Newbie Question for CX Meat Birds

[hillbilly123]

I have some CX that I am raising to butcher. They are about 4.5 weeks old now and this is our first go at raising these guys. I want them to be ready between 7-8 weeks of age. I weighed some of the hens and roos today, and they ranged from 3.75 to 4.25 lbs each. Is that about right for their age?

Also, whats the best way to finish them? Cracked corn for the last couple of weeks? I heard of people giving them hog feed which seemed weird to me.....

Thanks!

[ccfarm11]

That sounds a bit heavy for their age. Usually we have ours around 3 Lbs at 4 weeks. We process ours at 5-6 weeks to get a 3-3.5 Lb dressed bird b/c that's what all of our customers like. We don't use any special feed to finish just our own blend of a 20% feed ration. I would be a little hesitant to use the cracked corn b/c of the energy in it you might start causing heart attacks. A lot of people use a finishing ration but we don't for economical reasons. that's just one more ration I have to keep on the farm and buy.