When to butcher RIR/BR cross cockerels

[sgoff]

I have a few Rhodeisland-barred rock boys. At what age should I process? Right now they are about 16 weeks. My plan is to lock them up for a few weeks and fatten before d-day. Right now they are free ranging all day. I understand they will not compare carcass wise with a cornishX but I will have a constant supply of these, so getting a good system down for utilizing my excess boys is my goal.

 

[cubalaya]

18 to 20 weeks.

 

[Ariel301]

Quote:
Agreed. I did some New Hampshire Red cockerels at 16 weeks and there wasn't enough meat on them to be worth the time it took to clean them. When I did the rest of them at about 6 months, they were a good size, except that their legs were too long to fit well in my crock pot.

 

[trimpy]

Quote:
Also this. I did some at 20 and some at 26 and the older ones were just a little fattier and not really any bigger.

 

[LilyD]

I think with Dual Purpose it falls more to when you feel they are big enough rather than actual age. I have had some that were ready by 5 months and others that I would really have liked to let go another couple of months. At 7 to 8 months I can tell you that as long as I rested the meat it was just as tender as the younger birds I did. Also if you debone the meat and use a meat mallet to tenderize before cooking for those birds older than 8 months it makes them really tender too without needing as much resting.

Hope this helps.

 

[naillikwj82]

Try to consider caponizing the cockerals at 4 - 5 weeks. Results in larger carcass, no rush to process. Stays tender and delicious up to 18 months without the freezer. If you free range the feed bill won't be to drastic.

 

[Vamvakas]

We do this at around 6-9 months old, for some reason the RIR dosnt grow as fast for me.

 

[Azriel]

I did my Production Reds at 17 weeks, free range with free choice feed if they wanted, and I thought they dressed out very nicely. Not as big and meatie as the Orps or SLW, but most were in the 5+# range dressed. I just did them when they started driving me crazy with their bickering, and hasseling the hens too much. I feel if you go over 20 weeks your just putting more feed into them for not that much more meat to show for it.

 

[CluckyJay]

Is caponizing really worth it? Does it save on feed and they grow a lot bigger than if I didn't do it? Are they a lot more tender and less strong-tasting? How would I do it so the bird wasn't so stressed during the process?