- Sep 7, 2010
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Thanks guys. I don't know if we will have a freezer and will need to eat each bird w/in a few days. I just didn't want to waste any birds or worry about having to dress them w/in a certain amount of time before they just become pets.
If you get a good mix of chickens at the same time you should be able to pick one here and there from about 4 weeks right through to about 6 months.
X-rocks at 4-5 weeks as game hens
Red broilers at 6-7 weeks as game hens
X-rocks at 6-8 weeks
Red broilers 8-12 weeks
Traditional white rock slow broilers 12-16 weeks
Other dual purpose to 26 weeks (always an option to keep a few DP for eggs)
If only two are eating chicken and you only want a couple chicken meals a week about 1 chicken or 2 game hens a week should be lots, so a mix of say 8 X-rocks, 6 red broilers, 4 traditional white rocks and 8-10 dual purpose would keep a ready to eat no freezer needed supply of chicken for two for 6 months. You may want a few extra to make up for losses along the way. Don't be affraid of harvesting the birds on the young side, don't need huge chickens when only feeding two, also get nice tender chicken and better bang for the buck in terms of feed conversion.
Also an option to look into to avoid freezing is canning. It is a bit of work and you do want to do your food safety homework.
Getting a mix of chickens at one time saves some issues with ordering chicks and keeping seperate flocks, but it does need a bit more space wise. DP roosters can be a problem towards 5-6 months, just use them first and hold the hens til later.
If you get a good mix of chickens at the same time you should be able to pick one here and there from about 4 weeks right through to about 6 months.
X-rocks at 4-5 weeks as game hens
Red broilers at 6-7 weeks as game hens
X-rocks at 6-8 weeks
Red broilers 8-12 weeks
Traditional white rock slow broilers 12-16 weeks
Other dual purpose to 26 weeks (always an option to keep a few DP for eggs)
If only two are eating chicken and you only want a couple chicken meals a week about 1 chicken or 2 game hens a week should be lots, so a mix of say 8 X-rocks, 6 red broilers, 4 traditional white rocks and 8-10 dual purpose would keep a ready to eat no freezer needed supply of chicken for two for 6 months. You may want a few extra to make up for losses along the way. Don't be affraid of harvesting the birds on the young side, don't need huge chickens when only feeding two, also get nice tender chicken and better bang for the buck in terms of feed conversion.
Also an option to look into to avoid freezing is canning. It is a bit of work and you do want to do your food safety homework.
Getting a mix of chickens at one time saves some issues with ordering chicks and keeping seperate flocks, but it does need a bit more space wise. DP roosters can be a problem towards 5-6 months, just use them first and hold the hens til later.
