Rescuing a few birds

[maus10]

I received 7 few birds about 4-5 weeks old that were the runts on a big business chicken farm and not picked up by the corporation. They were just going to be incinerated, so I thought, why not allow them to grow full size and process them. Any idea how I should determine the feeding amount and water per day? They're pretty skinny and need to bounce back. I'm going to let them roam in a weed and grass area a little hoping they'll find a little food on their own. I know there is a lot of factors people can educate me on, but I'm really just looking for a general ballpark estimate of how much feed per bird per day and water too.

 

[sourland]

You are most likely dealing with Cornish X which are eating and drinking machines. Most people provide unlimited feed, and fresh water must be available at all times. You can try feeding as much as they will clean up AM and PM, but may find that more frequent feeding is necessary. Good luck with them. There may be congenital problems which have kept them from growing well.

 

[maus10]

Will they ever develop if they have a congenital issue?

 

[chfite]

They may simply be smaller than the desired size. I have New Hampshire Reds. One of them is quite a bit smaller than the others. She is fine and lays as the others do.

I figure about 4 ounces of feed per day, but they seem to eat more like 5 ounces. I provide feed all the time.

If you have them, feed them, and see what develops. They will be full size at about 8 weeks.

Chris