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

[SteveH]

Quote:
I had only one Cornsh X Ameraucana egg set when the buffalo gnats wiped me out. It was laid by smallest Black Ameraucana and hatched out a small but meaty black pullet. She's in the DC cockerals' breeding pen but all quit laying when I moved. The most promising birds were Ameraucana X CX. I'm trying to replace them with more crosses this year as all fell victim to that plague of blackflies. This was one at 13 weeks, with two adult hens behind him.

My predator losses have stopped, and I'm now on higher ground a mile away from the nearest flowing water; hopefully no heavy losses, if any, this year.

 

[OSUman]

Quote:
I had only one Cornsh X Ameraucana egg set when the buffalo gnats wiped me out. It was laid by smallest Black Ameraucana and hatched out a small but meaty black pullet. She's in the DC cockerals' breeding pen but all quit laying when I moved. The most promising birds were Ameraucana X CX. I'm trying to replace them with more crosses this year as all fell victim to that plague of blackflies. This was one at 13 weeks, with two adult hens behind him.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/44349_chickens_083.jpg

My predator losses have stopped, and I'm now on higher ground a mile away from the nearest flowing water; hopefully no heavy losses, if any, this year.

Thats a really interesting but solid look

 

[knjinnm]

Quote:
I had only one Cornsh X Ameraucana egg set when the buffalo gnats wiped me out. It was laid by smallest Black Ameraucana and hatched out a small but meaty black pullet. She's in the DC cockerals' breeding pen but all quit laying when I moved. The most promising birds were Ameraucana X CX. I'm trying to replace them with more crosses this year as all fell victim to that plague of blackflies. This was one at 13 weeks, with two adult hens behind him.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/44349_chickens_083.jpg

My predator losses have stopped, and I'm now on higher ground a mile away from the nearest flowing water; hopefully no heavy losses, if any, this year.

Hi Steve,
What color was your Ameraucana that produced the white bird in the picture? When did you move?

Thanks

 

[SteveH]

Quote:
I had only one Cornsh X Ameraucana egg set when the buffalo gnats wiped me out. It was laid by smallest Black Ameraucana and hatched out a small but meaty black pullet. She's in the DC cockerals' breeding pen but all quit laying when I moved. The most promising birds were Ameraucana X CX. I'm trying to replace them with more crosses this year as all fell victim to that plague of blackflies. This was one at 13 weeks, with two adult hens behind him.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/44349_chickens_083.jpg

My predator losses have stopped, and I'm now on higher ground a mile away from the nearest flowing water; hopefully no heavy losses, if any, this year.

Thats a really interesting but solid look

I thought he and most of the others were extreemly ugly at that age, but were carrying plenty of meat and could have been processed even that young. On the other hand their chests had developed more of the Cornish or CX appearance a few weeks later. Unfortunately that was the last picture I took.

I started moving in Nov. Some of my earliest hatched pullets, plus the 4 surviving hens, were laying then; but they all shut down and no others have ever fired up their egg makers.

 

[SteveH]

Quote:
I had only one Cornsh X Ameraucana egg set when the buffalo gnats wiped me out. It was laid by smallest Black Ameraucana and hatched out a small but meaty black pullet. She's in the DC cockerals' breeding pen but all quit laying when I moved. The most promising birds were Ameraucana X CX. I'm trying to replace them with more crosses this year as all fell victim to that plague of blackflies. This was one at 13 weeks, with two adult hens behind him.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/44349_chickens_083.jpg

My predator losses have stopped, and I'm now on higher ground a mile away from the nearest flowing water; hopefully no heavy losses, if any, this year.

Hi Steve,
What color was your Ameraucana that produced the white bird in the picture? When did you move?

Thanks

He was white, though I hatched one in Nov. of 2009 that was by a spalsh. CX are dominate white, so their chicks are white [with an occasional colored feather possible] regardless of the color of the roo. I finished moving my birds in Dec., and those already laying quit after three or fours days here.

