Proud Farmer moment!

[mandelyn]

I've reduced our flock down to just Black/Blue Silver Marans and Bresse, so that I could use the pen space to breed those better. I'll be splitting each breed into 3 groups for next season.

The last time we processed I had a first, a Marans the same weight as a Bresse! With age it can happen, but these were 16 weeks old. It took SO long to improve the Marans growth rate to get them anywhere close to useful at 16 weeks!

They're totally different shapes, the Marans is carrying the weight more in the thigh and the Bresse is carrying more in the breast.

When they say "Build the barn first" in relation to poultry breeding, they're talking about the structure and type. The meat needs a good place to lay, a frame to support it. Without it and the development won't be as desired.

Width/length/depth matter a lot. I see so many birds out there that aren't being bred towards their dual purpose intention for the breed and then it's no surprise that people complain about how little they are or how long it took them to grow.

After working on this dual purpose thing for the past 4 years, it's become apparent that it's breeding more than feeding. I've been experimenting with the feed/finishing too but the breeding seems to matter more.

 

[mandelyn]

My next question though, is do you find a difference in taste, as the Bress is known for? (I've not had Bresse before)

The Bresse have a thinner skin, more mild dark meat on the thighs, fat marbling where they can get fat more evenly dispersed over the body and not globby, the breast meat is the "short fiber" type and not the longer strand type of texture.

Chicken tastes like chicken, the differences are more in the texture and the flavoring of the dark meat and how rich it is, plus the differences in how much meat is where and the skin type.

Marans have a thicker, more yellow skin (though still white), richer dark meat and the breast meat is the longer fiber type. They seem to have a similar fat composition as well though no one seems to be touting about it. They're more known for their dark brown egg color and not too many are breeding towards the dual purpose type, in favor of that egg color.

I like the contrast between the two types, for the table and their eggs. My husband is a big fan of the dark meat.

 

[mandelyn]

I used to raise Bourbon Red turkeys on my last farm and the difference between them, a farm raised Broad Breasted type, and a store bought/commercial BB type turkey were huge! Both in texture and depth of flavor!

I love our Bourbons! My MIL insists on cooking a Thanksgiving bird along side ours, for whatever reason. Last year, her $0.99/lb Butterball that she cooked in a bag was grey in color. GREY!! Ours was a much more appetizing color. She tried to send the grey left overs with us and I accidentally forgot it when we left...

We don't raise any of the more commercial birds, husband doesn't want me relying on hatcheries. Occasionally we find a favorite bird in a group too, it's nice to be able to keep them going indefinitely.

Being dual purpose has really helped the breeding effort in what we do have, since I can shop for breeding stock more extensively with the boosted hatch quantity. I wouldn't be able to hatch as many if I had to rely on selling boys or wasting them. Girls are easy, everyone wants female poultry. It's the cockerel dynamic we had to figure out.

I always over complicate things too, so it's not like I'm going to get a batch of sexlink pullets and a box of Cornish Cross for meat. That'd be too easy.

 

[SnapdragonQ]

The Bresse have a thinner skin, more mild dark meat on the thighs, fat marbling where they can get fat more evenly dispersed over the body and not globby, the breast meat is the "short fiber" type and not the longer strand type of texture.

Chicken tastes like chicken, the differences are more in the texture and the flavoring of the dark meat and how rich it is, plus the differences in how much meat is where and the skin type.

Marans have a thicker, more yellow skin (though still white), richer dark meat and the breast meat is the longer fiber type. They seem to have a similar fat composition as well though no one seems to be touting about it. They're more known for their dark brown egg color and not too many are breeding towards the dual purpose type, in favor of that egg color.

I like the contrast between the two types, for the table and their eggs. My husband is a big fan of the dark meat.

View attachment 2335015

Thank you! That explains it very well. I've raised CX, Red Rangers, and a variety of "dual" purpose breeds. I have read that a good Maran (not hatchery stock) will have a more square broad body. When I had them my purpose was for eggs and I was doing CX separately so never really looked at them for meat.
Bresse I've only recently learned a little about.

