So When Should I Process My Dominique Cockerels?

[LaFleche]

Thank you for your response. They don't seem to even be aware of the girls at this point and there is no fighting. We have nowhere else to put them, so I guess we'll start processing when it gets to be a problem.

They are getting 18% all-flock like everybody else, along with a little scratch twice a day and a few mealworms. As in, about half a cup of scratch shared among the seven of them. Do you recommend something different/ better?

Some 4 weeks before butchering day I start to feed them more animal protein to help with muscle build up (breast).

 

[BigBlueHen53]

It does. When they hit puberty and the hormones start flowing the meat develops flavor and texture. I butcher both pullets and cockerels, the difference is evident. Some cockerels hit puberty at three months, some not until five months or even later. Some people like that flavor change, some don't. The hormones are what can give it a gamey taste.


Some people say they have problems in a bachelor pad if the boys can see the girls. Mine are just across a fence and I haven't seen any problems. We are all different and each flock has it's own dynamics. That's part of what makes this so interesting to me.


As you can see by the responses we all have our preferences. My personal preference is 23 weeks which suites my goals and how I manage and cook them. I generally start thinning them out around 16 weeks for my own reasons, freezer space limitations and I only do a half dozen at a time part of that. Plus I'm usually selecting which cockerel I might want to keep as a breeding rooster so I eliminate the rejects first to make that selection process easier.

My suggestion is to probably start now with a couple and see how that works for you. Like a lot of things chicken it might take some trial and error to find your personal sweet spot.

Thanks. I think I'll start with two at a time starting after Christmas and do two a week. We haven't had Doms before and I'm looking forward to trying them. We liked the EE we had a couple of years ago, good flavor and texture but a bit lean. They had horrible temperaments though. The BA's greyish meat was a little off-putting but otherwise good, and they were nicer to have in the flock. The Doms seem to have the nicest temperaments so far.

 

[aart]

The BA's greyish meat was a little off-putting but otherwise good

The meat was grey, or the skin(from dark feather follicles)?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

The meat was grey, or the skin(from dark feather follicles)?

The meat seemed to be greyish pigmented. Different from grocery-store meat definitely. I think we processed either four or six of them and they were all like that. It was just dark, hard to describe.

 

[STACEYH]

Hi, so I have half a dozen Dominique cockerels just coming up to four months old and they're getting a little size to them. They don't seem to be getting too hormonal yet, although I don't know if that affects the meat at all. They are currently in a bachelor pen with a nice, mild rooster and the pen is adjacent to a large run containing hens and pullets. I've seen one of the cockerels chest-bump another followed by a little sparring, but that's it. All the boys, rooster included, sleep on the floor of a coop in a huddle.

All of which is to ask those of you who process/ butcher dual- purpose birds: when should I plan on processing these guys? I plan to do two or three a week because that's what I can fit in my fridge to age a bit before freezing. Hoping I'm not two months too late already! But they didn't really start putting on size until recently.

Thanks for any advice, suggestions or tips you care to share!

You have Mennonites,they can tell you everything. I know when we lived in PA our friends Amish and Mennonite know so much about animals and plants. Anyway If you think they are on the small side ask her. Take one over to her and see what she says.
put a board up between the boys and girls and see if not seeing them would help. I know they will still hear them ...... make little ear muffsjust joking.

 

[HumbleAmerican]

When I harvest, I start around 16-18 weeks and take the big birds. I butcher on weekends. Typically 1/3 of whats there at a time (10-12 birds a weekend)

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Lol! Years ago when I had a different flock and my mom lived next door to me, she worried about them being cold and wanted me to crochet them little sweaters. You saying that made me picture them walking around in little jackets with earmuffs and pinless peepers! How about stocking hats?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Okay, here's a question for y'all. What live weight am I looking for?

 

[STACEYH]

Lol! Years ago when I had a different flock and my mom lived next door to me, she worried about them being cold and wanted me to crochet them little sweaters. You saying that made me picture them walking around in little jackets with earmuffs and pinless peepers! How about stocking hats?

This is to funny I am rolling over here thank you!!

 

[HumbleAmerican]

Okay, here's a question for y'all. What live weight am I looking for?

Dominique? Probably 7 lbs or so from a cockerel.