 

[kfacres]

Hello folks.. time for some pictures, again... Think the second LF Cornish pullet has begun laying, think I'm getting 2 different sized eggs, and I think it's been 4 days since a day off. Now if I could just get a stupid Silkie to start laying-- and go broody..??

btw, the two BLR cockerals are crowing, so the only male on the place that I have not heard a crow from yet is the Dark Cornish- although his eggs had bullseyes!

Pictures of the three breeding cockerals:

 

[SteveH]

Quote:
The birds in the first pics look good! With your staterents of distaste for quality Cornish you make on our personal page, I don't understand your use of that DC I gave you over the WLR pullets you bought from me. Care to explain?

 

[kfacres]

Its different using these birds for a crossed up, mutt of a backyard self sustaining flock bird-- and just for the shear pleasure of making Cornish birds to tinker and fart around with. I like the enjoyment, and difference they present- like I've said I could care less about color and lacing on my birds-- but do care about their stoutness, meatiness, and overall size. My search for Cornish started much like yours- a bird to use on average ole barnyard hens to produce self sustaining meaty carcass birds...

The difference lies in the margin of what I'm really after- and what most people are really after. I am after the ability to create a monsterous bird, that looks cool, is meaty- and has a market in demand. I'm not after the abilty to breed this bird to that one, and be able to make my own meaty butcher birds in as short of time as possible... When it comes to that- I'll buy some CX chicks.

I wrote my BYC page several months ago- I guess I need to rethink that and go back and edit it some... At the point of when I wrote it- I had other DP type young birds here, similar in age to the Cornish I got from you-- and simpily put they were smoking the pitifully slow growing Cornish- at that stage of the game, I was very down on the birds, and my expectations... Now that they have gotten more age to them, and time to fill in (plus eggs FINALLY)-- I think my thoughts have swayed back to tremendously positive...

Very certain the 2nd WLR pullet with the Dark Cockeral is laying now- got a very different egg again yesterday- and it's been 5 or 6 days in a row with eggs.

 

[SteveH]

Its different using these birds for a crossed up, mutt of a backyard self sustaining flock bird-- and just for the shear pleasure of making Cornish birds to tinker and fart around with. I like the enjoyment, and difference they present- like I've said I could care less about color and lacing on my birds-- but do care about their stoutness, meatiness, and overall size. My search for Cornish started much like yours- a bird to use on average ole barnyard hens to produce self sustaining meaty carcass birds...

The difference lies in the margin of what I'm really after- and what most people are really after. I am after the ability to create a monsterous bird, that looks cool, is meaty- and has a market in demand. I'm not after the abilty to breed this bird to that one, and be able to make my own meaty butcher birds in as short of time as possible... When it comes to that- I'll buy some CX chicks.

I wrote my BYC page several months ago- I guess I need to rethink that and go back and edit it some... At the point of when I wrote it- I had other DP type young birds here, similar in age to the Cornish I got from you-- and simpily put they were smoking the pitifully slow growing Cornish- at that stage of the game, I was very down on the birds, and my expectations... Now that they have gotten more age to them, and time to fill in (plus eggs FINALLY)-- I think my thoughts have swayed back to tremendously positive...

Very certain the 2nd WLR pullet with the Dark Cockeral is laying now- got a very different egg again yesterday- and it's been 5 or 6 days in a row with eggs.

From what I've seen of mine so far, the breeder sourced, show quality, DCs very well fill the bill as a self-sustaining meatbird. While almost any DP breed will appear to be outgrowing them, picking them up will quickly tell you that quality Cornish are carrying far more meat than the DPs at almost any age. I also think your statement about poor meat-to-bone ratio is most probably dead wrong, though I have yet to processs any of my breeder sourced Cornish. I have, however, slow cooked many other breeds and seperated the bones from the meat; the amount of meat left was disappointing. It's true the Cornish have thicker bones, especially the leg shanks [necessary to support the bulky bodies], but poultry bones don't weigh much. I suspiscion the Cornish will actually surpass anything other than a CX in a meat-to-bone comparison.

 

[janchilds]

Why breed the DC to the WLR?? Didn't have a WLR? Wouldn't you want to keep the varieties separate? (Not judging... just asking?)

I really like the 1st picture too! Those are some beautiful birds!!