Letting my broody raise 20 meaties. Now I have a rooster raising 50 CX chicks~new batch!

[la dee da]

 

[aclee]

One thing I noticed was that the Jumbo Cornish didn't seem to know HOW to freerange really. Thankfully I raised them with Cornish Roasters who still seemed to have a good bit of the instinct left, and they would watch the cornish roastes and figure it out. They were to the point at about 6 weeks where when I went to let them out to free range there would be a white pile up at the door because it was faster for them to get out and find food than to wait till I filled the food buckets

I would usually let them out to freerange for a coupel hours and then fill the food buckets for them. They would still eat out of the food buckets, but their crops had some size to them by the time I filled the buckets, so I'm sure that cut my food costs too! I would also scatter more of their food across the ground too, in order to encourage them to move around more and only put some of it into their buckets...

Only a couple of mine had to be processed before 12 weeks, and that was because they got hurt running around in the back yard...they thought they were part of a daily cornish olympics or something...

 

[halo]

Amy, how did they turn out?

 

[Beekissed]

Were they still nice and tender at 3 mo.? I'm hoping to process mine at that age also. I want a bigger bird than they would be at 8-10 weeks.

 

[patman75]

Just found this thread. Very cool.

 

[Camelot Farms]

Glad I ran into this thread. I had been avoiding meaties due to 'Franken-chicken fears'.

The idea of free ranging them opens me up to the possibility!

Thank you!

 

[aclee]

My were/are WONDERFUL. They are not tough, but they aren't mush like the grocery store chicken either. They have a little firmness to them, but we cook them a little lower than a market chicken and they are SO tasty! Hope to do more in the fall, but will have to do fewer if I'm able to do them at all...

i actually still have some of the roasters now at 14 weeks or so, and they are larger than other chickens their age, but have beautiful lines to them and are VERY active. I'm hoping they make it to egg laying age. I had hoped that one large beautiful roo would make it too...he is tall and well muscles and not at all "jumbo cornish" like, but he started crowing so he has to go. He made it to 14 weeks before he started to crow, so I was just really hoping he never would, but he did

Now I have to either eat him, or find someone else that wants a nice tall cornish roo to use as a meatie breeder...

 

[Wolfwoman]

I hope you don't mind me adding to this... in this pic there is a SexLink on the left and a CX on the right, both are 4 weeks old...

Here's another CX... unfortunately there's not much for reference!

 

[Beekissed]

No, I don't mind at all!

I hope others add their pics and progress to this thread as well. Its a good thing to be able to compare sizes and growth rates to see if their is a big difference in the free ranged and controlled feed vs. penned and continuous feed. How else will we learn?

When I read about just how much feed is going down the throats of some of the meaties folks are raising, I am astounded. My own feed amounts have went up nearly 50% more than I normally feed but I had to realize that I am feeding 20 more chickens than I normally do. Nowhere near the amounts other people are describing, though, thankfully.

They are growing very well and are getting some real size on them, as well as looking very clean and feathered. I almost mistakened one of them for one of my full grown White Rock hens yesterday!

I'll try to post more pics next week or so,maybe when they are a full 8 wks old and try to get some comparison pics with my regular hens.

 

[Beekissed]

Birds are at the 7 wk. mark and I am definitely seeing some size difference between roos and hens. They are still foraging well and are doing well in the heat we have been having. I lessened the laying mash/corn ration in their feed and am feeding laying mash mixed with oats and BOSS. This seems to be keeping them satisfied longer and they are growing well.

Will try to remember to get some pics tomorrow to post.

Funny thing to add....I had one meaty that followed my tiller quite closely that last time I used it and wouldn't go in to roost with the others until almost full dark, stuffing himself on the bounty from the fresh tilled soil.

Today I fired up the tiller and one lone meaty comes thundering across the yard like he heard a dinner bell!!

Note to self: Meaties got memories!