Managing a Dual Purpose Breed Flock for Eggs and Meat

[Kris5902]

Agree, finding what is good in your area is challenging and the key to success. I might have excellent success with Bresse, Rocks, or Orpingtons from a top of the line breeder here, but the ones in your area could be very poor quality... so it comes down to local availability and quality.

 

[Kris5902]

Thank you, this is very helpful! We have been talking a lot about the quantity of meat on these dual purpose breeds, but we have not talk much about the quality of the meat. I don't exactly know what makes chicken meat "good" but that looks like excellent quality to me.

I know many here will know most of this already, but for anyone reading who may not have experience with it, I would like to expand a bit on “quality” and some of the processes. (Not to be patronizing or condescending... just for any potential readers that don’t have first hand experience with it )

As to the quality of the meat, I much prefer it to even pasture raised CX. It has a firmer texture and has flavor. It’s comparable with the difference in grass fed/Pasture Raised Beef, to commercial Feedlot meats. If your processor air chills you won’t lose nearly as much to purge (this is comparable in a home setup to a quick rinse and refrigeration over setting them in a cooler of ice water to chill).

Even pasture raising CX (not the topic here but to give an extreme example) will yield a huge difference in meat quality over what you find in most supermarkets. The diet benefits of poultry that has foraged and eaten bugs and grasses is reflected in the flavor of the end product. Chickens that get out and scratch, walk, flap their wings, and hunt bugs actually use their muscles, so there is more texture to the meat, it’s not overly soft and mushy.

There is a world of difference (IMO positive!) between sustainable meats and what the average consumer is accustomed to. Once you remove the super high yield~optimum feed conversion~fastest growth rate~most productive layer~possible part of the equation, you get a much better product that is more sustainable as well. Jack of all Trades, master of none idea... but if they only have two trades... they can probably balance them a bit better

 

[LilyD]

I agree totally with what was said above I have raised CX and raised them on pasture and it definitely changes the taste. I have raised heritage roosters (orps, rocks, brahmas, cochins, and australorps) in tractors and then on free range pasture. I prefer free range for all my birds. I usually will add water for the birds in the morning before I leave for work but I only feed at night once they are out on the pasture. This way they spend the whole day outside eating bugs and creepy crawlies in the dirt plus plants and I have to shell out less for feed in the long run.

Out of all the breeds I have raised I like orps and rocks the best for dp meaties. Both lay well. I had less luck with the rocks I could get locally and their laying abilities. The orps far exceeded them. The orp chicks were meaty from the get go and tended to feather out faster than the rocks and be ready to go on pasture much faster. I tended to have much more luck with foraging with the orps as well. They were much more interested in what they could find and then taunt the others with from the time they were about 3 weeks old on. They would try to catch bugs in the air in the brooder or dig through the shavings rather than going right into the feeder. The rocks were much more into the easy food first.

For rocks I think they flesh out a little faster than the orps do though so processing time you are looking at maybe being able to process at 16-18 weeks versus 18-20 weeks with the orps. I think with breeding towards growth rate using the heritage orps that this can definitely be improved. Keeping the chicks that grow faster and flesh out quicker. The roos and hens I have processed from my orps previously I processed usually around 20 weeks a few would be ready early and a few would be later and would go around 24 weeks. Usually 24 weeks is my cut off though and I process everything I don't want to keep for future breeding by then choosing the ones that are closest to what I am looking for to add back each year either roos or hens to the breeding population for the following year. I do eat the older hens and roos as well. I think the oldest bird I have processed was 6 years old and they still taste great you just cook them differently.