Thank you for sharing all the costs & real life happenings! You’ve accomplished so much in the time you started homesteading there, congratulations! You’re very organized & hard workers🤗❤️🇨🇦
Thank you for breaking it down. The Stivers did make a video on the butchering process, and it was a respectfully done video and really helps us understand all the little things needed for breaking then down. Like the Feather Plucker and how much they cost, etc. Maybe you can do a video of the steps that you do, even without having the chicken there. I am hoping to have meat birds set up by next spring, along with laying hens. I have a coop and can make an additional tractor because we have enough land to do it, and we would be doin 6 or so at a time, maybe up to 10. We are either going to add an addition run for the jeans, but let the meat chickens use the tractor. Our County allows 6 Hens/house holders, but we have 3 properties (house hold address) and 2 are without house on then and they are all together connected.. so I am gonna push for being to have 18 total. We are a family of 7. Hope it all works!
For personally I would try to raise them at least for 5 months I wanna try it see how long they weigh and last its probably a fullish idea but its worth a try
Go for it! I know a local farmer that raises them longer and he just removes the food for 12 hours a day. He has had some as big as 11lbs when processed.
What!? With the live weight, that makes no sense? I know this is from a while back, but I'm processing Freedom Rangers; 4 last week at 7 weeks old and 2 this week at 8 weeks old, and were 4 to 5 lbs dressed @ 5.5 to 6.75 live weight. How on earth are you losing 50% of your live weight to feathers and gutting? That is not possible. Aside from that this batch looked very healthy. Their grow out matched my FRs (which is unusual for the FR breed). I also want to comment on the food. I was also feeding my birds wet, and eventually fermented food and didn't have any issues. It's odd that water would cause them not to digest properly so I would question the feed before how you prepared it. I have another batch (I'm doing 10s since I'm on my own) coming in July and I'll be using my own mix, run through a grain mill to powder, this time; 3 parts catfish food(32p), 2parts oats(11p), 1 parts Black Oil Sunflower Seeds(14p) for just under 22% crude protean. They will also have access to grass, bugs, food scraps, and moringa daily. The ground food will be fermented and the oat husk and SS shells (prebiotics) should really help with digestion.
Commercial Broiler Chickens have an expected % of Mortality. Not at all unique to your Operating Style. I would be more concerned with the Broilers not only bullying the Leghorn Chick, but canablizing it to death.
@@DesertHavaGarden Cornish Cross is a Generalized Term. You actually raised the same Birds as the Big Companies. I'm guessing yours were Cobb 500s, going by the 2 in the Wading Pool. Cobb Vantress is owned by Tyson, btw. You raised yours Organically vs in a 50×500 building with enclosed sides and tunnel ventilation.
@@gmathis4829 I've also noticed wide variations in my batches of cornish cross that we buy from the farm supply store. I wish I knew how to get a specific variation like the Cobb500s or another one that I liked.
Thank you for sharing all the costs & real life happenings! You’ve accomplished so much in the time you started homesteading there, congratulations! You’re very organized & hard workers🤗❤️🇨🇦
Thank you for breaking it down. The Stivers did make a video on the butchering process, and it was a respectfully done video and really helps us understand all the little things needed for breaking then down. Like the Feather Plucker and how much they cost, etc. Maybe you can do a video of the steps that you do, even without having the chicken there. I am hoping to have meat birds set up by next spring, along with laying hens. I have a coop and can make an additional tractor because we have enough land to do it, and we would be doin 6 or so at a time, maybe up to 10. We are either going to add an addition run for the jeans, but let the meat chickens use the tractor. Our County allows 6 Hens/house holders, but we have 3 properties (house hold address) and 2 are without house on then and they are all together connected.. so I am gonna push for being to have 18 total. We are a family of 7. Hope it all works!
Wow I didn't know you were butchering them and not Rick. 💪
For personally I would try to raise them at least for 5 months I wanna try it see how long they weigh and last its probably a fullish idea but its worth a try
Go for it! I know a local farmer that raises them longer and he just removes the food for 12 hours a day. He has had some as big as 11lbs when processed.
Thank you for a very good detailed video. Great job! Did the chicks come vaccinated?
No, they did not come vaccinated.
Love the video! I’m raising 25 birds next month. Can you tell me the size of your tractor? Thanks
I believe we used 6’ lengths of wood so approximately 6’x6’.
What!? With the live weight, that makes no sense? I know this is from a while back, but I'm processing Freedom Rangers; 4 last week at 7 weeks old and 2 this week at 8 weeks old, and were 4 to 5 lbs dressed @ 5.5 to 6.75 live weight. How on earth are you losing 50% of your live weight to feathers and gutting? That is not possible.
Aside from that this batch looked very healthy. Their grow out matched my FRs (which is unusual for the FR breed). I also want to comment on the food. I was also feeding my birds wet, and eventually fermented food and didn't have any issues. It's odd that water would cause them not to digest properly so I would question the feed before how you prepared it. I have another batch (I'm doing 10s since I'm on my own) coming in July and I'll be using my own mix, run through a grain mill to powder, this time; 3 parts catfish food(32p), 2parts oats(11p), 1 parts Black Oil Sunflower Seeds(14p) for just under 22% crude protean. They will also have access to grass, bugs, food scraps, and moringa daily. The ground food will be fermented and the oat husk and SS shells (prebiotics) should really help with digestion.
Commercial Broiler Chickens have an expected % of Mortality. Not at all unique to your Operating Style. I would be more concerned with the Broilers not only bullying the Leghorn Chick, but canablizing it to death.
Good to know! The Leghorn is now with the layers and a lovely bird. We won’t do that again.
@@DesertHavaGarden Cornish Cross is a Generalized Term. You actually raised the same Birds as the Big Companies. I'm guessing yours were Cobb 500s, going by the 2 in the Wading Pool. Cobb Vantress is owned by Tyson, btw. You raised yours Organically vs in a 50×500 building with enclosed sides and tunnel ventilation.
That’s the idea…to improve on what is commercially available.
@@gmathis4829 I've also noticed wide variations in my batches of cornish cross that we buy from the farm supply store. I wish I knew how to get a specific variation like the Cobb500s or another one that I liked.