Question on growing DP in stages.

[Pollokeeper]

Raising meat chickens is a new experience. My goal is to produce my own chickens for the kitchen here in Panama. I have reddish brown broilers(they look like RIR's to me). I have 8 that are 2 months old, 9 that are 1 month old. I am thinking about buying 10 more chicks in the morning and keeping them in my 2 X 5 pen for a month and then add them to the big pen with the others. I didn't have too much problem doing this with the 9 smaller chicks I have. It this a good strategy? Freezer space is limited here so I thought that raising DP's in stages would be the answer. Will the bigger DP's get aggressive as they get some age on them? Sorry if I am repeating an already asked question.

 

[Dogfish]

If your question is, "Is it reasonable to time butcher dates for different flocks of birds so that I have a limited amount of birds in the freezer at any given time?", I'd tell you that is a pretty good plan if it fits your situation.

I have multiple ages and sizes of birds in the same run. Haven't had any real issues that I could say. Had 2 leg injuries, but that was it.

 

[Pollokeeper]

Thanx for the reply. I am raising chickens in conditions that are not nominal and I don't have a seperate freezer. My fridge is a small unit, I have seen them in RV's etc in the US. I froze 3 yesterday in it without any problems but now it is full. My question was can I introduce 10 new poltes into the main pen after they have been in a small brooder pen for one month. My goal is to have 3 or 4 birds ready for the pot every several weeks but not to have many that need to be processed at any one time due to the lack of freezer space. It kind of makes me think of the question of what people did 100 years ago when there were no freezers. They would only kill what what they needed on any one day but in my case I can handle 4 or 5 for the small freezer that I have in my fridge. I am new to Panama and will not have a seperate freezer for awhile. The reason that I asked the question is that I will soon have 3 groups of birds of ages that are 1 month apart. I have some that are 2 months old now and some that are 1 month old. When I buy the chicks tommorrow I will have 10 more that will be 1 month old when I plan to introduce them into the main pen. The brownish red birds may be more aggressive at the time I try to move them into the mail pen. I don't know. But, I thought I would put my question out there for the experts. By the way, animals here don't enjoy the same conditions that they are given in the states I don't think. I am doing the best I can to provide the best possible conditions for my birds as I consider them to be my friends and I certainly have no chance of eating properly without them. Again, thanks

 

[Dogfish]

Put your new pullets in with your older birds, but in their own cage so they can see each other for a bit. Your older birds will be dwindling as you cull them out, and from what I've learned here, the more new birds added, compared to the older birds, the better. Sounds like a reasonable plan, but be prepared to separate them. Best of luck!

 

[dancingbear]

I've always mixed birds of all ages, without any real problems, EXCEPT when I had a new mom hen with babies. She'd attack other, slightly older babies, and kill them if not stopped. Other than that, it's really been no problem. By the time they're out of the brooder and feathered out, they can mix in with just an occasional peck to establish who's who.

Remember to age your birds in the fridge for at least 24 hrs before you freeze them or cook them, and if you have to let some get past the tender stage when you butcher, just cook 'em slooooww at a low temp, like 200-300F, and they'll be great.

Best of luck, it sounds like you are working with some trying circumstances.