Showing Broilers: I got some weird advice

[deerman]

First thing that jump out at me was 5 lb bird in month (4 Weeks) thats not going to happen , that explains heat their whole like ,yes first 4 weeks,

Getting tyhem to weight faster with out killing them.


Some of those would help , but you could lose a few.

corn oil would put more fat on then.

24/7 lights(not heat lights) would give them more time to eat, if enought room to keep them from pecking each other, so again more weight.


Not letting them outside, yes could add more weight (fat) not healthy birds

gun powder , not sure unless its the weight of the gun powder at the time of weigh in.(show people sometime do crazy things to get their animal to weight)

None of these would make a good eating birds , but i can see it adding weight, if they DON'T die of a heart attack.





Still not going to get 5 lbs at 4 weeks

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I agree, total crap.
I just read research today about birds raised in cool vs. hot environments. They raise birds in 2 lots for four generations and from 5 to 8 weeks one lot was at 70 degrees and the other at 90 degrees. During the 5 to 8 week period the cool birds gained 20% more weight generation after generation.

 

[greenhorn]

Interesting, I've never heard of show broilers but I don't know much of anything about showing birds anyway. Have raised 4 batches of broilers though and they do like to go outside if you let them. Some are more interested in hanging close to the feeder though. One sure way to get them to go outside is to move the feed out there when weather permits.

Keep the feeder on a rope or chain so the birds have to stand to feed. Some are so lazy they will just lay in front of the feeder filling their gullet if you allow them to.

They say to only allow your broilers to feed for 12 hours a day or they can have heart attacks. We don't usually take their feed away though but have found a couple dead ones out of the 150 or so we have raised.

Most if not all the advice you got sounds bogus to me. Listen to the folks here at BYC for good advice.

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Not sure I'd want to eat them if they've been eating gunpowder ....

(given that they are broilers and all - even if they are SHOW broilers ... )

 

[al6517]

The point here is to get them to market pen weight in show. sure anybody can raise a meaty but the issue is getting it to the best weight at 7 weeks, not just if you have ever just raised them. I agree that some of the tips are a bit goofy sounding and most without merit except the lighting. Yeah I think Gary was right somebody is pulling your leg, old farmer types have about 40 bazillion worthless methods they have passed down over the years some work and some you know to just never try LOL.

 

[LiLRedCV]

Quote:
Black Oil Sunflower Seeds can do the same very thing as corn oil and with a lot less chemical processing involved. Personally, I'd rather feed them BOSS, but, hey, that's just me.

As for gunpowder?

Oh heck no!

Would you feed your child gunpowder for dinner to fatten him/her up a bit just for show? I wouldn't.

 

[Ivy061]

Thanks for all the replies! They were very informative. I did get the advice from some old farmers but maybe they were just playing a prank on me or got their stories mixed up.
I'm not so driven to win that I would keep the birds in unethical conditions so I'm glad to see that I could have success raising them more naturally.

 

[Tracydr]

I wouldn't feed to much BOSS for broilers. It's only 13% protein. A little to boost fat is ok but don't overdo it.
I thought show broilers were usually shown between 6-8 weeks?

 

[terri9630]

At our fair the broilers. Have to be 8wks old. You can reach 5lbs in 5 weeks. The last 2 years we have had birds over 9lbs at fair time (8wks).

Our birds are on the ground in movable pens. I don't add any extras to their feed but since our fair is in the fall it is hot so I have a fan on the front of the pen for air circulation.

 

[BBUTTER]

I agree with everyone else here. We raise ours outdoors in a portable pen with no light or heat. They go for up to 4 weeks in the brooder, but we have moved them outside as early as two weeks when it's hot out. Really, if it's 95° outside, you only have to get them big enough to not go through the holes in the chicken wire, and then they can go outside safely. I live in Louisiana, too, in the Alexandria area. We learned the hard way that they don't do well AT ALL in our summer heat down here. We've decided not to raise them from mid-June to mid-August. We lost an entire batch during that bad heat spell a while back. All of the work to keep them cool was not worth the payoff. Our pen is partially covered to provide shelter/shade, but we move it into the shade if it gets into the upper 90s outside. They really do well when the temp is about like it has been in the last few weeks, 60s-80s. We've never had problems with fighting, but we give them extra space.
We feed ours the highest protein percentage we can get with no medication their entire lives, plus they get bugs from being outside--straight protein! We use Quik Chik from Murray McMurray continually. It's USDA organic complient.
To get them to eat a lot, go mess with their food often. Add a little bit every time you go out there. Every time you mess with it they think you've put something special in there, so they get greedy and gobble it up. Don't overdo it, though. Causing them to eat 24/7 could also cause them to have heart attacks. (just like a human!)
If you can't show them over 8 weeks, I would try to squeeze in a few extra days in that 8th week (raise them to 8 wks, 6 days if allowable). That way they can get a bit more feather coverage, a little more weight, and larger combs/wattles. It's amazing what a couple of days can do in broiler-time.