Minnesota!

[Bogtown Chick]

Yay Loretta! I got your OVATION to go. My thumb is working.

My thumb is working!

 

[Rhetts]

It's sort of a crying shame really to me. That they are so cheap or dispensable. They are the prettiest birds usually in the yard. Usually the most personality. They give all their choice food to the hens. If they're hand raised by yourself then you know the time and energy you put into them and beautiful food they've eaten. And to give them away or find their value near 0 just doesn't seem right IMHO. Just because they don't lay eggs. LOL. I hear you Rhetts. I think you ought to just enjoy them as a family whether by tolerating them, rehoming to a friend who needs one or as a meal on the table. You've earned it, I'm certain.

Goulosh was always a fave at home. I don't make it but my Mom still does once in a while. My kids love it. I wonder why I don't make it...Hmmmm.

Goulosh is a house favorite here.

I think Roosters are way under appreciated. Sure they get a bad rap from some mean roosters but they are not all nasty. A crying shame. City folk don't get the pleasure of keeping roos because they crow. How is that any worse than a dog who barks incessantly? And yes, a good rooster is always tending to his ladies as Klop has pointed out. Seriously though they are worth so much more than $2 a bird just cause you have too many. Sad for sure!

 

[Rhetts]

Oh dang it! I gave a couple ovations and I am out again!! What a bummer! Amy- I am hitting you up tomorrow!!

 

[Cluckies]

I'm out of Ovations now as well. Ovation police or something on here. I should be able to give as many as I want in a day!

 

[Bogtown Chick]

There you got another one Rhetts. Haha. May as well burn 'em up while I got 'em.

DH and I used to go to the State Fair in the 90s. It was good then. I was younger. I didn't have other expenses like kids or fried cell phones. I've heard the price of admission, food and such has went through the roof. And you can hardly move there's so many people.

 

[Rhetts]

I'm out of Ovations now as well. Ovation police or something on here. I should be able to give as many as I want in a day!

I know!! What is the point of limiting ovations?

 

[KlopKlop]

I just spent some time doing my 'Farm Books' to catch up for the last month and a half for expenses and was able to tabulate the cost of my broilers this year. Just counting food, Chick prices, and brooder bedding I am into each bird $5.85 and if I average the cost over my estimated pounds of meat harvested we are right at the $1 mark.

That is actually much lower than i expected but like i said, that doesn't include any of the housing costs. Even if you added 50% to those prices I wouldn't even be close to complaining.

 

[Rhetts]

I just spent some time doing my 'Farm Books' to catch up for the last month and a half for expenses and was able to tabulate the cost of my broilers this year. Just counting food, Chick prices, and brooder bedding I am into each bird $5.85 and if I average the cost over my estimated pounds of meat harvested we are right at the $1 mark.

That is actually much lower than i expected but like i said, that doesn't include any of the housing costs. Even if you added 50% to those prices I wouldn't even be close to complaining.

More details please. How many birds, when did you butcher, do you free range like Ralph and Minnie, what kind of feed did you use etc etc etc. DH thinks it should be way higher but we have never done meat birds so we love hearing from others what they have going on.

 

[KlopKlop]

Well Here goes..

I started with 53 birds, lost 6 in the brooder. I dont have the breakdown in front of me but the total of my expenses (Food, bedding, and chicks was $274.95

$274.90 / 47 birds = $5.85 per bird

I butchered in the following groups

9 weeks - 15 CX birds @ 6 to 6.5 pounds and 1 CX bird (scissor beaked) @ 4.5 pounds
11 weeks - 11 CX birds @ 9.5 to 10.5 pounds and 1 Dixie Rainbow @ 3.5 pounds
13 weeks - 12 Dixie Rainbow birds @ 4 to 5 pounds

This leaves me with 268.5 pounds to 301.5 pounds meat. If I round down to 250 lbs and up to 300 lbs that puts me at $0.92 to $1.10 per pound.

Its a bit of fuzzy math but I would say its accurate to + or - 20%


I raised my birds in chicken tractors that i moved twice daily on grass. I fed them chick starter in the brooder then they went to 20% meat maker. I fed them a set amount 2x a day also. I dont have an exact food amount per feeding as i measured in 'number of scoops' using a tupperware that was probably about a quart. For the CD I would guess that I started with about 2 quarts of food 2x a day but then worked up to closer to 3 or 3.5 towards the end. For the Rainbows I fed 1.5-2 quarts 2x a day. In the beginning they wouldn't even finish the food between feedings so Im sure that number is much lower. In weeks 11-13 I fed 2-3 quarts 2x a day and their tractor was moved into my garden where they were able to 'free range' in a 50x40 weedy/grassy area.

Next year I will do CX in the tractors and plan to free range the rainbow offspring (i kept a breeding group) in a large forage area. I will keep better records as to how much each breed eats and keep better records on how much the birds weigh. I am thinking about selling some processed birds, so better records are a must so that I can be 'legal'

 

[Rhetts]

Thanks Klop! I will have DH check this out!!

For those of us suffering from the lack of ovation giving I found this thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/699980/announcing-the-new-byc-reputation-system-ovations