Layer feed and breeding/roosters

[Kris5902]

But are your broilers to be processed soon?

I processed the broilers at 11 weeks old in early June. I kept reading that the rangers take 12-14 to reach market size. I was looking at them and thinking they were awfully big... but “everyone says they need longer” so they can’t be ready yet. At 11 weeks they dressed out between 5.5-6lbs. I had only scheduled 30/40 because they were pretty heavily booked at the Abbatoir, and the remaining ones were processed at 13 weeks and averaged 7lbs dressed weight. Oops!

I held back one ranger and traded for three CX pullets that are now at 5 months on the “diet and exercise” program (rationed feed and free ranging plus incentive “look I sprinkled feed here, walk 30 feet, oh there’s some more” to get the walking. I’m looking to try crossing them to a heritage meat breed like @Compost King has been doing in his “Crossing my red Rangers” thread.



Here the girls are with Roostie, a similar age cockerel from “some sort of heritage red meat breed” (he was free, in exchange for some hatching eggs next spring or $20, if I can’t keep the girls alive that long)

As you can see there’s not a huge size difference between the ranger and CX!

 

[Kris5902]

I should also add I cleared $16 a bird in profit after all expenses, including $3.50 per chick and a hefty shipping fee $160, but I shared that 50/50 with another farmer bringing in 20 chicks for personal use. I was basically just filling out the order to the maximum chicks for the shipping price for them. It costs the same for 20-60 chicks. We charged $13.90/kg CAD or about $6 per pound. Only one customer balked at the about $40 price tag per bird.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I haven't raised what is called red rangers but I have raised Freedom Rangers and Cornish Rocks.
In my experience, one can butcher CornishX at 2.5 weeks as Cornish game hens and Freedom Rangers at 3-3.5 weeks. For broilers I do CornishX at 6 weeks but if I go over 8 weeks for Freedom Rangers they are too big to fit into my vacuum seal bags.

 

[Compost King]

I like sprinkling the 18% crumbles (lowest I can get without it being layer feed) on top of the compost pile so they are forced to climb the mountain then scratch and find their feed. The feed falls down the compost pile so when they get desperate for food as it depletes they have to go up and down the hill and scratch. I got them all flighty too. Ok they are not quite leghorn flighty but they do fly up the hill from time to time. They will reach week 10 Sunday and I start weighing them to see if they are staying small enough to breed.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Breeding Cornish X and Rangers won't get anything repeatable because they are hybrids.
It isn't worth the time or effort.