What type of chicken to process????

[lorihadams]

I got cornish x broilers from Meyer's and it was not that bad. I lost one to piling (suffocation) and 2 escaped and became food for something else. We don't eat whole birds, we cut all ours in parts and they were pretty easy to do. I think we ended up after all was said and done to pay $7.15 per chicken. I would say we broke even. The meat is not soft like commercial chicken so the texture is definitely different and takes some getting used to if all you have eaten is store bought. Hubby thought it was tough but we have gotten used to it. The breast meat was huge and the legs were actually pretty big too. We'll do them again but not in the summer time. We did ours in the fall and slaughtered the week of thanksgiving and it worked out really well.

 

[Slinkytoys]

I've raised the Slow Grow Cornish X from McMurray for a couple of years. Since I live at 7300 ft altitude, a regular Cornish X doesn't do so well. My Slo-gro birds have done very very well, only lost one to Flip (out of three batches). They've dressed out anywhere from 5 to 8 lbs. at 11 wks. I've gotten straight run, this time mostly hens. Smaller at processing, but very moist and good flavor. The last batch (25) I raised in a 12x12 horse stall. Did the deep litter method with them, easy peasy! Just shoveled out the litter and washed down the stall (concrete floor) when we took them in for processing. I think we will handle them the same way this time.
The Jersey Giants are cool birds, but take a long time to grow up and fill out.
Slinky

 

[miss_thenorth]

Jersey giants do grow up to be giants, but they take way too long to grow big.

I raise my meaties in movable electric netting fence. Now, this is just my experience, but I'll share it with you. I had hatched out some Barred rocks, one was a pullet, and two were cockerals (very visible in BRs) Well, all three of the hung out together when they were rall young. At some point, one of the cockerals got in the netting, and as much as we tried to get him out-he seemed content to stay there. Of course my meaties were getting the meat builder food, and they increased in wieght as rapidly as expected.

This one little cockeral turned out to be a sort of experiment to us. He was eating the meat builder, while his hatch mate on the other side of the fence, free ranged and ate the regular chicken food. we decided to let the one BR grow up with the meaties and we would compare the two BR cockeral in weight when it was time for the meaties to go to freezer camp.

Well, the time came, and the weigh in revealed that the BR that lived with the meaties was only something like 2 oz heavier at 8 weeks, than his freeranging hatch mate.

Now, this obviously was not scientific study, and only had two to compare, but our conclusions were--it didn't matter whether they were eating meatbuilder or regular food. They both dressed out to about 4 1/2 lbs at 6 months, like normal.

 

[Farmfresh]

I usually raise the fast growing strain from Welps and have very little problems with them, but you DO have to watch their feed intake their protein levels and heat as they are really easy to overheat. I have detailed the way I do it in several other threads already. Suffice it to say I first FAR and AWAY prefer the birds from Welps and I also start them on chopped greens as soon as possible. The reason I grow this type of bird is easy. FAST growing and good meat.

I have also grown their slow growing strain and would probably recommend them as the BEST for beginners. They grow slightly slower, but still end up with a top quality meat product. I have even kept a pullet from this strain and she was a grand egg producer and a great hardy hen, but still sensitive to high heat conditions, probably because she weighed around 8 1/2 pounds!

As for old fashioned breeds the Delaware was THE meat bird for years before the hybrid strains hit the market. I also think a good Ameraucana or Buff Orpington makes a pretty decent meat bird. Or how about a hybrid of your own cross a white cornish with just about ANY heavy breed and the chicks should be meaty.

 

[freemotion]

OK, knowlegable and opinionated ones, do you think the Jersey Giants will be worthwhile in my circumstances.....free-ranging on two acres? I am thinking of getting them (really, my dad has his heart set on them after a fox got almost all his cockerels and he killed the rest early) in time for them to free-range once they are out of the brooder pen in early to mid-spring so they will have months of free-ranging, then butcher at 9-10 months at the end of November. I tend to feed half rations at most during pasture months, and since I use whole grains, the grain price is much less, too.

Waddaya think?

 

[Farmfresh]

They are very docile beautiful birds. As long as you are not in a hurry to eat and you are not worried about feed costs they might work well for you. They do take a year before they reach maturity and they are not great foragers as a breed. Probably due to being more laid back.

 

[freemotion]

Gotcha. Since dad really wants to try, we will get some. I will push for getting a few of several varieties, so we can really experiment. We can process the Giants last, when they are older.

 

[Up-the-Creek]

Thanks for everyones input! That is what I like about being a member here,..you can learn so much from other members who has been there and done that. After a long discussion with DH, we are going to go with a dual-purpose breed. We are not so worried about the costs of raising them as much as getting a healthier, better keeping bird. We can also let them free range and this will save us $,... they will just work better in our situation.

Freemotion,...I would love to hear how things work out with the Jersey Giants. They are so huge it would be like having a turkey! My DS loves that breed and wants some soooo bad. Maybe this spring,...

 

[freemotion]

You know I'll be talkin' about it! Stay tuned!

 

[Farmfresh]

Gotcha. Since dad really wants to try, we will get some. I will push for getting a few of several varieties, so we can really experiment. We can process the Giants last, when they are older.

If I was going to try some Jersey Giants I would buy some heritage turkeys at the same time. The chickens help the turkey poults get started right by helping them learn how to peck at the food in the beginning and the turkeys tend to grow big faster thus protecting the chickens from hawks and other predators. With the Jerseys they would all be ready to butcher at about the same time.