Processing Day Support Group ~ HELP us through the Emotions PLEASE!

[Sally Sunshine]

Hello all! Long time no write! Hope everyone is well!

I have a few questions on our meaties! Ideal poultry Cornish X
Day 19

I need help with the feeding regimen please!

Also I noticed some butts look feather pecked? I never seen this issue, assume its from boredom but they are outside now so I hope it helps being free!

THANK YOU SO much for help!

Also Hubs wants to raise quail again but I want the best tasting this time around! We all like a white type meat, is there such a thing with quail? Or am I just a terrible cook?

 

[Kusanar]

Also Hubs wants to raise quail again but I want the best tasting this time around! We all like a white type meat, is there such a thing with quail? Or am I just a terrible cook?

A piece of info I picked up somewhere (can't remember where) is that dark meat is formed from using muscles and white meat is formed from being sedentary, one reason why a wild turkey has very little white meat but a farmed wild type has a lot more. Perhaps putting your "to be eaten" birds in small areas where they can't move a lot (or simply don't need to) would help with the white meat.

 

[fisherlady]

Hello all! Long time no write! Hope everyone is well!

I have a few questions on our meaties! Ideal poultry Cornish X
Day 19

I need help with the feeding regimen please!

Also I noticed some butts look feather pecked? I never seen this issue, assume its from boredom but they are outside now so I hope it helps being free!

THANK YOU SO much for help!

Also Hubs wants to raise quail again but I want the best tasting this time around! We all like a white type meat, is there such a thing with quail? Or am I just a terrible cook?

For bare bottoms or any pecked areas we just use a spritz of blu-kote, though any dyed product would probably get the same results.

We feed a higher protein food the first 2 -3 weeks, then move to a 18-20% grower finisher, and if keeping them over 7-8 weeks i change to a 16-17% after 6 weeks, staying on the really high protein food seems to increase the fat inside more than growing overall size after they are about 6 or 7 weeks, so no reason to spend the extra money on the higher protein food and no reason to add fat to them and promote more potential heart and joint stress.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote: Hi Kusanar, makes complete sense.... we tried that and had them in a double rabbit hutch, all we accomplished was cannibalism and freaking our daughter out when she had to feed and water them lol

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote: I dont see much redness and no blood as of yet, Hubs thinks its just the fluff leaving and the feathering coming in. IDK they are NOT like normal chickens

ok on the feed, I have pellets waiting but they are still too small for them. So I will switch when I think they can eat them. I thought we had discussed at some point the feeding just in the morning and night to prevent heart issues. They are pigs for sure they should be CornishPIGS not Cornish X

any thoughts on the banty dark cornish I bought? I cant even tell if there is a roo or not in them. I havent researched too much. I thought when I purchased Banty cornish they would be white too. surprise surprise!

 

[fisherlady]

I dont see much redness and no blood as of yet, Hubs thinks its just the fluff leaving and the feathering coming in. IDK they are NOT like normal chickens

ok on the feed, I have pellets waiting but they are still too small for them. So I will switch when I think they can eat them. I thought we had discussed at some point the feeding just in the morning and night to prevent heart issues. They are pigs for sure they should be CornishPIGS not Cornish X

any thoughts on the banty dark cornish I bought? I cant even tell if there is a roo or not in them. I havent researched too much. I thought when I purchased Banty cornish they would be white too. surprise surprise!

The banty cornish come in different colors, i know horstman poultry in sw pa has nice ones....though for meat I wouldn't regularly pay the higher breeder prices unless you are searching for your own breed stock, if that is the case then get the best you can find. dark cornish would be fine, just darker pin feathers to deal with. they are certainly very stocky little birds, but I don't know what their growth rate is, so can't offer an opinion on their practicality as meat birds.

