Need help with selecting a meat bird

[zephyrcreek]

I am raising both the white mountain cornish cross from townline and the colored range birds from J&M, there is no comparison! I will be sticking with the colored meat birds from now on unless I have a specific customer request. The range birds are so much smarter and have not had to be babied like the CC. They also do not seem to be as messy with their feed, ie not wasting as much! Mine are only a week apart, so it will be interesting to see how they mature. I am expecting the J&M birds to be market ready at 11-12 weeks. I also have an order of Rainbow Dixies coming from S&G Poultry in June! They mature at a similar rate as the Colored range broilers.

Ellen

 

[kassy68]

Quote:
Ellen, Good to know.. I've got my 50 white mountain coming.. I don't know what the colored range birds are.. Do you have a site for JandM? Looks like the range birds take a month longer to mature though.

 

[zephyrcreek]

Hi Kassy,

I'm just around the corner from you, I live in Yale! Only a few minutes from BC!! The colored meat birds take a little longer, but they generally have lower mortality rates and they are more efficient foragers so it cost less $$$ to raise them to market weight. Added bonus is that most experts agree that a 12 week bird, regardless of breed, has more flavor than the quicker growing breeds. What I have already noticed with mine is that the colored meat birds seem to waste much less feed than the Hubbards. I'll have another shipment from S&G poultry coming the first of June. If you want to try some PM me and I can hook ya up, or add a few extra's to one of my orders to save you the shipping or minimum order.

Ellen

 

[Chick_a_dee]

IMO ducks are just as stinky maybe even stinkier than meat birds. Ours plaster themselves with poop and water and shavings and the whole guestroom where the brooder is reeks. Infact, you can smell the ducks OUTSIDE the house.

I agree with other posters, Cornish X is the way to go for feed consumption, etc. We're doing White Rock X, which I guess is the same thing lol.

 

[simplyscrambled]

I have a big ZERO in actual experience, and have yet to taste a pasteurized chicken but I found this on an internet search:

"...because Chez Panisse Cafe chef Cal Peternell tasted her chicken's eggs and asked her to try her hand at raising a few Red Broilers, a breed that has a smaller breast but bigger flavor than the usual commercial broad-breasted Cornish Cross."

For what it's worth!

 

[zachahhhlack65]

I also have a question to anyone who has informartion on the following.

I been researching to find a chicken that has the top quaility meat that you just cant beat. Im a foody and want to raise the best tasting chickens BUTTTT i also want those chickens to be able to breed to type. And iv found so many amazing meat birds like the REDBRO free ranger but they cant reproduce to the same type. So dose anybody out there know which bird thats best for me.Iv had egg layers and i rely just want " a bird thats known for top quality meat(good flavor/moist) BUT also i can reproduce with just a rooster and a hen and good old mother nature to breed together and get that same top quality meat in the chicks." Please help me out. I dont care if its a common breed or if its quite new i just want to know which breed that best fits my needs.
Thanks zachary brown from florida

 

[TimG]

Quote:
So, did you keep them to maturity? Egg laying? Chick producing?

 

[clyde]

if your growing for price/quantity, I guess cornish X's is your best bet. I personally prefer naked neck/turken for superior flavor, thin skin, better dark meat.

 

[Rathbone]

Perhaps someone has already pointed it out - but if you are currently buying organic chicken to eat - i assume you will be buying organic feed for your chickens you plan to process? In the end for me, I didn't actually save money by raising my own. But still prefer the process of raising them myself.

 

[TimG]

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You're unlikely to save money if you are buying and raising non-organic. The small farmer can't beat the big farmer for the same product however you slice it.