put down, and she understands that, but she just adores him and wants to keep him. This is not a discussion about his life- believe me, if it best for him she will accept him being processed or put down.
All I am asking is for advice/suggestions/knowledge on what to do to help him have a good life, no matter how short. Does anyone have any knowledge or experience on a commercial chicken? Will he stop growing soon?

 

[BirchHatchery]

you must restrict his grain and feed him low level protien feed like layer to him i have a cornish rock rooster who will be 2 years old this march and very healthy and i no longer need to restrict his feed the bird is probly 6-10 weeks old so feed him half cup of grain a day and whatever the birds finds outside while runin is fine

 

[kizanne]

When they say low protein like layer, they mean just low protein not layer feed itself. It would have too much calcium for a boy and cause other problems. There are many posts about this topic. Most people who have done it say encourage exercise and restrict feed, and low protein.

 

[BirchHatchery]

im sorry but your wrong kizanne ive raise all my cornish that i keep for breeding age and thats all my 2 year old rooster eats hes ate it since he hatched and all my leghorn pullets i feed them that from day one to it has no ill effects want your rooster to live feed him layer!

 

[SteveH]

Quote:
I raised some CX to breeding age last year. When the pullets started laying I added free-choice limestone to their diet, and was surprized that it was the three cockerals that tore into like it was candy. I can only guess that they needed it for those huge frames.

Last year I wasn't set up to restrict feed to the CX once they were being crossed to other breeds, and they grew too large. This year I'm useing pullets only and keeping them in a seperate pen, and rotating cockerals through that pen. I got started late, after loosing last year's crosses and my entire flock, to a buffalo gnat plague, and useing pullets only, which are just now approaching breeding age. Here's one of the Ameraucana X CX cockerals I lost and trying to replace, pictured at 13 weeks with two adults for size comparison.

PS: I dressed and smoked one CX cockeral out last year, with a processed weight of 13.0 lbs; it was delicious.