Raising our 1st set of CX meaties

[jenifry]

Try fermented feed and deep litter next time...and also maybe an electric poultry fence so that they can get out of the coop and spread that goodness all over the lawn so it won't be concentrated in one space?

Thanks for the tip, but maybe you missed the part where I said my chickens have access to 1/4 acre of yard 100% of the time. I have had no predator problems (other than the town's cat problem) so far. It just so happened that my feed store sold me CX that were really slow growers, that ended up in loving the heated floor of the coop when we got our first 4 feet of snow in October, and spent quite a bit of their time there until I butchered them in January.

I have used deep litter in the past, in my opinion, it does smell - not a bad smell to those of us who were raised on a farm/ranch - and if the neighbor walked next to the coop and breathed at the wrong time my god did I hear about it. In my most recent, and hopefully permanent coop, I chose to install a floor with radiant floor heating to combat our winter temperatures, which can be as low as -35. I made my choices for safety and cost effective reasons even if I have to do a little more work sweeping out the coop each week. I guess it boils down what you want to do, and what you feel is best for your birds.

The fermented feed process seems to elude me. I tried for weeks last summer, using every method and tip I read about, even ordering ACV online that had never been pasteurized... and all I ended up with in my attempts was grain ridden with maggots. I am sure I was doing something incorrectly, because so many have success, but it was terrible for me. The up-side, the chickens loved the maggots!

 

[Coralietg]

My first batch of meaties were scalded in a big ol' copper apple butter kettle which we had placed on top of one of those outdoor patio stove thingies that someone had given to us...we placed a bag of charcoal in the bottom of it and lit that baby on fire and it provided hot, even heat throughout the processing. Only cost the price of that charcoal.

You can do it like they used to do..build a fire inside a cairn of stones in the yard and place heat reflectors around it(pieces of old tin roofing or something similar) and put your pot on a grate over that. It can get as simple as you want or as complicated. Where people lose profit is by going complicated.

We always use Rada knives...very cheap, very effective, last forever, sharpen up nice. Cost effective because we use them every day in our kitchen too.

I actually came across your post in a thread about scalding pots, through Google! Very nice set-up! We can build a fire, I was wondering how temperature is maintained though. I looked up some burners, but the cost of one plus a propane tank is getting up to $100. I'm cheap!

I will look into the knives now, thanks so much for the tip.

 

[Beekissed]

That's a shame...the combination of the FF and the deep litter makes for an aroma free coop. I got those slow growers too but I got them in the early spring, so was able to put them out on forage at 2 wks and then there was no getting them back after that...you couldn't have made them stay in that coop.

I've never done meaties in the fall but it would seem that slow growth, heated floors and indoors living would stack against a person anyway for smelly coops and such....did you have to have them in the fall for your customers?

 

[foreverlearning]

I actually came across your post in a thread about scalding pots, through Google! Very nice set-up! We can build a fire, I was wondering how temperature is maintained though. I looked up some burners, but the cost of one plus a propane tank is getting up to $100. I'm cheap!

I will look into the knives now, thanks so much for the tip.

Do you know someone with a turkey fryer or crawfish boil pot? I am sure you could borrow one.

 

[Coralietg]

Do you know someone with a turkey fryer or crawfish boil pot? I am sure you could borrow one.

Living in South Louisiana, you would think so right! We have a crawfish boil pot, just no burner. My partner talked about buying one, but I will get him to ask around.

 

[Beekissed]

I actually came across your post in a thread about scalding pots, through Google! Very nice set-up! We can build a fire, I was wondering how temperature is maintained though. I looked up some burners, but the cost of one plus a propane tank is getting up to $100. I'm cheap!

I will look into the knives now, thanks so much for the tip.

The charcoal maintains a very steady heat and it will get hot enough to scald and then some. I just took a candy thermometer out and clipped it on the side of the kettle to measure the temps, until it hit "scald" and that's when we started processing.

That's funny about Google...I guess you never really know where your words on these forums go, huh?

 

[Angelicisi]

That would explain the great cost lol we're making up for it in feed lol

Slow growers. Same problem here. We get what we pay for huh?

 

[kuntrygirl]

That would explain the great cost lol we're making up for it in feed lol

Slow growers. Same problem here. We get what we pay for huh?

NEVER AGAIN!!! I see why they were so cheap. I'm still tempted to call that farm and see what kinda birds they have hatching over there cause it sho ain't MEAT BIRDS. Maybe meatless birds.

 

[Beekissed]

NEVER AGAIN!!! I see why they were so cheap. I'm still tempted to call that farm and see what kinda birds they have hatching over there cause it sho ain't MEAT BIRDS. Maybe meatless birds.

Same here...I got mine for $1.20 or so per chick but was not pleased with the product. I'll not fall for that again.

 

[LindaB220]

And Bee you were a catalyst in both chicken math and fermented feed.

I need cost of feed and waste to go away and was researching hard for alternatives to the norm...found your giant thread...ff for meaties...saves me 30% at minimum right off the top. In turn helping families here eat healthier for cheaper.

A life changing moment, Bee.

Literally.