You're right Debbi,
In fact, what was a plump bird in the 1940's was pretty scrawny by today's standard of the CX.
I've got some Barred Rocks for layers- they are really pretty. But the young cockerels in my mix aren't particularly fast growing. Actually, in the "heavy male" mix I got, the Red Sex-link males are the beefiest.
A lot of breeds became breeds because they were supposed to be better table birds then what you could commonly pick up at your local farm, or go out to Granny's for. I think we've bred away from that. There are plenty of breeds that still get ginourmous - but they take such an insanely long time to do it! What Lotsapaints said about the 20 to 22 week weights seems like more what I'm guessing the old-timers bred for.
LOL, my mixed "heavies" are about 16 weeks and still really little. I don't think any of them will weigh 4 pounds dressed in another 4 weeks. I've got both Red and Black sex-links, Buff Orps, Barred Rocks and Production Reds.
Now, these are all hatchery birds (the Frypan Special) and hatcheries breed for egg production. Their customers are those looking for backyard layers. Show breeders breed for showing. (no offense, I respect what you do) You don't eat tail set or perfect eye or hackle color.
But if you want meat, you 1)butcher scrawny hatchery birds or your own culls (probably also scrawny - no offense, mine are) 2)Get Cornish X 3)Get Freedom Rangers - who it seems to me don't have all that great a grow out rate, but have excellent marketing.
It seems to me, if you look into the history of a breed, there are many breeds who's spotlight to fame was being an awesome table bird. This is when just a few breeders (sometimes just 1, sometimes a small, regional area) are breeding them. Then they get popular, people stop selling table birds and start selling breeding stock, then a few years later, there's a New awesome table breed. I'm guessing that as soon as you stop culling heavily for a good carcass, and start bringing in any other factors, you immediately start to loose size and/or growth rate.
And I'd like to do an experiment to prove it. I'd like to pick a breed (hmm, Marans, Sussex, Delaware - looking up the history of the Delaware, I may pick an older breed) and see if by making my #1 priority a good carcass at a reasonable age if I'd get a bigger bird then you'd expect. People had to be paying those specialty prices for a reason, don't you think?
