The Benefits of Raising Female White Cornish Cross Broilers
Many of you already know about how quick and easy the Jumbo White Cornish Cross broilers are to raise. In fact, I wrote about my experience in raising them here in Successfully Raising the Jumbo White Cornish Cross Broiler For Your Table.
For this coming season, I have chosen to raise female white broilers instead of strictly males or straight run (a mix of both males and females) for a couple of reasons. Probably the biggest reason for me is that the females will grow at a slightly slower rate of gain and finish out at a smaller processed weight than the males. I sell our broilers directly to local consumers. Their feedback and the consensus is that a 2.5-4 pound bird is what they prefer.
The second reason I choose to raise female broilers is to avoid any rough-housing in the chicken tractor. Male broilers can get a bit dominant with each other during the final 2 weeks or so. Females tend to be more laid-back and I hope to avoid any behavior issues this coming season. I haven’t had any major issues with the males injuring each other, but things do tend to get heated at feeding times. My observation from raising a batch of straight run broilers last summer was that the females did not tend to rush me as I fed them, and there was less aggression at the feeder by the female birds as compared to the males. Since I raise my broilers in movable tractors, good behavior is a plus.
I hope you would consider trying a batch of female Jumbo White Cornish Cross Broilers for your freezer and dinner plate. Hopefully, you will enjoy the slightly slower pace and calmer disposition by raising only female broilers. Have you raised female broilers? If so, leave us a comment and let us know your experience!
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The Coop with Meyer Hatchery Podcast
Raising meat birds can seem daunting, especially when faced with which breed is right for you. Listen to our podcast to find a breakdown of meat chicken breeds along with our interview with Adam Danforth, author of Butchering Chickens!
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i have raised cornish boilers i great experience with them i would like to get me some more this year i have ate all my up ,
i had raise my with three little pekin ducks they got alone very well.
Hi Carolyn! Thank you for sharing about how you raised your broilers along with your ducks. Glad you enjoy reading the blog!
If I only had someone to butcher them…
Hi Nancy! You may have good results in finding a local poultry processor by contacting your county’s at extension office. They can connect you to someone with 4-H that should know all the best contacts!
Butchering them is really pretty easy! If you look on youtube, you’ll find some good videos demonstrating the process.
I use plastic milk jugs for “kill cones” and buy the disposable scalpels from our local farm store, then use a large pot for scalding water.
For the kill cone, cut the bottom off of the milk jug, and then cut around the neck of the jug to make it wide enough for the chickens’ heads to go easily through – but not so wide that their shoulders will – so about a 2 inch area or so…
Hello! I have raised Cornish Rocks on and off for over 20 years now. My son’s affiliation with 4-H was the jumping off point for me. I even built a building for just that purpose. My son is now in his 30’s and I still raise my own birds. I started with only male chicks for this purpose. Then the frugal side of me kicked in and I went to straight run. I liked raising the straight run mix as it gave me a variety of sizes in my finished birds. I am a lover of chicken for dinner. This way I had soup/fryer size all the way up to roasters large enough to stuff. As ’empty nesters’ my late Hubby and I would sometimes have a stuffed chicken for Thanksgiving instead of a turkey. Two people simply cannot use up even a small stuffed turkey. I never had trouble with the males getting uppity and picking on each other. I guess I was just lucky. Although, I still raise them the old school way with constant food, water and light. In all these years I can count on one hand how many birds I have had with splayed legs and we never lost one to over eating. It is a process to load them for the processing trip. I hand carry each and every one of the one at a time to the trailer and set them into the cage for transport. Otherwise you get bruising, there is just no way around it. Now if I get to raise birds this year I will certainly entertain the notion of all females as I am an army of one now and no way need a bird as large as the boys do get to be. I have not had trouble with the girls growing slower, only that they do not finish as large. This could be a good thing for me at this point in my life.
Hi Denise! Thank you for sharing. Many of us began raising our own meat because of a “first encounter” experience with 4-H.
I raised Cornish cross last year, they were good .
What other birds can I raise besides them for meat??
Hi Joy. Many people raise the Ranger breeds for a slower-growing meat bird that forages on pasture well. You can also raise turkeys and jumbo guineas for meat.
What is a jumbo guinea?
Hi Susan. The Jumbo Guinea are a larger version of the common Pearl guinea.