Meat chickens dying beyond 4 weeks

[renochicks]

Hi all,

We are raising our third round of meat chickens now and are having some problems. At 6 weeks of age, we found two of our chickens dead in their pen. We hadn't noticed any difference in their behavior or appearance. Another died a week later. Today- they are about ten weeks now- we found another dead. I am used to losing a chick or two, but this seems strange. We also noticed this morning that one of the chickens in the coop has a paler comb than the others, isn't moving as quickly, and every once in awhile lets out a little peep, almost like a hiccup.

Some details-
-These are the white broiler variety, Cornish xx I think?
-Bought from McMurray, lost one chick in the beginning
-We put them in their outside pen around 4 weeks (we have a mild fall/winter here)
-It's been colder than usual, 25 degrees at night, but their water is heated and their food is dry
-We unfortunately fed them grower from the very beginning- a feed store employee told us it would be fine and their starter supply was out for awhile- we listened to them but now I'm wishing we hadn't.

Our thoughts are that perhaps feeding them grower from the beginning was inappropriate and they are dying from heart failure. We imagine that if this were a contagious disease, they'd all be dead by now.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. We are planning to harvest tomorrow so it will be a nonissue for this round, but we don't want the same thing to happen again next time.

Thanks much!

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome! Most people who grow Cornishx birds have them in the freezer by eight weeks or so, because they aren't meant to live long or be healthy.
Manipulating their diet, and restricting feeding times, does help.
BUT I would much rather take a little more time and raise birds who are healthy, can range, and feel good until their freezer date. I've been doing the Freedom Rangers, and have been a lot happier with them. This year I had 32 chicks, and had one die immediately, and the rest went to the freezer.
If cost/ pound is the only factor that matters, Cornishx are the most economical to raise.
Mary

 

[rjohns39]

Hi all,

We are raising our third round of meat chickens now and are having some problems. At 6 weeks of age, we found two of our chickens dead in their pen. We hadn't noticed any difference in their behavior or appearance. Another died a week later. Today- they are about ten weeks now- we found another dead. I am used to losing a chick or two, but this seems strange. We also noticed this morning that one of the chickens in the coop has a paler comb than the others, isn't moving as quickly, and every once in awhile lets out a little peep, almost like a hiccup.

Some details-
-These are the white broiler variety, Cornish xx I think?
-Bought from McMurray, lost one chick in the beginning
-We put them in their outside pen around 4 weeks (we have a mild fall/winter here)
-It's been colder than usual, 25 degrees at night, but their water is heated and their food is dry
-We unfortunately fed them grower from the very beginning- a feed store employee told us it would be fine and their starter supply was out for awhile- we listened to them but now I'm wishing we hadn't.

Our thoughts are that perhaps feeding them grower from the beginning was inappropriate and they are dying from heart failure. We imagine that if this were a contagious disease, they'd all be dead by now.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. We are planning to harvest tomorrow so it will be a nonissue for this round, but we don't want the same thing to happen again next time.

Thanks much!

I can tell you what I do and my results if that will help.

I feed mine an 18% broiler (also called grower by many) throughout their lives. Mine spend 3 weeks in the brooder and then 5 weeks on pasture. On day 1 they get sand and chick grit on the side along with gro-gel plus on their feed and broiler booster from day 2 through day 21 in their water. Once on pasture, they eat twice a day and only what they can consume in 45 minutes. Their shelters move every day and sometimes twice a day. Given that, I see a 3-5% mortality rate and an average carcass of about 6 pounds at 8 weeks.

 

[Morrigan]

I'm on my 5th batch of meat birds, and I've yet to have one drop dead on me, or have one die past the first two weeks for any reason other than the odd predator attack. I butcher mine in batches starting at 8 or 9 weeks, and ending at 12 or 13 weeks, so it's not inevitable that you must process by 8 weeks or have fatalities. My dressed weights are typically between 5 and 9 pounds. What I think makes a difference?

--There are different proprietary strains of Cornish X birds and some are hardier than others. I've had very good luck with the "Cobb 500" strain. I don't know what McMurray sells, but I think the particular strain can make a big difference.

--I have them out of the brooder at 2 weeks, have a large yard for them, and set it up so they are forced to move around a lot. Any old produce they get are scattered throughout the yard so they have to work to get them.

--After the first two weeks, I start restricting their food. By the time they are 3 weeks old, I feed them twice a day, giving them as much as they can eat in one go (15 or 20 minutes). By that time, everyone's crop should be full, and the tray should be pretty much empty. They also get some vegetables, and whatever bugs and weeds they can find in the yard.

--The "flock raiser" brand they sell in my feed store is 20% protein. That seems excessive to me, so after the first 2 or 3 weeks, I mix the feed so that it is 60% commercial feed, and 40% added grains (a mix of wheat, barley and oats). I then ferment this mixed feed. I'm not sure what the ending total protein works out to be, but I guessing its closer to 16% by the time I'm done.

This system works well for me. If my goal was to be able to butcher them all at once, at 7 or 8 weeks, I would probably wind up with a lot of small birds, and would have to up rations.

 

[Rye]

When it comes to the cornish x birds they really need clean water and feeders. Sanitizing everything between batches and a good scrubbing at least once a week. We use a commercial grade vinegar to do this, but you can use bleach also. Sickness can take them down pretty quickly.

By 10 weeks they should be in the freezer. They should have enough feathers by now to take the cold, but I wouldn't let them go too much longer.

 

[chickens really]

Google Rochester Hatchery in Alberta, Canada and read their catalogue ...Or contact them ....it's informative ...

 

[kjwillings]

Welcome! Most people who grow Cornishx birds have them in the freezer by eight weeks or so, because they aren't meant to live long or be healthy.
Manipulating their diet, and restricting feeding times, does help.
BUT I would much rather take a little more time and raise birds who are healthy, can range, and feel good until their freezer date. I've been doing the Freedom Rangers, and have been a lot happier with them. This year I had 32 chicks, and had one die immediately, and the rest went to the freezer.
If cost/ pound is the only factor that matters, Cornishx are the most economical to raise.
Mary

When you say restricting their feeding times are you only feeding them twice a day?

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome!
For Cornishx birds, this is what we do.
No, I free feed eight to ten hours daily, not all the time. And the feeders and waterers are ten+ feet apart, so they have to move around a bit. Shade, not hot sun!
And they really can't do high heat, so we do them either early spring or later in fall.
Mary
And no roosting, they can't jump well even one foot up, and can be injured jumping down.

 

[cassie]

I don't know if this will help. I fed mine broiler feed (starter, grower, finisher) when I could get it and turkey feed (starter, grower, finisher) when I couldn't. They had feed from seven in the morning until seven at night. When I did chores morning and night, I looked over the birds carefully. Anybody that had a pale or purple comb or was moving slowly got processed then and there. Broiler Booster, available from Murray McMurray, seemed to help a lot with leg and other health issues. Broiler Booster is a vitamin electrolyte supplement formulated for meat birds. I added it to the water from start to finish. Personally, I wouldn't try to raise Cornish X without it.