Broiler Chicks at Eight Weeks

The Broiler Chicks are now eight weeks old and nowhere near butchering size.  I have to say they've been a disappointment in that they did not grow as quickly as I believed they would, and cost much more to raise than I thought they would.  Bummer.

Perhaps I should have gone with Cornish Rocks.  They grow really fast and would absolutely be ready to butcher by now.  I just don't like them as they have so many problems because they grow so fast.   And, frankly, they are gross.  Because they grow so fast, these birds basically just sit around all day in their own filth.  Blech.  I call them FrankenChickens because they grow so big so fast.

I went with the Black Broilers because I'd read they grew almost as fast as the Cornish Rocks but didn't have the associated problems with fluid in the body cavity, weak legs, etc.    While I've found no problems with their health, I have certainly not found them to be quick growers.  In fact they seem to be growing at about the same rate as my layer chicks would.  I suppose a little faster, but not dramatically.

This is not from lack of feed.  I have to wonder if it is that they are not eating standard commercial "broiler" feed but rather organic non-GMO broiler feed.  Maybe?  I just don't know.  I have read I should have expected six pound birds by seven weeks on standard commercial rations.  My birds are eight weeks and FAR from six pounds.  I would guess they are about three pounds.

Here's the breakdown so far:

I began with thirty chicks.  We lost one.  To raise the remaining twenty nine, not counting shelter, bedding, electricity, etc. we have so far spent:

• $  38.50 for the chicks
• $178.14 for six fifty pound bags of "Organic Soy-Free Broiler Feed"

That works out to $7.47 per bird.  Adding in the cost of having them professionally butchered and packaged at $3.50 per bird brings my total AT THIS POINT to $10.97 per bird.

Of the three hundred pounds of feed I've purchased, I have about 75 pounds remaining.  It will not last long.  I will likely purchase one more bag of feed and then take them to the butcher no matter how big they are.  That will bring my total including processing to $11.99 per bird.

Frankly $12 per bird is pretty darn high when I can buy (a non-organic) one at the grocery store on sale for about $3.50.  So.  These better be REAAAAAALLLLLY tasty birds. :0)

I love the idea of knowing these birds grew up on organic non-gmo feed and how truly healthy they are.  I just don't know if I can justify paying this much per chicken.  In any event, whatever the size they are at the end of the feed plus this one extra bag I have yet to buy... they are going bye-bye.  They are simply too expensive to raise any longer.

I am also eager to see if I can taste the difference between some roosters I had butchered today that grew up free ranging and these birds who have been raised on organics and kept in a chicken tractor.  They've had pasture the last couple of weeks, but never have free ranged.  I suspect the roosters will be tougher, but I wonder if there will be a difference in taste?

Broiler Chicks at Six Weeks

Skipped a week last week so we are at week SIX now.  The chicks are doing well and they have really picked up in the eating department.  I'm hoping this signals they are going to have a growth spurt as they are still, in my opinion, SMALL.  Or at least smaller than I expected.  I think the next time I do this I'm going to put one of my layer breeds in with them so I can see the difference in size as time goes on.  These chicks just don't seem to be having the rapid growth I heard about and expected.  We shall see.  In any event they are all very healthy and seem to be doing well.  I did lose one the other evening, I believe due to piling.  We had a wham bang thunder storm and they were back in the brooder box as I deemed that to be the safest place to wait out all the storms and rain.  I still think it was but believe they got spooked and piled and one suffocated. :0(   All others are fine, but we are now down to 29 birds. 

Expenses so far (not counting electric and supplies such as bedding/heat lamps, waterers, etc.):

• $38.50 for the chicks
• $89.07 for three fifty pound bags of "Organic Soy-Free Broiler Feed"

That brings the total to $127.57 or $4.40 per bird.

I've noticed a couple of the birds have been really slow to grow and also to feather out.  I've seen this happen with my layers, too, on occasion.  I always make sure not to breed these birds as slow to feather/slow to grow is not something I want to pass down in my lines.

Here's a couple of videos I took yesterday:

  

We are still feeding organic non-GMO broiler feed, but they are also grazing now and being moved around daily in a chicken tractor.  

We are (supposedly) 14 days from butchering.  I don't think so.  Butchering at eight weeks seems totally out of the question at this point.  Possibly ten?  We shall see.