Meaties...too much for a newbie?

[Ibicella]

Hi all,

I was hoping to get some advice on a discussion I was having with my fiancé this evening. We are buying a farm in the Fall and will be buying our chicks to raise through the winter so they will be ready to lay eggs in the spring. We would like some for meat and will be culling extra roosters, but he's never worked with livestock of any sort, and it's been a good twenty years or so since I worked on a farm as a 12 year old farm hand.

Anyway, we were discussing Cornish X, and he was wondering if we could raise some. I'm feeling hesitant because we will JUST be getting started with chickens and while I know the basics of caring for them, I was still a kid when I worked with chickens last. I didn't deal with things like buying food, supplies, fixing coops, dealing with sick birds, or so on. So I've got some learning to do myself.

I was under the impression from reading this section that CX's are a bit more "advanced" chicken keeping so I'm not sure I'm ready to get into them yet.

What do you think? Should we hold off for another year or so, get some experience with heritage birds under our belt, or do you think it'd be ok for us to wing it?

 

[jaku]

No- get broilers now. That's how I did it, and I'm glad I did. If you start with layers, you can easily get spoiled, as they require little to no work to thrive. If you get Cornish X's later, they will seem like a lot more work than if you just started with them. There's really nothing complicated about them, unless you compare them to layers.

 

[willheveland]

I started with heritage breeds first. The heavy dual-purpose as they are called. I thought after all my work I was doing a streak of business, until they were processed and seen them with their feathers off. then I realized I'd need to cook a few to make a meal. What a disappointment. You can start out with the Cornish X don't believe all the horror stories. Just use good management. give them room,feed only during daylight hours,lots of fresh water,20/21% grower feed,,keep them on dry ground and don't be afraid to ask questions in the meat bird section. good luck Will

 

[Dogfish]

In 7 weeks I have learned a lot by raising broilers (CX) and layers at the same time. 26 birds in all and no losses. I have a batch of 4 CX at 7 weeks and 6 at 5 weeks, and I'm getting another 15-20 next Tuesday. I started by raising the CX and my laying hens together, but seprated them at 3 weeks as the size difference became very apparent.

The first 4 weeks seemed like a lot of work, but I was also building their coop, so it is kind of hard for me to gauge how much was coop/run and how much was the actual raising of the chicks. Now that they have all been in the run for the past two weeks, it seems like I spend 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes in the evening checking condition, food, and water. I spend more time with them than just the 5 minutes some days, because watching them interact is fascinating. I now have the CX and the layers all together, but the CX don't go in the coop, with the exception of a few of the younger roosters. I made separate shelters that the CX can all pile into without going up a ramp. Get you food and watering plan figured out. I'll only have mason jar waterers in there for the first week or so. Hated messing with those EVERY day. I have a nipple set up in there, so we'll see how quickly they catch on.

As long as you have the room, get them. It isn't as hard as you think. That fact that you are concerned is a good thing. Food, water, shelter, and for the first 3-4 weeks, warmth. That is all I'm doing.

Freezer camp starts next Sunday!

 

[yotetrapper]

The only hard part of cornish x is the processing. They're no different to raise than any other chicken, except they eat more. I'd go ahead and get them. Just remember when you do, they only take 6-8 weeks to butcher time, while your layers will still be little then. Pen the meaties seperate, and feed them lots of meatbird food, and plenty of fresh water, and that's all they'll need.

However, unless you plan to butcher in winter, you may want to wait till early spring to get the meaties, or early fall for a late fall butcher....

 

[Scoop]

No, don't wait. It isn't rocket science with the meaties. My first batch of chickies had 2 meaties in it. They are ready to butcher in 8 - 10 weeks and are so yummy. They aren't hard to cull either, it just takes time and it's wonderful to eat a bird that you raised for the purpose of meat. You won't regret it - I sure didn't!!!!

 

[MareeZoCool]

from Ohio.
My hubby & I started raising 6 chicks last June ~ against his loud protests:

I have gone completely chicken crazy!

Out of my original 6, only 1 is still with us. She is a Black Astraulorp hen, and has hatched out 3 chicks of her own! Now my hubby is catching "chicken fever", totally melts at the sight of these new hatchlings.

we are city people, this is such a rewarding and exciting experience for us. We cannot look at them as food except for the eggs

 

[mxpres]

go with the meaties first,If you run into any problems or have any questions you can find answers to any question right here,no problem,I done my first batch of only 8 last year,good management is the key to enjoying your meat birds from peep to pot,and they are soooooooo delicious,,,