Ordered my first meaties of the year.

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

I ordered another 20 straight run black australorps, due at the feed store on March 19. As soon as it's warm enough and they have enough feathers, they are going out to the goat pen. We plan to cull any cockerels and probably keep any girls for laying (or might sell them). This will be our first experience with culling for freezer camp so we thought we'd start small.

Plus we had some of our own eggs incubated. Black australorp roo, and girls were blackies and ee's. 6 hatched this past weekend, and probably any boys in the group will either be culled or sold. Not sure. We already have 3 roos and don't need any more for those coops!

Wanna see our chicks?

 

[jhudson]

ours are 4 weeks old and getting bigger ever hour. Figure I'll be processing in a few weeks.

 

[patohunter]

Theyre so cute when theyre young and so delicious a little older.


Patohunter

_If God didnt want us to eat animals, why'd he make them out of meat?

 

[mstricer]

Quote:
At what age do roosters start crowing ?

I've never had the Cornish X crow before, Freedom rangers started at about 7 to 9 weeks.

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

I've never done meaties before either so we're doing it in small batches. Hope I don't get attached to them ... chick-stage is my favorite part of chickens.

ETA: The chick pic I have above ... the little gray-blue one in the right bottom corner is fighting for her life. This is sooo sad.

 

[ChickyLaura]

Yupp, this is my first year raising meaties, and butchering...

We will be getting ours the first week of March from Ideal. I ordered 10.

If this goes well, I will probably order the next batch from Moyer's Chicks. My mom lives within minutes of them.

 

[mstricer]

Quote:
Don't worry you won't get attached, for the first day or so sure they are cute, But bam they start eating enormous amounts feed, then their butts get big, pink, and pulsate. When you are doing nothing but feeding, watering and cleaning poop, You'll be glad when over. Then you'll do it again because they taste so yummy.

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

Quote:
Don't worry you won't get attached, for the first day or so sure they are cute, But bam they start eating enormous amounts feed, then their butts get big, pink, and pulsate. When you are doing nothing but feeding, watering and cleaning poop, You'll be glad when over. Then you'll do it again because they taste so yummy.

=====
Good to know! Because my baby died today.

 

[mamawolf544]

I am trying red broilers this year. They will will here 3/9.
I have been doing them for a few years now and I love the meat.
And not to get attached I call them all Dinner, my DD calls them Buffet.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Quote:
You're crazier than I am... I don't get any in until March 15th.

I tried the late batches in fall and the early batches in spring and both are a flop for me anyways. It just takes too much feed to get them to weight, without a temperature controlled environment. I've tried the hoop house thing... it doesn't work that good.

For 11 birds though... you will be just fine as they are easier to manage.