Mistral Gris meat birds

[call ducks]

Here is what a mistral gris looks like::

(curtosy of an add on cragis list)

 

[BlackBart]

Mine are 5 weeks old now and I have moved them to the pasture. Some of them are already meaty.
I ordered 25 "fasts" and I picked up 25 "slows" for a friend. Somehow a few got mixed up. When moving them I noticed some were heavy and some were a bit lighter. I can't really tell the visual difference but I can when I pick them up.
At six weeks you are supposed to feed them twice a day broiler/grower pellets as much as they can eat in a 2 hour period and then give whole oats freely as well as pasture. The idea being is too slow the growth rate down.
I'll take pictures of them today.

 

[BlackBart]

So how is it more than 110k of these are sold every week, yet no one has heard of them or knows how to contact the hatchery?

Lots of talk about them on Canadian chicken forums. That is where I first heard about them. Lots of people raising them in my area. Only one contact person I know of that supplies them in Western Canada.
People who usually raised the White Cornish cross or similar White Meat bird soon got tired of the huge finished weights and trouble trying to sell a 12 pound chicken (or heavier, up to 16 pounds!).
A 12 pound backyard raised meat bird would sell for approx $48 here. Expensive and a lot of food for the Yuppies who can afford the price yet who don't have kids to eat that amount of food at one sitting. People want a wholesome free range meat bird around the 5-8 pound range. Thats what I have been hearing over and over again.
A Friend uses 2000 pounds of feed for 50 White Cornish Cross meat birds at one run. That seems like a lot of feed to me. Can't even offer a opinion or a suggestion, closed mind.
Her birds don't want to go outside and IMO it is gross they just sit and grow like amoebas or cell matter. Truly sad what "science" has done.

Those who have raised the Freedom Ranger found the Mistral Gris to have a larger breast. Very good for roasting I am told. I can hardly wait to try one!

I have found the MG's prefer to eat greens and be outside free ranging in the sun, natural Vitamin D.. They do eat grower crumble and grains but I will not feed them corn, mostly wheat. They will decimate, cauliflower, broccoli, spinach etc. and plain old green grass. Mine are not too keen on fruit but they love all types of Melons.
Instructions I was given was to slow their protein (processed) feed intake down, Allow the meat to become denser. Supply carbs for fuel.
I must admit some of the WC Cross I have eaten the meat is not firm, hate to think of the word "jelly" but that comes to mind, yuck!. I think they grew too fast.
I was also told, to breed your own Meat Bird from the MG's you have to use the "slow" growing MG's and cross breed with a Barred Rock, RIR or as mentioned before, Dorking. Some people use White Sussex.
To raise the "slow" growing MG's requires a totally different feed plan so the internal organs have time to mature.

 

[BlackBart]

The MG pen, They look so small in a big area. The coop is in a smaller pen and the umbrella is in the big pen. All surrounded by three strands of un-shielded electric wire. I lock them up every night but they do create a lot of heat so I will have to add more venting or leave the coop door open and lock the access to the big pen for overnight. Other people just use a three sided run-in and it has worked fine. I still have to cut the 2x4 that blocks part of the opening, hhmm (Husband's handy work)
When I showed up to take the picture most of the MG's were sleeping under the umbrella

 

[BlackBart]

Hey Guys and Gals
Mistral Gris come from PA, a four way cross created by an Amisha (sorry can't spell) breeder that has bred barred rocks all his life he is now 82. The Mistral Gris is not a french breed and is not a breed at all. It is simular to the Cornish Cross with out the bad legs etc. When the breeder started in devloping Mistral Gris he talked to Don Shavier (again not sure i spelt that right) who is an exepert in four way and sex link crosses. The breeder of Mistral Gris produces 110 thusand chicks a week. Another hatchery hatches 120 thusand a week.
-Cheers!

Your right on with your info Call Ducks

Heading: What is a Mistral Gris?
http://albertachickensetc.punbb-hosting.com/viewtopic.php?id=31598&p=1

 

[BlackBart]

My Mistral Gris go to the butcher in a week. That will be 13 weeks for the first batch, all Roosters. The Hens will go after in a couple of weeks.




