MEAT BIRDS THREAD ~Plans, pics, pens, pluckers, processing! GRAPHIC!

[ninny]

Well Im cooking up some of the birds today. Here's hopeing it stays down.:/

 

[Buster]

I understand how you feel. I helped my mom process birds when I was a kid, but that was over 50 years ago. The first time I did it as an adult, it was very difficult for me. In fact, every time I had to process, I would get in a bad mood and clam up, no talking to anyone, approaching the deed with something like grim determination.

What helped me was processing with someone with a lot of experience. We were doing 150 CX that day, and since the killing was the hardest part for me (after that it is just meat), I volunteered for that duty. I would guess I did 80-90% of those birds that day.

What I have also learned is to keep an emotional distance from them. I like them all, but love none of them. In fact, my meaties have come to be my favorites. I find them kind of endearing. I call them my little fatties. But always in the back of my mind, I keep what I am raising them for.

My other thought is, they are living good lives. Much better than their brethren in the meat factories. They get sunshine, ground to scratch, bugs to chase, green stuff to eat. For every one of them that I raise to eat or sell, that is one less factory farm bird that will have to suffer.

And the fact is, if I didn't do this, I would have to go vegan, because I refuse to participate in that system. And I ain't no vegan. Humankind evolved as an omnivore. We need out meat.

Plus, these birds are the best I have tasted.

And I should add, it does get easier. It really really does. Now it is just another morning for me.

 

[Buster]

Okay, I know everyone has lost interest in this thread, but thought I would update since we are nearing completion of our spring meat bird project.

Finally.

We processed most of the last of the last batch of Cornish Cross this morning, with the help of two of our customers and their 8 year old daughter. The results have been decent monetarily, but great food wise. All three batches processed on the small side, and we have concluded it was a combination of diet and source for the birds. They were missing an essential amino acid you can basically only get from animal protein (mostly) and our mix included none of that. I want to stick with the no-animal products or byproducts, so I was looking for a synthetic source for methionine, the missing amino acid. Couldn't find one, but a BYC friend has a source and is shipping some to me. On top of that we will start using Fertrell Nutribalancer for future mixes come time for our fall project. We will be ordering our CX from Welp.

We have sold most of those we wanted to sell, with about 30 left to sprinkle through the summer months and wet customers' appetites.

We are moving away from broiler pens and to a day range net system. We tried pens, netting, and full free range. The pens were too restrictive, the free range didn't take full advantage of pasture and was highly inefficient. With the netting, we can control the birds input into our pasture, the work load is significantly cut when compared to pens, and we can focus inputs in particular spots by placement of their feed and water. Less efficient than broiler pens, but good enough.

We will be ordering another 400 or 500 for the fall, and will begin preselling them as we have placed our online orders.

The best indicator of success, though, was taste. We have found them delicious, and our customers have commented they are the best chicken they have tasted.

 

[BarredBuff]

Thats great! This fall we are slaughtering about 40 for ourselves. 25 Roosters that will be canned up and then 15 CXs due on September 19th. The other 15 in that order will be a friends.

 

[Bettacreek]

My sister stopped by yesterday to grab my two folding tables for a yardsale. She doesn't like the idea of killing the birds, but when she got here, one of the first things she said was something along the lines of "at least they get to run around and enjoy themselves in the grass before being killed, instead of being in cages all of their lives". Which is something that I like to give to the birds who will be giving us so much in return.

 

[baymule]

We will be ordering another 400 or 500 for the fall, and will begin preselling them as we have placed our online orders.

400-500 birds for fall! Buster, you are my hero!

 

[ninny]

Well I was wondering of I could get advice from you guys who are selling birds. I would like to sell birds come spring. However our first try this year did not go so well. I couldn't eat the birds and butchering day was well not good. I also made the mistake of letting them free range my yard. They followed me everywhere all 12 of them. They would wait for me at my front door and well became pets of sorts. I did sell four of them for 12 dollars a piece. They told me today they would buy more next year. I also have someone interested in duck and possible goose for next year as well. So that means I get to do a turkey or two for myself right? I could sell a million eggs if I had the space for that many birds.

