Red Laced Cornish X and project talk (pics p. 8)

[Cedarknob]

So, we have 50 CornishX hatchery babies coming in very soon. So, we are trying something different this year. Last year we had them in pens and strictly commercial rations. This year, we are putting them in pens ON GRASS, with commercial feed "rations" and let them eat grass too with supplemental produce from the scraps in the kitchen. I'm hoping that rationed feed, plus greens, plus having to get "some" exercise will produce a tastier, if slightly small bird.

Have others done this specifically for a meat bird? I know some do it to have a "breeder" bird. Are the birds tastier? I think if this doesn't work, I'm not going to bother trying next year. It's going to be a lot of extra work and if id doesn't make a tastier bird, there's not much point.

Yes, I have raised CX on severely rationed, 18% commercial grower, and allowed them all the natural forage they will eat. I do allow full feed of 20% grower on the first week, to get them going, but not sure this is necessary, and you will have to either scatter feed on the ground over a wide area, or give them rationed feed in enough feeders so that the stronger chicks do not get all the feed. Mine have stayed healthy all the way up to the point of breeding age, and this year I am actually using some of the hens to breed. On very limited commercial rations, they grow much slower, and actually act much like any other large breed, other than being ready to process at nearly any age, because they still carry more meat at a younger age, just smaller than those fed for early processing. Do not ration water, they will have problems if they are allowed to run out. If I see one developing a blue looking comb or not walking, I process it; a few may succeed at crowding others away from the feed despite my efforts to scatter feeding space, and they will suffer the consequences of rapid growth at any age. Even on a strict diet, they do eventually develop heart or lung issues; they are bred to live very short, productive lives, but I've kept them long enough to get a dressed weight on a male of nearly15 pounds at around 10 months..

I've found the leg and thigh meat to be a little firmer and darker than those raised conventionally, but of course they are much older than those fed for processing at 7 weeks. I've never kept records of feed costs, but suspect I have as much invested per pound of meat as those fed for earlier processing, and considerable more effort is spent on keeping them on enough graze.

 

[SethsArk]

I'm not as scientific as that, but here's my 2cents. I raised the CornishX last year with my layer chicks so I initially was having a hard time stopping them from eating themselves to death. They were being raised in the dormant part of my veggie garden (about a 1/4 acre) that was full of cover crop like vetch, sweet pea, purslane and the like. My son grabbed a rubbermaid container that is about 16 inches tall, turned it upside down and put the food in the indentation of the now top of the container. The layers would jump up whenever they were hungry but the CX would laydown next to it and force themselves to their feet and stretch their necks up when they wanted a few pellets. And it was in the sun, so when they got hot they werent near the food. This also forced them to eat what was right in front of them, the cover crop. We didn't process until they were almost 6 months old (the hens were laying eggs!) and they were HUGE!! About the size of a storebought turkey. They did also learn to scratch by imitating the layers, so they probably got some bugs too.
Before making them work for thier food, we had some really obese birds (and so dirty). After this method they were much more active and acted morelike birds. Again, I dont eat meat, but everyone who had it loved it. They still talk about how good they were.
It actually was less work once we didnt have to feed them 2xs a day. Just put the food out once in the morning. Also because they were so much healthier I didnt go out constantly worrying that they were going to break a leg or keel over. On a side note, because they were so big we also werent concerned about losing them to predators. We lost 2 layers to a bobcat but he didnt even attempt to go after those beasts.
So I guess I cant tell you if it was tastier, but I can say that it did make life easier.

 

[galanie]

Why does all this look pretty much off topic? We're really here discussing the pros of growing out cornish X rather than any LF Cornish? Wow.

 

[Totalcolour]

Well, I'm talking about Cornish X, and I thought everyone else was too. You really can't have Cornish X without the Cornish part can you!

 

[shadowmane]

Well, the topic according to the thread title is White Laced Red Cornish Cross. But crossed with what? And I never got through the thread to see how that experiment played out.

 

[Totalcolour]

Well, the topic according to the thread title is White Laced Red Cornish Cross. But crossed with what? And I never got through the thread to see how that experiment played out.

My WLR turned out not to be as good as I thought they would be. The darks are much nicer. But then, I only have hatchery stock, so maybe that's why my WLR aren't very good. I only have one left now - but the rest were in fact very tasty

 

[Cedarknob]

Why does all this look pretty much off topic? We're really here discussing the pros of growing out cornish X rather than any LF Cornish? Wow.

Well, I'm talking about Cornish X, and I thought everyone else was too. You really can't have Cornish X without the Cornish part can you!

I read the thread from beginning to where I joined, trust me, it wanders off topic frequently.

In order to keep from getting myself continuously involved in the dramas going on since I joined, I used the "block" [I found it by clicking next to their names] option on some thread users I do not seem to be able not to respond to. I do not mind sharing how I've fed Cornish Rocks to eat because it might benefit those wanting to use them to breed, or another option for meat other than the culls from your own projects. I did not like my hatchery Cornish as meat birds, love my purebreds for looks but have too few to cull for eating at this point, so using both high quality Cornish and some of those marketed as Cornish Cross, Jumbo Cornish, etc., to breed as a utility project flock, and hope to keep both my show Cornish and the project flock in future years.

 

[SethsArk]

I do not mind sharing how I've fed Cornish Rocks to eat because it might benefit those wanting to use them to breed, or another option for meat other than the culls from your own projects

Well, if my conversations are also being considered "off-topic" I apologize. At the same time I REALLY appreciate all the random details that have been provided here. And also the advice on what direction I might go in. It really has benefited me, so THANK YOU. And who better to ask than a group of people who really know their stuff like your group

 

[galanie]

Of course this thread does wander and almost never follows the topic, I've been following it since it was only a few pages long. I had no idea my comment would draw such a number of responses. Generally this thread has been about raising LF Cornish and the various crosses, mainly projects. I.E. our own crosses, not the cornish x so much, except when those have been used in breeding projects.

Actually, how we raise our hatchery purchased cornish x isn't off topic, it's just that this subject is covered ad nauseum everywhere in the Meat Bird section.

 

[shadowmane]

I've been wondering what other breeds have been crossed with the Cornish. Has anyone crossed Silver Laced Wyandottes with them? I have some SLW chicks growing out right now, and wonder if I added a Dark Cornish rooster to the flock, if it might produce acceptable meat birds that will grow out over the course of the summer (of course, that would have to be next summer, since these hens will only start laying some time in July). And God only knows what will result if a Cornish roo mates with one of my 7 EE's.