Meat & Egg chickens

[Liamm_1]

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Now this is a common sense post

 

[Beekissed]

I have now some very heavy, meaty dual-purpose hens from hatchery stock and I have never, in all my years of raising chickens, seen anything heavier....can't imagine individual breeders genetics turning out anything heavier than my big gals.

My best layers and meatiest gals would be my White Rocks. I have some that are four years old now and still laying, still the heaviest in my flock. The Barred Rocks come in a close second, as do my Black Aussies. For sheer longevity of lay, hardiness and heavy stock, I would recommend the White Rocks or Black Aussies the most.

The breed of the roo matters if you want to raise more meaty stock. I have a big Partridge Rock roo breeding over my flock but, if I were going for meat more than eggs, I would have a White Rock roo.

 

[Jared77]

What hatchery did you get those from? And how long ago was that?

I believe you, just want that info out there for folks who are looking too.

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

http://www.albc-usa.org/documents/ALBCchicken_comparison_sheet.pdf

 

[CrzyChicLady]

When you get heavy meat birds from Hatchery's, isn't it recommended that you don't breed them at home?

 

[spartacus_63]

Sounds like all the bases are covered on this one. Just to share my experience, I purchased my flock through a local reputable hatchery and the birds have lived up to my expectations and as advertised. I am on my third generation of home raised birds and currently my egg and meat production is on the rise.

 

[Beekissed]

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I bought mine from MPC, which it is said gets theirs from Meyers. I bought my gals 4 1/2 years ago. My 5 year old Black Aussies were purchased from McMurrays. They are still the prettiest chickens in my flock, still producing, still heavy gals....and they go broody on occasion, which I love, as they make great moms. As do my White Rocks...this past spring one of my WRs raised 20 meaty chicks for me and I never lost one.

 

[Just Fluff]

Hi Chris,

Welcome to the wonderful world of chickens! As pointed out, they are addictive! My son left me his when he went into the Marines, and I'm making big plans to expand!

If you buy from a hatchery, they will express mail the chicks out to you. Make sure you have a brooder area set up with heat lamp, water, food and containment area before they get there. Ordering is very easy, but be aware that they usually have a minimum order of 25 birds per shipment to keep the chicks warm. These are day old chicks and survive on the yolk during shipment. There are some hatcheries that specialize in small orders, but charge a bit extra for a heat source. Some of the hatcheries only sell straight run, or have limited breeds available. Most have catalogs available, so I'd suggest you request several and compare them with what you want and prices, then place an order.

If you don't want to purchase 25+ birds, you can place an order through any feed supply store in the spring, and you can pick up only a dozen or whatever you want.

If you want to locate a breeder of any of the breeds, you can do a search on here or online. For example, I've located a Buckeye breeder that is kinda close by looking at the Buckeye Association.

I have bought from hatcheries and my husband picked up some birds at a local feed store that claimed they were such and such breeds. Not sure what some of them were, but since 8 of them were roos, 7 of them ended up in the pot. They all tasted good, and except for a one or two, had a good amount of meat on them. (Funny thing was, the one's with the most feathers didn't have the most meat!

)

I have seen some laying hens advertised on Craig's list, or if you have access to a local agricultural area ads paper, you may locate something there that are already grown and possibly laying.

Good luck and enjoy!

 

[CrzyChicLady]

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Thanks for the chart! Very helpful.

 

[menageriemama]

I like the "Meat 'n Egg" combo from Murray McMurray hatchery. 15 cornish X and 10 assorted layers (there will be white, brown and green egg layers). It was a blast figuring out the laying chick's breeds, and 15 meat birds were just the right amount for my family.