Meat bird question

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

Tractor are not required. But the reason so many people opt for that route is the shear amount of manure that the broilers produce. They eat a ton and poo a ton. Leaving the meat in its own poo is not appetizing.

Another common reason is for protection. Broilers are sitting ducks (no offense duckies!) and benefit from some extra protection during the day when they just want to lay around with a full belly (crop).

Perhaps keeping a small amount of broilers for your first go would allow you to create a space for them that suits your needs and environment.

This is a great answer that I just wanted to add to. I agree with Mountain Roost that starting with a small amount would be good so you can understand what your needs are.

For my first time, I was prepared with a tractor because that's what I always read. I made one and used it for a few batches, but eventually I learned that I prefer to free range them. This works for me because I only raise 6-7 at a time and have a separate area available away from my layers. I live in an urban setting so things are on a lot smaller scale for me. I also didn't consider how windy it is here, and didn't know that many areas of my yard flooded in heavy rain, which made for lots of late nights going out and moving them in torrential downpours, or nights going out and putting a tarp on for wind protection. It was a pain.

Point being: there are a lot of little factors that might make you lean toward one method or another. I definitely think getting a small batch and trying one method will answer a lot of your questions. Every single person on this forum does things slightly differently because they learned from experience what works for them.

I wish you the best with your first batch of meaties.