Meat hybrid chicken

[bigz1983]

I have done a lot of research over the years and after breeding chickens for things like egg color and broodiness I would like to finally try breeding a meat hybrid cross.
I know that I will never get the growth rate of a Supermarket Cornish broiler.
I want to breed a meat hybrid that will give me more breast meat and a little faster growth rate than a standard dual purpose chicken.
I have been looking into the Candian Chanceler, Dark Cornish, White Cornish, Dorking, Buckeye, Slow growing white broiler and the Freedom Ranger(Red Ranger)

Issues I have encountered are the Dark/White Cornish are pretty much non existent in my State. I can't find any online.
I have found Candian Chanceler available for special order online. I can order them on Tractor supply's website 10 chicks for $36.
But I'm not sure of the quality.
Anyone here have experience with Chancelers? How's the meat production on the carcass?

I was thinking Chanceler crossed with Freedom Ranger for a meat hybrid but I gotta special order at least 25 at Family farm and home to get them.
Or does it make more sense to just breed a common Dual purpose breed to Freedom Ranger hens?

What about Buckeyes are they pretty close to a Chanceler?
I can't seem to find Dorkings anywhere and I have never had them before.

All in all I know this is a crap shoot.
Debating just breeding a common dual purpose breed for meat like Barred Plymouth Rock or Black Australorp.
Right now the only sort of dual breed I have is large fowl blue/splash Cochins but I have them mostly for their mothering instincts to raise chicks.

 

[Molpet]

Have you read about @duluthralphie s CX rainbow mix he called toads. He doesn't have them anymore but good information.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/toad-raising.1152440/#post-18045134

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

I have done a lot of research over the years and after breeding chickens for things like egg color and broodiness I would like to finally try breeding a meat hybrid cross.
I know that I will never get the growth rate of a Supermarket Cornish broiler.
I want to breed a meat hybrid that will give me more breast meat and a little faster growth rate than a standard dual purpose chicken.
I have been looking into the Candian Chanceler, Dark Cornish, White Cornish, Dorking, Buckeye, Slow growing white broiler and the Freedom Ranger(Red Ranger)

Issues I have encountered are the Dark/White Cornish are pretty much non existent in my State. I can't find any online.
I have found Candian Chanceler available for special order online. I can order them on Tractor supply's website 10 chicks for $36.
But I'm not sure of the quality.
Anyone here have experience with Chancelers? How's the meat production on the carcass?

I was thinking Chanceler crossed with Freedom Ranger for a meat hybrid but I gotta special order at least 25 at Family farm and home to get them.
Or does it make more sense to just breed a common Dual purpose breed to Freedom Ranger hens?

What about Buckeyes are they pretty close to a Chanceler?
I can't seem to find Dorkings anywhere and I have never had them before.

All in all I know this is a crap shoot.
Debating just breeding a common dual purpose breed for meat like Barred Plymouth Rock or Black Australorp.
Right now the only sort of dual breed I have is large fowl blue/splash Cochins but I have them mostly for their mothering instincts to raise chicks.

I'm just getting into Chantecler and Buckeyes so I don't have any information on that.
However, I have Bielefelders and the roosters grow really large. One of my Bielefelder roosters bred my Barred Rock hen and she hatched out some enormous boys too.
This guy is around 8-9 months old:

 

[CNJ]

I know that I will never get the growth rate of a Supermarket Cornish broiler.
I want to breed a meat hybrid that will give me more breast meat and a little faster growth rate than a standard dual purpose chicken.

I would cross a Big Red Broiler rooster and Jumbo Cornish X hen from McMurray. Then breed some female chicks back to their father and in a separate pen, breed brother and sisters together. Select the best from these two groups of chicks for your ABCD parent stock. It will be a challenge line breeding two separate lines to replace the old ABCD parent stock.

McMurray has free shipping on 15 chicks: https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/big_red_broiler.html

The Jumbo Cornish X hen will be dead before her chicks are ready to breed. Also, I do not recommend the slower growing Cornish Roaster, must be the Jumbo Cornish X.

 

[McChooky]

I have done a lot of research over the years and after breeding chickens for things like egg color and broodiness I would like to finally try breeding a meat hybrid cross.
I know that I will never get the growth rate of a Supermarket Cornish broiler.
I want to breed a meat hybrid that will give me more breast meat and a little faster growth rate than a standard dual purpose chicken.
I have been looking into the Candian Chanceler, Dark Cornish, White Cornish, Dorking, Buckeye, Slow growing white broiler and the Freedom Ranger(Red Ranger)

Issues I have encountered are the Dark/White Cornish are pretty much non existent in my State. I can't find any online.
I have found Candian Chanceler available for special order online. I can order them on Tractor supply's website 10 chicks for $36.
But I'm not sure of the quality.
Anyone here have experience with Chancelers? How's the meat production on the carcass?

I was thinking Chanceler crossed with Freedom Ranger for a meat hybrid but I gotta special order at least 25 at Family farm and home to get them.
Or does it make more sense to just breed a common Dual purpose breed to Freedom Ranger hens?

What about Buckeyes are they pretty close to a Chanceler?
I can't seem to find Dorkings anywhere and I have never had them before.

All in all I know this is a crap shoot.
Debating just breeding a common dual purpose breed for meat like Barred Plymouth Rock or Black Australorp.
Right now the only sort of dual breed I have is large fowl blue/splash Cochins but I have them mostly for their mothering instincts to raise chicks.

