meat cross

[Nimblefreckle]

What breed of chicken is comparable to the cornish ones?
I want to breed some meat birds of my own and was wondering
which breeds would be as good as the cornish to cross with my
Barred Rock Rooster. I want them to be similar in breast size and growth rate.
The cornish are hard to find in my area.

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

Cornish crosses, or cornish?

If you want a good meat bird look at...
Brahmas (These are slow growers, and may take a few generations to speed up growth, however they grow to about 14lbs at the most)
New Hampshires
Rhode Island Red
Jersey Giant
Delaware

Or if you can, regular cornish.

 

[Oregon Blues]

There are no chickens comparable to either the true Cornish or the Cornish Cross meat bird. So whichever it is that you are asking about, the answer is no.

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

There are no chickens comparable to either the true Cornish or the Cornish Cross meat bird. So whichever it is that you are asking about, the answer is no.

Oooh you want comparable ? Ya only cornish are that big, however the above birds listed when crossed with one another can make a good meaty bird

 

[cutechick2010]

I am going to try a bit of a breeding experiment in the spring. I know you can't breed the Cornish X and get them to breed true, but I wondered what would happen if you crossed a Cornish X with a "regular" bird? I have a Cornish X hen that got a stay of execution when she started laying eggs, so I am going to try crossing her with a White Rock roo in the spring. Assuming that she doesn't have a heart attack or something before then.

 

[Haunted55]

I am going to try a bit of a breeding experiment in the spring. I know you can't breed the Cornish X and get them to breed true, but I wondered what would happen if you crossed a Cornish X with a "regular" bird? I have a Cornish X hen that got a stay of execution when she started laying eggs, so I am going to try crossing her with a White Rock roo in the spring. Assuming that she doesn't have a heart attack or something before then.

I think it totaly depends on what it is you're looking for. Me I want a bird with the broadbreast as you mentioned. I currently have the Dark Cornish that I am going to breed with Jersy Giants and White Rocks. Am I going to get the same as you would if you bought the CornishX? No, but I want something that would grow more slowly so it can be kept on the 'hoof' longer. While we have done the regular Cornish X 3 times since last year, I just don't like it. I'd rather have a bird who can have some kind of life before they go on the table. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Haunted55]

Cornish crosses, or cornish?

If you want a good meat bird look at...
Brahmas (These are slow growers, and may take a few generations to speed up growth, however they grow to about 14lbs at the most)
New Hampshires
Rhode Island Red
Jersey Giant
Delaware

Or if you can, regular cornish.

Glad you posted....I was wondering about the Brahmas. Was thinking about adding a few next Spring. I've never seen them before so it'll be something different.

 

[rebeccamariemiller]

I want something with a decent sized breast along with the other meat. Also I want something that woul grow r
elatively fast. I don't want to wait six months on a bird. We just butchered some buff orpingtons and barred rocks and the breast was virtually nonexistent.

 

[Island Roo]

x 2 on the Brahmas

My spare cockerels end up as 5 pounds on the table in 20 weeks. I thought that was decent for dual purpose.

The breast meat was the best I've ever had but nothing like the proportions (white / dark) of cornish cross. (assuming you consider the cornish cross to either dark or white - not shades of gray

).

I think I'll try to cross my brahmas with my columbian rocks in the spring.

CochinBrahmaLover - How long does it take a brahma to get 14 pounds (assuming you have bred them to that capability)