Chicks

[SoonerATC]

Anyone raising chicks? We have two laying hens that are around 1 1/2 years old, but we just got 8 Cornish Rock chicks for butchering and 3 Bantam chicks (my wife wanted them) for laying.

We've never raised meat chickens before, so we're hoping it turns out well. I've read that people tend to have lots of problems with the Cornish Rocks because they grow too quickly and have physical problems, but so far so good for us. Hoping they'll be ready in about 10-12 weeks.

The Bantams are adorable. The three of them sleep under a small piece of cloth we put in their box.

 

[Garand]

https://www.okshooters.com/showthread.php?168005-Got-some-meat-chickens

 

[stewartglock]

BB is/does, might shoot her a PM, but I'm sure she will be along shortly. You might also check the preppers section, she was posting some about raising chickens the other day I believe.

Edit - Garand beat me to it

 

[flatwins]

Misleading thread title.

 

[Oklahomabassin]

Yep the meat chickens post has good info.

 

[Shootin 4 Fun]

I raised a chick, the teen years are the hardest.

 

[Lurker66]

I married a chick, was young an fuzzy. Now she older an tough, she watchs over me like a hen and pecks me occasionally.

 

[victor3ranger]

I have raised them before, but if we waited 12 weeks those things were so big they ended up being tough unless you boiled them.

8 weeks was where we started to butcher, sometimes at 9 weeks. Those things would get so fat so fast that they wouldn't even walk anymore, just sit around the food and water that eat.

We always have laying hens, right now around 25 with another 10 that the wife bought to add to the flock. This time she got some bantam's, hope those little girls will do the bulk of the sitting and maybe hatch some instead of having to buy them at the store.



Post above, that is so true.

 

[Phildo64]

Misleading thread title.

This!

 

[BadgeBunny]

I'm telling you guys, I'd forgotten how nasty meat chickens are. Blah ... This little fellers are getting the ax at 8 weeks, not one day later, and I'm switching to quail ...

Oh ... and Sooner, what are you feeding your meat chicks? If it is the regular food you feed your laying hens then your Cornish Rocks are not gonna grow as fast (and probably not have problems as quick as someone who is feeding a higher protein food for rapid weight gain), but your Rocks will eventually have problems. These birds were not bred to keep, like laying hens, they were bred to fatten up quick and be butchered off early. If you keep them to 12 weeks they will be tough and stringy, like victor3ranger says.

Mine are right at 4 or 5 weeks now (I'd have to go look at the calendar) and they don't move unless it's to get food and water. They just sit and look around. When they do stand up and move it is obviously difficult for them. I kinda feel like I'm gonna be doing them a favor when I butcher them. They just look miserable ... And I clean their cage out every day and put out clean food and water 3 times a day.