I do only feed 12 hours on the CX after they are about 2 wks old, the 12hrs on, 12 hrs off helps with the health issues (in my opinion, at least)... also, keep the food and water in separate areas to make them move around more.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

The banty cornish come in different colors, i know horstman poultry in sw pa has nice ones....though for meat I wouldn't regularly pay the higher breeder prices unless you are searching for your own breed stock, if that is the case then get the best you can find. dark cornish would be fine, just darker pin feathers to deal with. they are certainly very stocky little birds, but I don't know what their growth rate is, so can't offer an opinion on their practicality as meat birds.

I do only feed 12 hours on the CX after they are about 2 wks old, the 12hrs on, 12 hrs off helps with the health issues (in my opinion, at least)... also, keep the food and water in separate areas to make them move around more.

Makes sense about making them move. I dont have that problem yet, they are all over the place so far. I have water inside and out, feed will come outside soon too.
I already have the Dark Cornish bantams, came with the ideal order. Growth rate is like a normal chicken though, nothing like these piggos.

The darks are the darker chipmunked chicks in this image, image when I got them, but they are still in brooder lol

 

[MargaretYakoda]

In the next 24 hours or so I need to process Bob.
Bob came in our first order of chicks. He was supposed to be Babs, but... he wasn't. He was Bob. A hatchery buff orpington.
That was two and a half years ago.

Since then we've decided to focus solely on breeding quality Jersey Giants. We have two decent JG cocks that are ready to get to work, so Bob's an extra.

Bob's fertility (which had been nearly 100%) has dropped to about 65%. And the back of his comb is often blue. It's been light blue off and on since he was about 9 months, but now it's deeper blue, and it happens much more frequently. I am guessing he has a heart issue?

Bob has been a good rooster. He's taught us the value of roosters, too. He fought off the neighbor cat twice. That second time was for good. He didn't kill the cat, but both were very bloodied, and the cat never came back. He also alerts to hawks and makes sure the girls know when to dive for cover.

But... We're having a tree taken down this Saturday. The tree is right next to the chicken yard, and is threatening to fall on our house. One good windstorm and our roof could be toast. Taking that tree down means chainsaws all day long. Which will stress out the chickens. For most of them, this can't be helped. But.. It might be a kindness if Bob doesn't have to live through it.

He's still out in the yard. I haven't even gotten up the nerve to put him in the isolation coop.

 

[ronott1]

In the next 24 hours or so I need to process Bob.
Bob came in our first order of chicks. He was supposed to be Babs, but... he wasn't. He was Bob. A hatchery buff orpington.
That was two and a half years ago.

Since then we've decided to focus solely on breeding quality Jersey Giants. We have two decent JG cocks that are ready to get to work, so Bob's an extra.

Bob's fertility (which had been nearly 100%) has dropped to about 65%. And the back of his comb is often blue. It's been light blue off and on since he was about 9 months, but now it's deeper blue, and it happens much more frequently. I am guessing he has a heart issue?

Bob has been a good rooster. He's taught us the value of roosters, too. He fought off the neighbor cat twice. That second time was for good. He didn't kill the cat, but both were very bloodied, and the cat never came back. He also alerts to hawks and makes sure the girls know when to dive for cover.

But... We're having a tree taken down this Saturday. The tree is right next to the chicken yard, and is threatening to fall on our house. One good windstorm and our roof could be toast. Taking that tree down means chainsaws all day long. Which will stress out the chickens. For most of them, this can't be helped. But.. It might be a kindness if Bob doesn't have to live through it.

He's still out in the yard. I haven't even gotten up the nerve to put him in the isolation coop.

You have made a good decision!

Work on little steps, like the isolation coop. Little steps will lead to the big one and then you will have finished the processing.

Keep us posted!

 

[Beekissed]

Sometimes it's just harder to kill a good rooster than it is even a good hen. They tend to stand out more, we keep them longer and they are such an integral part of the flock success, not to mention they are just beautiful, so cutting into them and getting those pretty hackle feathers besmirched is a hard thing to do. Sending you good thoughts on getting Bob where he needs to go and enjoying him down to the last bite...sounds like he's earned respect.

On the really good roosters I keep some hackle feathers in a keepsake box...some just have earned that right.