I can't be more happy with them. They spend all of their time outside in the sunshine eating grass and the fruit/veggies I give them. They eat way less roaster/finisher pellets than the Cornish Crosses.
Processing weights and dates as follows (only a guideline)
9 weeks cockerels are ~5 - 6 lbs live weight, yield nice 3.5 to 4 lb fryers. Pullets are too small for most purposes.
12 weeks cockerels are 8 to 10 lbs live weight, dress out as 5 to 7.5 lb roasters. Pullets at this age are meaty fryers.
14 weeks cockerels are >10 lbs live, dress out as large roasters. I do not like to keep boys beyond this age. Pullets are 5 to 6.5 lb roasters.
Pullets can be kept a little longer than 14 weeks but the growth rate is slow. They are tender enough for oven roasting through 18 weeks.

 

[Matrix Escapee]

You could do the same grow-out and get the same weights with the cornish of you fed them less (the feeding schedule you are currently using for your MGs)

 

[call ducks]

You could do the same grow-out and get the same weights with the cornish of you fed them less (the feeding schedule you are currently using for your MGs)

Yes you could but you are mostly still gonna have .... Hartattacks, non walking etc.

Also these birds have a better flavor (well acctually this would be true for all "rustic" broilers). Bones and muscles are active and have more time to devlope flavor. More so then the commerical broilers with their "floppy muscelse" when they are buctchered.


Also just an FYI (because i know there was some one out west selling Mistral Gris chicks/eggs not my friend) the MG are a 4 way cross and well not breed back to produce true MG's.

 

[Cedarknob]

Yes you could but you are mostly still gonna have .... Hartattacks, non walking etc.

Also these birds have a better flavor (well acctually this would be true for all "rustic" broilers). Bones and muscles are active and have more time to devlope flavor. More so then the commerical broilers with their "floppy muscelse" when they are buctchered.


Also just an FYI (because i know there was some one out west selling Mistral Gris chicks/eggs not my friend) the MG are a 4 way cross and well not breed back to produce true MG's.

I've grown CX to a year and past; never heard of MGs before this thread was started so no experience with growing or eating them. I've not had a CX develop a heart or leg problem,when commercial crumbles were rationed enough and they had to eat lower calorie veggies and fruits plus go look for natural foods, at least until they were far past the size and age most would want. The meat was very firm and legs and thighs as dark and flavorful as any traditional breed. However, they will not [in my experience], ever walk away from a feeder with feed in it until they're too full to want anything other than a drink of water. They look for the easiest, highest calorie meal best suited to fuel their ability to grow big and grow fast. If the MGs will leave a feeder without it being empty and go look for other food, they would hold an advantage.

 

[Bossroo]

I've grown CX to a year and past; never heard of MGs before this thread was started so no experience with growing or eating them. I've not had a CX develop a heart or leg problem,when commercial crumbles were rationed enough and they had to eat lower calorie veggies and fruits plus go look for natural foods, at least until they were far past the size and age most would want. The meat was very firm and legs and thighs as dark and flavorful as any traditional breed. However, they will not [in my experience], ever walk away from a feeder with feed in it until they're too full to want anything other than a drink of water. They look for the easiest, highest calorie meal best suited to fuel their ability to grow big and grow fast. If the MGs will leave a feeder without it being empty and go look for other food, they would hold an advantage.

How true ! I too haven't heard of the MGs before this thread, so I can't speak of their qualities. I have raised the Cornish X for several years now, after raising the heritage types for decades. I find that the CX give me the best bang for my buck in terms of the current high cost of feed and much larger return of meat in a much shorter period of time . I haven't experienced the congestive heart failure or leg issues as some people report as they refuse/ unable to educate themselves in the art of observation and modify their husbandry practices. As the old Scottish proverb says... " The eye of the master fattens the cattle" . The CX's ability to seek out the easiest, highest calorie meal best suited to fuel their ability to grow big and fast is in their genes which gives them a HUGE economic advantage over of all other types. Saving several weeks of labor prior to processing is a HUGE economic advantage in favor of the CX too. I too find that their meat is just as flavorful as any other types.