I used to raise Bourbon Red turkeys on my last farm and the difference between them, a farm raised Broad Breasted type, and a store bought/commercial BB type turkey were huge! Both in texture and depth of flavor!

 

[SnapdragonQ]

I love our Bourbons! My MIL insists on cooking a Thanksgiving bird along side ours, for whatever reason. Last year, her $0.99/lb Butterball that she cooked in a bag was grey in color. GREY!! Ours was a much more appetizing color. She tried to send the grey left overs with us and I accidentally forgot it when we left...

We don't raise any of the more commercial birds, husband doesn't want me relying on hatcheries. Occasionally we find a favorite bird in a group too, it's nice to be able to keep them going indefinitely.

I started the turkey adventure when I wasn't able to find a safe bird to make for thanksgiving because my then youngster was allergic to all the stuff that is injected into the birds. Now we are spoiled, though I'm currently turkey-less after a recent farm move and miss having my trio around.
Eventually I'd also like to be self reliant and not reply on hatcheries for anything.

Being dual purpose has really helped the breeding effort in what we do have, since I can shop for breeding stock more extensively with the boosted hatch quantity. I wouldn't be able to hatch as many if I had to rely on selling boys or wasting them. Girls are easy, everyone wants female poultry. It's the cockerel dynamic we had to figure out.

I always over complicate things too, so it's not like I'm going to get a batch of sexlink pullets and a box of Cornish Cross for meat. That'd be too easy.

Love the amount of meat from the CX...everything else about the bird, not so much.
Earlier this year I picked up an incubator and have been having fun hatching shipped eggs for the first time and now have some young Bielefelders to work with. I'm already in love with the auto sexing feature.

 

[CaliFarmsAR]

The Bresse have a thinner skin, more mild dark meat on the thighs, fat marbling where they can get fat more evenly dispersed over the body and not globby, the breast meat is the "short fiber" type and not the longer strand type of texture.

Chicken tastes like chicken, the differences are more in the texture and the flavoring of the dark meat and how rich it is, plus the differences in how much meat is where and the skin type.

Marans have a thicker, more yellow skin (though still white), richer dark meat and the breast meat is the longer fiber type. They seem to have a similar fat composition as well though no one seems to be touting about it. They're more known for their dark brown egg color and not too many are breeding towards the dual purpose type, in favor of that egg color.

I like the contrast between the two types, for the table and their eggs. My husband is a big fan of the dark meat.

View attachment 2335015

Beautiful eggs!!

 

[Tre3hugger]

Wow @mandelyn that's wonderful!! Great job sticking with it. This is my first year with meatbirdds but you have really gotten my gears turning for a more sustainable flock in the future.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Can I ask your but ch er method? I'm trying to figure out what the best way for butchering is since I have Cornish bantams that need to go bye bye

 

[CaliFarmsAR]

I've reduced our flock down to just Black/Blue Silver Marans and Bresse, so that I could use the pen space to breed those better. I'll be splitting each breed into 3 groups for next season.

The last time we processed I had a first, a Marans the same weight as a Bresse! With age it can happen, but these were 16 weeks old. It took SO long to improve the Marans growth rate to get them anywhere close to useful at 16 weeks!

They're totally different shapes, the Marans is carrying the weight more in the thigh and the Bresse is carrying more in the breast.

When they say "Build the barn first" in relation to poultry breeding, they're talking about the structure and type. The meat needs a good place to lay, a frame to support it. Without it and the development won't be as desired.

Width/length/depth matter a lot. I see so many birds out there that aren't being bred towards their dual purpose intention for the breed and then it's no surprise that people complain about how little they are or how long it took them to grow.

After working on this dual purpose thing for the past 4 years, it's become apparent that it's breeding more than feeding. I've been experimenting with the feed/finishing too but the breeding seems to matter more.

View attachment 2334560

Good Job!!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Can I ask where you got Those tags? That looks like a great idea