Ideal sells dark cornish and other cornish crosses.They have a 30 dollar minimum to get free shipping(theres still a $7 handling fee)https://www.idealpoultry.com/product/1672/0

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I have done a lot of research over the years and after breeding chickens for things like egg color and broodiness I would like to finally try breeding a meat hybrid cross.
I know that I will never get the growth rate of a Supermarket Cornish broiler.
I want to breed a meat hybrid that will give me more breast meat and a little faster growth rate than a standard dual purpose chicken.
I have been looking into the Candian Chanceler, Dark Cornish, White Cornish, Dorking, Buckeye, Slow growing white broiler and the Freedom Ranger(Red Ranger)

Issues I have encountered are the Dark/White Cornish are pretty much non existent in my State. I can't find any online.
I have found Candian Chanceler available for special order online. I can order them on Tractor supply's website 10 chicks for $36.
But I'm not sure of the quality.
Anyone here have experience with Chancelers? How's the meat production on the carcass?

I was thinking Chanceler crossed with Freedom Ranger for a meat hybrid but I gotta special order at least 25 at Family farm and home to get them.
Or does it make more sense to just breed a common Dual purpose breed to Freedom Ranger hens?

What about Buckeyes are they pretty close to a Chanceler?
I can't seem to find Dorkings anywhere and I have never had them before.

All in all I know this is a crap shoot.
Debating just breeding a common dual purpose breed for meat like Barred Plymouth Rock or Black Australorp.
Right now the only sort of dual breed I have is large fowl blue/splash Cochins but I have them mostly for their mothering instincts to raise chicks.

I can't speak to the breeds, I've not had any you are looking into, but I can say that TSC gets most of their chicks from Hoovers. Hoovers birds are in no way exceptional.

If I were beginning a breeding project and had breeds in mind, I'd look further afiend than TSC for your starts, try and save yourself a few generations of culling for the best birds by starting with a little better than average hatchery quality.

 

[HomesteadNowhere]

Check out my thread. I'm breeding from freedom ranger hens x new Hampshire roo right now. I ramble alot lol you can skip to about page 10 I think is where I started last year with chicks.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...stainable-flock.1432152/page-27#post-25597426

If I could know then my experience since... I would have gotten all pullet freedom rangers and kept only the best 3 to breed from. I've restricted feed from like the second week and they've only gotten .25# feed per day.. often less when feeding lots of scraps.. And even then, now at 13 months old they are all so fat I'm expecting them to burst from internal fat. They just really put on internal fat. I'm butchering them soon. They started laying about 21 weeks.

I won't ramble the whole thing, check my thread. But the only ones of the mix of breeds from mcmurray that were worth a darn was the new Hampshires.
I'm planning on getting new Hampshires from freedom ranger hatchery. Supposedly still stock from the Henry noll line bred for meat production. Check out Tre3hugger's thread on them and Delawares. As I recall they just hatched their first batch of eggs.

 

[bigz1983]

I would cross a Big Red Broiler rooster and Jumbo Cornish X hen from McMurray. Then breed some female chicks back to their father and in a separate pen, breed brother and sisters together. Select the best from these two groups of chicks for your ABCD parent stock. It will be a challenge line breeding two separate lines to replace the old ABCD parent stock.

McMurray has free shipping on 15 chicks: https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/big_red_broiler.html

The Jumbo Cornish X hen will be dead before her chicks are ready to breed. Also, I do not recommend the slower growing Cornish Roaster, must be the Jumbo Cornish X.

Ok thanks.
So a Red Broiler rooster can mate?
I thought I read somewhere they get to big too mate.

 

[bigz1983]

Check out my thread. I'm breeding from freedom ranger hens x new Hampshire roo right now. I ramble alot lol you can skip to about page 10 I think is where I started last year with chicks.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...stainable-flock.1432152/page-27#post-25597426

If I could know then my experience since... I would have gotten all pullet freedom rangers and kept only the best 3 to breed from. I've restricted feed from like the second week and they've only gotten .25# feed per day.. often less when feeding lots of scraps.. And even then, now at 13 months old they are all so fat I'm expecting them to burst from internal fat. They just really put on internal fat. I'm butchering them soon. They started laying about 21 weeks.

I won't ramble the whole thing, check my thread. But the only ones of the mix of breeds from mcmurray that were worth a darn was the new Hampshires.
I'm planning on getting new Hampshires from freedom ranger hatchery. Supposedly still stock from the Henry noll line bred for meat production. Check out Tre3hugger's thread on them and Delawares. As I recall they just hatched their first batch of eggs.

So Red Broiler hens get too fat eventually and have weight issues?

 

[HomesteadNowhere]

So Red Broiler hens get too fat eventually and have weight issues?

They always have weight issues, they were bred obsessively to put on weight to be meat birds. It is what they are. Mine are freedom rangers from freedom ranger hatchery in PA. I can't speak to others because they are all I've done.
They are healthy other than having a ton of internal fat. I have no doubt if I left them go then they would start dying of problems caused by it. Egg bound, fatty liver, etc. And mine are out in a chickshaw and on pasture. They are active.

A couple hens have become bare backed from over breeding. I think they are the roos favorites and they just don't bother to run away from his pestering. Though they can and do have a run-waddle and can jump up almost my shoulder height.

I have eggs in the incubator now from them. So we'll see the fertility rate soon.

If you are set on trying to breed from meat birds I'd suggest having a non meat bird/broiler rooster/cockerel. To avoid dwarfism. And plan it backwards!
When do you want to set eggs from them? Now count back a week of egg collecting (or however long). From there count back at least 6wks. General consensus seems to be 6wks of laying will work out pullets eggs so you aren't dealing with lots of double yolkers and fart eggs and oddballs. From there count back 22 weeks old to start egg laying. That's the date to get the chicks.

I'd also suggest to get them as only pullets and it's easier to restrict their feed and not have cockerels also restricted that could be growing faster and butchered faster.

I would also get a mineral, like fertrell poultry breeder supplement. Then you can give them an amount of mineral and know they are getting what they need while being able to restrict the feed.