Skinny Roosters..

[Desert_hawk]

Hi Everyone,

First time chicken owners.... We bought about 30 chicks back in March from our local feed store, not sure what kind they are but I believe we have a few RIR but other than that I at a loss as to what the others are. I have been looking at everyones pictures of their birds but can't seem to find any matches to ours. Basically we have big Black birds with teal/gold feathers and big white birds with a little brown on the wing feathers.

Out of the 30 birds we ended up with 11 hens which are all laying now and the rest roosters. We were hoping to get most of them in the freezer soon but they are so skinny I am not sure it they are ready to butcher yet. They look nice and fat but when you get your hands on them they are all feathers... pretty scrawny.

We have them seperated from the hens and have been feeding them a meatbird crumble for the last few months. My questions... How can I get a little more weight on them? Will they get too old to butcher?

Any tips or advise would be greatly appreciated!

Thank

Amber

 

[dancingbear]

What you're doing now might put a little weight on them. I'd give them about a month to fatten up a bit. They won't be too old to butcher, but they're already too old to be fryers or broilers. Your best bet would be to crock-pot or pressure cook. Cook until the meat starts falling off the bones.

The broth will be outstanding, (freeze or pressure can for soups, sauces, gravies, and to use in any recipe that calls for broth or stock) and you can take the meat off the bones and use for all kinds of stuff, tacos, enchiladas, sandwiches, casseroles, shredded BBQ for sandwiches, chicken and dumplings, pot pies, or whatever. Don't let anybody tell you they're only good for broth or for soup.

We've had many, many, fine meals made with skinny old roosters. There's more meat on those bones than you'd think.

 

[skywatcher]

I free range my flock & and buddy doesn't,so his chickens are alot skinnery & smaller than mine. My chickens get corn grass bugs and feed rations where his chickens are fed only grower crumbles.

 

[journey11]

Quote:
Ditto to that.

Also, some breeds just aren't as proficient as meat birds. But you can still get the use out of them, as mentioned above. Sounds like you've done everything right. I know just separating them from the pullets helps because they are not constantly running around fighting each other and chasing the girls.