Wellsummer surprise

[Ridgerunner]

Don't you think a "dual purpose" bird should have weighed more than that?

2 pounds dressed weight. That's about the live weight of a Welsummer bantam rooster so he was a little bigger than a bantam.

When I want a new flock master I get around 20 cockerel chicks from a hatchery. I eat the ones I don't want to breed and keep the best to breed. Even from the same hatchery there is a huge difference in size of those cockerels. Occasionally you get a clear runt, much smaller than the others.

I don't know where you got him or what breeding went into his background. All I can do is guess. My guess is that you just got a small one.

Your smaller than he looked comment is pretty common. You'll see some worried posts on this forum during molting season. When a hen goes through a hard molt people get worried that she has lost weight and is so small. Not really. She's normal size and without those thick feathers you can see what that normal size is. That's why you need to weigh and feel under the feathers when trying to decide which rooster to breed if you are after meat. Those feathers can make them look a lot bigger than they are. I see that a lot when I butcher.

 

[Parront]

Sounds like the size of a Brown Leghorn rooster, they are tasty but small.

 

[chanceosunshine]

They forage a lot. I ferment the feed and that helps https://tikktok.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/fermented-feed-faq/

Thanks for the link. There was a lot to take in, but it’s really good information! I need to try this!

 

[chanceosunshine]

2 pounds dressed weight. That's about the live weight of a Welsummer bantam rooster so he was a little bigger than a bantam.

When I want a new flock master I get around 20 cockerel chicks from a hatchery. I eat the ones I don't want to breed and keep the best to breed. Even from the same hatchery there is a huge difference in size of those cockerels. Occasionally you get a clear runt, much smaller than the others.

I don't know where you got him or what breeding went into his background. All I can do is guess. My guess is that you just got a small one.

Your smaller than he looked comment is pretty common. You'll see some worried posts on this forum during molting season. When a hen goes through a hard molt people get worried that she has lost weight and is so small. Not really. She's normal size and without those thick feathers you can see what that normal size is. That's why you need to weigh and feel under the feathers when trying to decide which rooster to breed if you are after meat. Those feathers can make them look a lot bigger than they are. I see that a lot when I butcher.

My daughter-in-law raised him. She got him aRural King, a very quality bird I’m sure. Lol

All he had to do was NOT attack us and I would have never known how scrawny he was.

That’s a great idea on how to get a new rooster. It serves two purposes.

I have two possible replacements at the moment. One is his son. The other a Columbian Wyandotte x Light Brahma. If they don’t work out I’d like to find an actual rooster of quality. I just have to settle on a breed. Hopefully one I don’t have to make into soup.

I know the feathers can be deceiving but even his height made him look like a nice sized bird to me.

Thanks for the tips!

 

[chanceosunshine]

They forage a lot. I ferment the feed and that helps https://tikktok.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/fermented-feed-faq/

I was going back through your post about the fermented food and have a couple of questions. When feeding your meat birds do you still on feed twice a day or do you allow them to free feed the fermented food? Or do you just have them forage for the rest of the time?

I've been feeding my layers a flock raiser type food because there's a duck in there that is convinced he's a chicken and he needs the extra protein. Do you think that the flock raiser would be enough protein for meat birds or would you feed strictly a feed meant for meat birds? I'm concerned that the next set of meat chicks we get are going to mature very slowly, so I want to feed them what will grow them the fastest.

Let's say you have a big bucket of fermented food, can you take out what you need to feed the chickens and add that amount of fresh food daily to keep it going? Would that be considered backslopping?

 

[Molpet]

I was going back through your post about the fermented food and have a couple of questions. When feeding your meat birds do you still on feed twice a day or do you allow them to free feed the fermented food? Or do you just have them forage for the rest of the time?

My meat mutts I put FF out 2x a day. More than they can eat in 20 minutes, and they forage the middle of the day. They don't tend to over eat.
The CX I restricted the feed more, but I was wanting healthy birds.

Do you think that the flock raiser would be enough protein for meat birds or would you feed strictly a feed meant for meat birds? I'm concerned that the next set of meat chicks we get are going to mature very slowly, so I want to feed them what will grow them the fastest.

The CX will gain weight slower on less protein, but be healthier.

Let's say you have a big bucket of fermented food, can you take out what you need to feed the chickens and add that amount of fresh food daily to keep it going? Would that be considered backslopping?

Yes.

I have three 5 gallon buckets going in the winter. I feed a bucket and a half a day in the winter.

 

[nicalandia]

I have been working on a meat mutt project... A random heritage mix roo over a CX pullet . They dress out 5 to 7 lbs at 16 weeks... I'm on the 4 generation.

I've been doing some research and Believe the best cross for sustainable is ISA Brown Rooster over Fed Restricted CornishX hens, the F1 males 5.5 pounds at 10 weeks

The hens are exceptional good layers(260 at 70 weeks of age) These F1 hens when crossed to a fed restricted CornishX should yield lots of chicks with about >75% of the CornishX broilers(about 4 pounds chicks at 5 weeks) These BC1(Back Cross to CornishX) are Superior to Slow Broiler in FCR.