Meaties not really huge

[Sami]

Just had another thought.... Are they perhaps smaller because I bought all females? Just weight my largest meatie and she is pushing 6 pounds

 

[jen85]

The males are bigger than the females so that could be it . Mine run for water first too but then rush for food.

 

[Arielle]

Mine are about 6 weeks, a mix of girls and boys, and the boys are definitely much larger than the girls.

 

[pat3494]

You don't say what breed you're raising and you don't say what kind of food you're feeding. I raised colored Range Broilers which grow a little slower than Cornish cross. You need to keep them on a high protein starter food about 24 % protein. Limit the snacks and other food. My broilers were about 6-7 lbs at 9-10 weeks. I made food available at all times. You might need to change your food dish, but some waste is to be expected.

 

[Sami]

Hi. Sorry, I am raising Cornish cross. I am feeding grower finisher from Alliston Feed Mills GMO free etc. I am in Ontario Canada and the highest protein in our feed that I can find is 19-20%. I looked at TSC turkey finisher and it is only 22%. I think the states have higher protein levels then here...

 

[Dave from Maine]

I have raised both male and female Cornish cross meat birds. The females always need about 3 weeks more growing time than the males. I prefer to raise Kosher King cockerels from Clear View Hatchery. They don't grow quite as fast but because they will forage much of their food they are more economical for me. Also the meat is more firm and flavorful, probably because they are more active than the Cornish X's.

 

[ibarraka]

We have raised a variety of meat birds for the past 5 years or so and I have to say the weather and the source of chicks make all the difference in the world. Last year, we had 8+ pound carcasses @ 8 weeks! They were huge! But this year, they seem to be much slower, I just weighed a 6 week-old and it barely hit 5#, I know the bird won't gain another nearly 5 pounds in the next 2 weeks! Our methods are the same and our feed is the same: hi-protein thru-out their time with us. We let their feeder stand empty for part of the day and they have at least a 10' X 10' mobile pen area that is moved every several days for them to have fresh pasture. We only lost one bird 1/50, but there is something different about them this year versus last. The only thing I can come up with is the crazy weather we have had. I know they don't adapt to hot-cold-hot-cold and that has been the order of the day for the past 3 months!
One thing I have learned is that once you notice them getting close to "big enough" for butcher, they get BIG fast! 2 years ago, we had a butcher bail on us @ 7 weeks and we scrambled to find another butcher to do our 50 birds. We couldn't get them done until they were 9 1/2 weeks old and several of those birds weighed nearly 9 Pounds! only a few of them were under 7#. In those 2 weeks they went from "ready" to OMG! We still enjoy them, we have a market for them and the challenges and puzzles make it that much more rewarding. Good luck to you

 

[Jack Speese]

What "breed" do you have? The commercial-type Cornish x Rocks do indeed grow the fastest and probably should be fryer size after 8 weeks, but there are several other broiler "breeds" (as you probably know they are all crosses and not actually breeds) designed for organic, free-range, or otherwise less intensive production that don't grow as fast but achieve comparable results, it just takes them several weeks longer to do it. For commercial operations where everything is based on economic efficiency they aren't well suited because they grow slower and eat more, plus many also have colored rather than the preferred white plumage. But they are also able to forage and have fewer health problems because they don't grow as fast. If you have one of these types (Kosher Kings, Red Rangers, etc., etc.) it may take closer to 12 weeks before they are fryer size. But in my personal opinion you will also get a better product! A friend gave me some commercial broiler chicks out of his commercial chicken house once and they certainly grew fast, but they were also the closest thing to a vegetable that an animal could be. They ate, drank, and lay around, that's all. You rarely saw them walking around or attempting to forage.

 

[Sami]

As far as I know they are just the typical Cornish cross. They are white. I bought them from Frey's hatchery in Ontario

 

[snowangel]

Hi,
This is my first time growing meat birds. My feed store had me get the crumble I believe 20% how long do they stay on that before I switch to pellets and do I have to get the turkey food which is higher in protein? And what age is it that you get them butchered so they are not tough? Thank You in advance.