What birds are good?

[hopkinshens]

I live in the uk, what kind of bird can I access here that is a good meat bird? And where can I get them slaughtered?

The price if feed her is £9 per 20kg of growers pellets.

I'm not looking to spend in the end more than £4 a bird and only want maybe 12 birds total.

Any ideas??

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

Sorry, I don't know much about what types of chickens are available in the UK. I know the Freedom Ranger was originally created in France as a more ethical or healthy alternative to the Cornish X. I think they may go by another name there. Wickipedia says "The Freedom Ranger chicken cross was first developed in France in the 1960s.[1] They were developed to meet the standards of the French program, Label Rouge.[2] Label Rouge takes pride in its program because birds are high quality. Many restaurants in France use them.[2]"

Perhaps you could look into getting some of these.

 

[hopkinshens]

I was looking at them and they seem good so I may buy some!

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

I raised 35 last summer and was very pleased with the results.

 

[hopkinshens]

I don't have room I don't think to fasilitate that many I was thinking 10/15 are the available in small batches? And is it possible to keep a breeding couple?

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

From my understanding Freedom Rangers are a hybrid of four different breeds. As a result, while you can keep some for breeding purposes, they are "mutts" and won't breed true. There are some on this forum who have tried it and were happy with the first generation they hatched and raised for meat.

I don't know whether you can get them in small batches. Here in the U.S. the minimum order is 25. Perhaps if this is the case where you are, you could split a batch with someone else.

One problem with keeping a breeding pair is that a single hen will not keep a rooster happy. While I don't know this from personal experience, the I believe the rule of thumb is one rooster for every 8-10 hens. Less hens and the rooster doesn't leave the hens alone and they get stressed and sometimes are injured from his attentions. Too many more hens and they don't all get fertilized and the eggs don't hatch.

Oh, one more thing, I don't know if Freedom Ranger hens go broody...many modern chickens have lost that instinct. If this is the case, you'll need either a broody hen or an incubator if you plan on hatching your own chicks.

 

[hopkinshens]

I see but it is possible to keep the freedom rangers past the age of killing, and I would be able to keep more, I would incubate then myself.
The only problem I'm having is finding out what freedom rangers are called in the uk,
Where I live