NY chicken lover!!!!

[JLaw]

Maybe I'm missing something, what does a Cornish bring to the gene pool? Why wouldn't any heavily bodied meat bird do for one of the parents?

I'm new still but remember you want a FAST GROWING meatie. You dont want to feed it for 4-5 months to reach slaughter size. You also want it to convert that food good not a bird that will eat but not pur on weight. So maybe it brings that to the table i dont know anything about them.

 

[Breella]

Well when you process perhaps we could get together so I can learn. My plan is to do some for ourselves next year. While I don't expect them to eat them any other way than in soup or with dumplings.

I have been reading up a lot on processing, and I did process that one small Roo I had, Vader as practice a few months back but he was skin and bones. Good gutting practice but IMHO if you aren't stuffing a turkey I think that chopping off the wings/legs and peeling off the breast meat is the way to go. I can show you how to help them go peacefully though, the method I chose was time consuming and personal but the most peaceful way I could find to ease myself into taking the life of an animal that wasn't suffering. I have worked for a vet and assisted in euthanasia in the past but this was the first healthy animal I had killed.

 

[Glasshen]

Was there a snake in that pic, Rancher?

That is an adorable picture of Zeke and the little dog.

Lynzi, I am so sorry about your pretty frizzle girl. My girls who hatched this year don't dare get out of the wind by going into the coop because the elders are there, so they huddle in the lee of the building, or a bush. It was pretty strong wind.

Took all my Indian corn off and exposed the ears. There were some pretty ones, but due to my soil, they did not look like the giant ears on the seed packet. The girls will get to eat lots of the imperfect ones, they seem to really enjoy them. And everything is out of the raised beds, the fencing down, and bunches of mulch is going on. It feels great to get things prepped for winter. The big garden only has potatoes in it now, and I'm applying chicken manure daily as it becomes available. Hopefully next year those ears will be huge and full.

 

[stonykill]

all of this talk on meat birds. All birds are meat birds. All are edible. We eat probably 40 to 50 Sumatra roo's a year. I find it so much easier to stick with one breed you like and to kill the extra's for food. Rather than having yet another pen to keep "meat" birds in. ( I already have 9 and will need one for turkeys eventually and possibly one for pheasants).

 

[Lynzi777]

Well I think I'm just about finished up with my "pre-winter" chores. The silkies are in the shed as of yesterday and I just moved that large rabbit hutch into the shed after splitting it in half and making it a 2-hole cage for my youngest rabbits to be in this winter. After all that rearranging and cleaning out the shed to make room for the mower, I don't think it's going in there after all.

Now that the hutch is in there there isn't much space left for anything else. Owell, at least it got me motivated to clean it out and get rid of stuff.

 

[Breella]

all of this talk on meat birds. All birds are meat birds. All are edible. We eat probably 40 to 50 Sumatra roo's a year. I find it so much easier to stick with one breed you like and to kill the extra's for food. Rather than having yet another pen to keep "meat" birds in. ( I already have 9 and will need one for turkeys eventually and possibly one for pheasants).

This is why I like to ask questions here, all the talks of cornish X in the articles I was reading was throwing me off. So my Barred Rocks, which are a DP bird would likely be good for me long term since I like having a reliable source of eggs as well.

 

[stonykill]

This is why I like to ask questions here, all the talks of cornish X in the articles I was reading was throwing me off. So my Barred Rocks, which are a DP bird would likely be good for me long term since I like having a reliable source of eggs as well.

exactly. Same reasoning I stick mainly with Sumatra's for the chickens. I like them, they raise themselves, I feed them little as they are foragers supreme, they brood their own better than any human can brood chickens, and the extra roos of which there are a lot are great eating. And as for the ducks as much as I don't like killing off the extra drakes, we just ate a Runner drake a few weeks ago and my GAWD was he delicious.

 

[Glasshen]

Does anyone remember the cartoon by Gary Larsen of the Boneless Chicken Ranch? It showed chickens softly draped everywhere ... That's what the meat bird idea suggests to me.

OOOPs, that is Larson, and on this iPad I hit the red flag by mistake. Drat. Sorry.

 

[Lynzi777]

I keep forgetting to mention, (and I am NOT by any means trying to push this on anyone! LOL) my son brought home one of those coupon books for a fundraiser at school if anyone near me is interested. They're only $20 and have a lot of great coupons in them for those of you who are frequent shoppers or like to eat out often in the upstate NY area. We'll probably be purchasing one but it's not like I can offer to my family because they are from CT and a majority of the coupons are only valid in the Syracuse area. If you're interested or want to know more about what's included feel free to PM me. Again, no pressure! Just thought I'd ask for those who love coupons!

 

[stonykill]

wild grape jelly marinated pork chops cooked over apple wood.