Here is my problem: I rent...from my in-laws. I also share 5 acres and a driveway with them. And they agreed to try the chickens and to let them free range. Well the birds pooped everywhere including in in-laws front yard and trashed the garden. The final straw they got into mother in laws corn. So now all chickens are leaving for the winter. My friend is taking the two hens and two ducks I have left. I can still have them it's more a peace offering at this point.

I am really wanting to get back into selling eggs and trying the meat birds again. They have no problem with a small fenced yard or with tractors. The issue is it must look good. So that means a lot of work making them look nice to my husband and father in law's standard of looks nice. It's very high. I have a nice coop that will hold maybe ten to twelve birds in it. Still needs nest boxes and roosts. I am thinking of fencing off around it. My thought was to take some pallets paint them white and break them down. Now I have posts to use with chicken wire. I was thinking of spacing them out every foot or so with the wire stapled to the back. From the houses it should look like a white picket fence to match the coop. DH doesn't think it will work though. He is worried about the wood rotting in the winter and not looking nice My thought it's as close to free as I can get and I can do it myself. I'm not looking for it to be pred proof or super long term. We are planing on moving in the next 6 years. Should I try it or no?

Also I would like more hens. How tall does a coop need to be and how many square feet for say 30 hens? I'm thinking of doing a room addition to the back of the coop. Just enough space for the hens and roosts. I can walk in the other part so I will put the nest boxes in there. You would not be able to see it from the houses but I would paint it to match. The pallet fence is for the coop. Not sure how big to make the run either.

I was thinking of doing tractors for meat birds. However, they just look huge and well I'm little and have two tiny kids so no help there. Is there a better way to do them instead of tractors or non moving coops or free range? What about for the other poultry?

I am going to be reading threw this thread slowly but if any one has any quick advice for me that would be great. I need a good plan to show the inlaws to get them on board again. Also need advice on hiring a butchering crew?

 

[piglett]

well Ninny i can't answer all your questions .....however
i can tell you that you always want to be able to walk in your coop
if DH will ever have anything to do with these birds then make sure he can get
in there if needed to feed, water, & remove any sick birds
no one wants to go into a coop on hands & knees through chicken poop

your fence needs to be 6 foot high , any less & they WILL fly over it to get to the grass on the other side
make the outside area as big as you can for them. the more area they have out there the less feed you will have to buy.
when i am freeranging i only feed my flock a small breakfast & a small dinner.



hope this helps some
piglett
wolfeboro,NH

 

[TanksHill]

Threads not entirely dead. I'm still working on my bourbon reds. I have 4 bird hatched last December. The will be butchered in a mint or so. One more Tom hatched in March. I took the three hens hatched at the same time to my aunt in Mo. My yards were getting a bit crowded.

Thinking about 25 freedom rangers but I will probably need to wait for spring.

Gina

 

[Beekissed]

Well I was wondering of I could get advice from you guys who are selling birds. I would like to sell birds come spring. However our first try this year did not go so well. I couldn't eat the birds and butchering day was well not good. I also made the mistake of letting them free range my yard. They followed me everywhere all 12 of them. They would wait for me at my front door and well became pets of sorts. I did sell four of them for 12 dollars a piece. They told me today they would buy more next year. I also have someone interested in duck and possible goose for next year as well. So that means I get to do a turkey or two for myself right? I could sell a million eggs if I had the space for that many birds.

Here is my problem: I rent...from my in-laws. I also share 5 acres and a driveway with them. And they agreed to try the chickens and to let them free range. Well the birds pooped everywhere including in in-laws front yard and trashed the garden. The final straw they got into mother in laws corn. So now all chickens are leaving for the winter. My friend is taking the two hens and two ducks I have left. I can still have them it's more a peace offering at this point.

