Wisconsin "Cheeseheads"

[Angiebubs]

Thanks for the feedback on the spurs. I have the sweetest rooster ever ( Faverolles of course) and he just loves all over one of the hens. Noticed when I was trying to warm her bare back that she had a spur cut ugh

 

[MamaHubbard]

Hello all! In the midst of preparing for a musical tomorrow, I'm working on trying to get prices together for some friends. I could really use some help. My neighbor and I share 5 acres with our duplex. I have some friends that would really love to go in on a "meat chicken co-op", but they want to hear prices for the long term, as in how much would 1 meat chicken cost after its butchered. Whats all your experience, anyone keep records? We are planning to tractor on about 2 acres I think, as I have egg chickens currently and neighbor is going to start too, plus I'm hoping to plant a garden. Suggestions, thoughts? best hatchery to go through for meaties? With living in the Green Bay area, what would be the best time frame for ordering and raising? I was thinking order in April and keep inside tilll end may, then start hauling them around the yard?

 

[wyoDreamer]

OK all you chicken egg experts - how do I know if the eggs from the last two days froze before I brought them in? None of them are broken - but it was pretty cold out there in the coop. I have a co-worker who would like some, but I don't want to give them bad eggs.

@MamaHubbard Sorry, I don't have any experience with raising meat birds so I cannot help you out. I got my chicks from the local store - who orders them from Sunnyside Hatchery. I got them early June and raised them outside in the garden shed using a heating pad. They are the dual purpose Sagitta and a couple kinds of hybrid egg layers.

 

[jvls1942]

Hello all! In the midst of preparing for a musical tomorrow, I'm working on trying to get prices together for some friends. I could really use some help. My neighbor and I share 5 acres with our duplex. I have some friends that would really love to go in on a "meat chicken co-op", but they want to hear prices for the long term, as in how much would 1 meat chicken cost after its butchered. Whats all your experience, anyone keep records? We are planning to tractor on about 2 acres I think, as I have egg chickens currently and neighbor is going to start too, plus I'm hoping to plant a garden. Suggestions, thoughts? best hatchery to go through for meaties? With living in the Green Bay area, what would be the best time frame for ordering and raising? I was thinking order in April and keep inside tilll end may, then start hauling them around the yard?

first of all, if your friends are not familiar with chickens, You have to educate them,,
there will be losses of life for some of the chickens.

By meaties, I assume you mean Cornish X Cross..

for 100 chickens, it will take a ton of feed until they are ready to start to be butchered.. and I do mean a TON, 2000 pounds.

Last year ,2014, I bought 100 C x C ..we ended up with about 80 or so..
Our end tally was just a little over $7.oo per bird..

we did not butcher them all at once, so the first ones were in the 4 to 5 pound range.. 3 weeks later we butchered the last ones and they were in the 6 to 8 pound range.

we had all pullets.. no roosters..

My bil said he would go in with us.. at the end, he wanted only about 20 of them,, so, don't take anybody's word that they will help with the feed cost etc.. make them either pay as you go, or better yet, let them buy the feed as you go and you take care of the chickens..

keep in mind that a predator can cut sharply into your flock and that raises the cost of each bird at the end..

If you plan on having the chickens processed at a butcher shop, you can easily add $3.oo to the $7.oo ,, maybe more, depending on how much you are going to be charged for their services..

we butcher our own chickens..

and your feed might cost more than ours did.. If you are going to give them crumbles and meat bird ration crumbles..

I fed mine only 50/50 finely ground oats and corn..
@ $19.oo/hundred weight .

and ours ran free range on 8 acres of land.. lots of wild seed and insects to supplement the boughten feed.

.........jiminwischopethishelps........

ETA I bought the babies from our local feed store. they came from Sunnyside.
I could have ordered directly, but the shipping to the feed store was much more prompt and safer for the chicks.
the cost was the same either way.

 

[jvls1942]

OK all you chicken egg experts - how do I know if the eggs from the last two days froze before I brought them in? None of them are broken - but it was pretty cold out there in the coop. I have a co-worker who would like some, but I don't want to give them bad eggs.

@MamaHubbard Sorry, I don't have any experience with raising meat birds so I cannot help you out. I got my chicks from the local store - who orders them from Sunnyside Hatchery. I got them early June and raised them outside in the garden shed using a heating pad. They are the dual purpose Sagitta and a couple kinds of hybrid egg layers.

Frozen eggs are not spoiled..
If they did not crack, then you can safely sell them,,

Just tell your customer that it might have been frozen,.
If it bothers them, then save the frozen ones for yourself .
Don't try to sneak a frozen one in their carton.. It is not worth it.
We save the cracked ones for our own use and sell everything else..
Worst case might be that the whites might be a little more runny when you crack them into the pan..

>>>>jiminwiscHTH>>>>>
eta: you can tell a frozen or hard boiled egg just by giving it a spin on a flat surface.. If it spins freely, still frozen or hard boiled..

If it spins sluggishly and not for very long, it is liquid inside..

experiment with a couple of eggs that you know are raw or boiled. then you will know what to look for in the future.

 

[Cindlady]

Hi All!

Thanks for reminding us about spinning the eggs Jim! I knew there was I way, I just couldn't remember it.

Night All.

 

[jvls1942]

Hi all,

We finished getting all of my copper water pipes removed and replaced them with PEX.
Bro Dave helped me.. actually, he did most of the work.

today I am going to make a B B B .
(a loaf of BigZ Beer Bread.)
Annie made a pot of chili and that bread should go super good with it.

got two double yoker eggs yesterday. I switched feed .
IDK if that had anything to do with it.
Annie thinks it is because we have been keeping the chickens inside and giving them warm water.
If they go outside, they like to eat snow.

taking the Silverado PU to the fixit shop.
have to find out why the serpentine belt keeps slipping off.

get ready for another arctic blast.

.........jiminwisc......

ETA: the bread is out of the oven and cooling. It smells wonderful in here..

 

[CherMoz]

Love your dinner! What did you use for tails?

 

[CherMoz]

Fisher from Verona area - no one I know.
It looks a lot bigger than I imagined a fisher would be.

 

[bigzio]

Warm before the cold to all, and Fish Fry Friday before the playoff game tomorrow too.

Nice fisher..yep, they are big for sure.

I agree with Jim...if cracked it is frozen for sure....if no cracks and seems fine, it's prolly is ok.

Yep Sunnyside is the place to buy meaties here in the Badger State....and the labor part can be a issue if partners are involved....( I did all the work ) and they get the same price? I prefer to raise them in the fall when weather is cooler...they aren't much for free ranging really.. I've found them to be lazy X2....most folks sell their birds for $10 each and $14 if processed.

bigz