New to meat birds, a couple questions.

motdaugrnds · #21 12/30/13, 08:45 AM

We put up 30 "Jumbo Cornish X Rocks" every fall. There is so much meat in them I wind up with:

....45 meat pies
....30 packages of legs (roasts)
....5 packages of wings (with some breast attached)
....15 packages of backs/necks (for either soup, rice/chicken or fried, the latter being a favorite of mine)
....5 packages of livers
....The feet I use to make stock.
....The hearts, gizards & lungs go to the dogs.

I keep them until they are at least 2 months of age and keep food out for them ALL THE TIME, along with fresh water (one pan having electrolytes in it; other pan having "Broiler Booster" in it). It is these additives that keep the large bodies off the ground because it helps keep the legs strong.

Their "brooder" part has an old sheet over straw initially, then that removed and fresh straw placed in there every week until I can let them out into the pen. The pen has agricultural lime 3-4 inches deep which helps deter smell as well as insects; also helps keep the cornish clean. It is also easy to clean, though rarely necessary to do so.

Yes they go thru a lot of food; but the value of the large amount of meat we get outweighs the cost considerable. Yes, the area smells but no more than regular chickens. (This may be in part to the way we keep it, as stated above.)

I never place regular-sized chickens in the brooder with these. I always purchase from McMurray.