I am really wanting to get back into selling eggs and trying the meat birds again. They have no problem with a small fenced yard or with tractors. The issue is it must look good. So that means a lot of work making them look nice to my husband and father in law's standard of looks nice. It's very high. I have a nice coop that will hold maybe ten to twelve birds in it. Still needs nest boxes and roosts. I am thinking of fencing off around it. My thought was to take some pallets paint them white and break them down. Now I have posts to use with chicken wire. I was thinking of spacing them out every foot or so with the wire stapled to the back. From the houses it should look like a white picket fence to match the coop. DH doesn't think it will work though. He is worried about the wood rotting in the winter and not looking nice My thought it's as close to free as I can get and I can do it myself. I'm not looking for it to be pred proof or super long term. We are planing on moving in the next 6 years. Should I try it or no?

Honestly? It's a lot of work for a temporary setup. If you are willing to invest a little bit of money, you can purchase an electric poultry fence that will be better looking, more versatile, the birds won't be able to cross over it, predators won't get in except by air(that's an easy fix too), it will be movable and you can pick it up and take it with you when you leave. A good electric poultry mesh fence can be a $1 a ft. or less and you will get far more and better use from it. They have built in, push in stakes and they look very classy, IMO.

If predators are not an issue, you can even contain the chickens in a plastic mesh fence or deer netting with push in stakes. Movable, cheap, easy containment. Chickens don't normally fly over a fence..they hop up onto the top of the fence and drop down the other side....floppy mesh prevents them from having a landing area. If you let it sag a little on the ground, they won't be able to find a way under it either. You can build a board fence 6 ft tall and you will have birds that can still fly up to the top and drop down the other side.... or you can have a 3 ft. fence with no solid edge at the top and they won't go over. A way to avoid them going over a board or metal fence is to extend your fencing mesh/wire about 4-6 in. past the hard surface of posts or gates to prevent them landing on these areas.

Also I would like more hens. How tall does a coop need to be and how many square feet for say 30 hens? This is something that everyone asks and someone always pops up with the square foot rule that has become a standard....but the real answer is~it depends. It depends on how deep the snow gets, how much time will the birds be spending in that coop during inclement weathers, will you have meat birds and layers living in the same coop, will you be producing young chicks or have broodies working on families, will you be keeping feed and water containers inside the coop, will the birds have free range all year or live in an attached run,etc. All these questions will determine how much actual living/working space you will have and need in a coop. Rule of thumb? You can never have TOO much coop space. You will need to start with small numbers and work your way up to what your coop can actually hold by watching how the birds do throughout the seasons of the year. Make sure you have a place to keep their feed and water inside, just in case they need to be confined to the coop for any reason, make sure you have tons of airflow/ventilation and natural lighting(for optimal health), make sure you have a containment area within sight of the flock but where they cannot access in case you need to keep any bird(s) separate or have broodies and chicks.

I'm thinking of doing a room addition to the back of the coop. Just enough space for the hens and roosts. I can walk in the other part so I will put the nest boxes in there. You would not be able to see it from the houses but I would paint it to match. The pallet fence is for the coop. Not sure how big to make the run either.

I was thinking of doing tractors for meat birds. However, they just look huge and well I'm little and have two tiny kids so no help there. Is there a better way to do them instead of tractors or non moving coops or free range? What about for the other poultry? The aforementioned electric poultry or the deer netting.

I am going to be reading threw this thread slowly but if any one has any quick advice for me that would be great. I need a good plan to show the inlaws to get them on board again. Also need advice on hiring a butchering crew?

Truly, if you are going to be growing layers or meaties, it behooves you to learn how to quickly and humanely kill your own birds. There will be a time when your husband or any other man may not be around and a bird needs a merciful end....might as well learn that now, before you need to learn it, so you can approach it in a calm manner later when you will need a level head and experience on your side. As for butchering the meaties, most folks find that the local Amish or Mennonites seem to have the best pricing on processing...but meaties are an excellent bird to practice your killing skills upon because they are so easy to kill and you are less likely to be attached to them.