I bought your book... I built the tractors. But I couldn't find the part of the book where it shows how/where to put the engine/transmission and how to exactly attach it- so I gave it some thought and did what I guessed you probably did. I ended up just using a 6.5HP from Harbor Freight and a C/V clutch and axle from an old go-kart the kids used to have. Steering was left out for simplicity sake LOL. Hardest part I've found to date, getting the damned chickens to run FORWARD when I throttle up to move the coupes! I may make another 3-4 tractors this fall(when it cools off a bit!) with added steering capability... if so I'll do pics! Thanks for all of the great info and inspiration, Scott in Florida
I am an ag teacher in Montana after 30 years of ranching- just want to let you know the vids are excellent. Although I have always had some reservations about alan savory. Great job!!
I found you through Justin Rhodes and greatly enjoy your videos so far. I've gotten this far on your daily/weekly chick vlog and plan to continue watching ALL of your channel. Great work! Thanks!
Thanks for the chicken tractor design. I use your chicken tractor as a brooder for my newly hatched egg layers. I also use this tractor to introduce the babies to the rest of the flock of about 20 laying hens and 2 roosters. Next spring I will raise meat chickens in the tractor . It is a very versatile design with many uses on my small 1/2 acre farm . Thanks again
Our small farmette is called "Walnut Grove Farm" and we have a Facebook page but no website, we grow and sell vegetables and raise egg layer chickens and sell eggs at our stand we built inside our barn, we also raise Cornish X meat birds that we sell to friends and family and also give out as gifts, this year we are raising 3 hogs for our use and other family members, I enjoy your videos and have adapted many ideas from your videos as well as others on UA-cam to make our small farm better, keep up the good work
Hi John, I got your book and believe, after much study, that your design will work for me. I have only one suggestion, on page 34 you have a nice drawing of the tractor, you should add dimensions to the drawing for guys like me who are used to looking at floor plans and architectural drawings. It kind of orients things in space. Excellent videos and book, thanks for your help.
Hi John, I'm new to farming. Am a couple of months into it. We are on 10 acres. I have been watching your videos and checking out your website. Loving your stuff. Really helpful and I like your philosophies. We currently have 12 hens (for eggs) and a cow and her new calf. I am keen to get into meat chickens for my family and some friends. So learning lots from you. We currently give our hens scarps ontop of their feed. Do you ever give your meat bird scraps? Cheers Kevin.
AND straight run is way cheaperI noticed you had the reds out on pasture foraging where the whites wernt. Considering the longer time span, AND the reds being out on pasture, which eats less feed before processing.
Thnx for this series, I'm learning so much. How far is your processor from your farm? I'm told the cornish cross wouldn't handle a long drive to the processor very well.
What made you choose to build smaller A-frames over a 12' x 10' flat top or a larger custom A-frame? Wouldn't larger structures allow for more birds with less labor?
John, if the birds get too old, do you run into problems with roosters together, or do they always get processed before they fight too bad? Thanks for the videos and I request you do a video of setting your wire up at night before sundown. I think a lot of us are leery of predators and want to know how to protect these tractors as best as can be done.
I've had a terrible time with the tarp getting torn up when we get high winds, even tearing completely loose from the tractor. Have you had any trouble with that?
Great videos John. There only appears to be one water source within each tractor, and I would be concerned that if it failed for some reason the birds would be without water. I'm sure you've considered that and wonder what your thoughts are on that?
Hey John thanks for answering my last weeks question. I'm currently in week 3 of raising Cornish X, this is my first time ever doing meat birds. I've been feeding non-gmo grain 21% protein and I've been giving them a save-a-chick vitamin pack in their water weekly and I did a probiotic kind on arrival day and did one today when I moved them outside to my salatin style chicken tractor which I'll be redoing next spring after reading your book 👍🏼. Also I've notice some liquid stool from the chicks which is pretty smelly, I've read that this can be normal and it's called cecal poop :-/ don't know if it's that or coccidiosis, the birds all look great and are acting normal, most are a 1 lbs to 1.5lbs. Thanks for the videos
I go to about October as far as late in the season. I get my first chicks in mid-April and have them out on grass by early May when the grass is growing. The key for me is when the grass is growing I want chickens on it. April to October is about my window.
Awesome videos!! How do you keep from catching any chickens feet under the trailing edge of the tractors? Our tractors are smaller and made of pvc with a tin roof at one end.
how often do you run the chickens through the same area as the last batch? if there is overlap, how much time in between the overlap of the same grass/area? thanks and great videos!
Hi John! New subscriber here, just found your channel. Nice work! Going to look into your book but have a question and am hoping you can help. We recently bought 20 acres in central Florida which for the most part was an abandoned citrus grove with a house (3+ years vacant and foreclosed) we have cleared about 5 acres, most of which is sand, dirt and whatever Mother Nature decides to grow. The rest of the land has largely been taken over by weeds scattered with other plants (mint, dandelions, ginger, aloe vera, etc). Since grass seems to be a large part of their diet, where would you recommend us starting our focus? Growing grass or getting started on the chickens with what we have, seeding as we go? I can send pics if you'd like. Thanks for your help. We currently have free ranging chickens but love the idea of keeping them contained but moving so we can make better use of their poop, since right now it's all over the place. That and I have raised garden beds in the making and am worried they'll destroy our food before it has a chance to grow.
I love that ginger is a highly specialized crop in my area and fetches a premium at the market and it's a weed for you, haha. Hard for me to make that call for you from a UA-cam comment. I would suggest starting with some chickens on the ground and seeing how it goes Don't go huge in the beginning. At the same time seed some grass without chickens and see how each performs. Farming is all about the long game, no quick returns here. It can be painful at times. I also strongly recommend getting Alan Savory's Holistic Management Guide. He talks about land and business management in a way that would help you a lot I think. There's a lot of information there but it keep in mind he presents a framework and it is up to you to adapt it to your farm.
I have two questions. My first would be at what point to the roosters start to crow? I'm wanting to raise some meat birds but living in a residential area noise is a concern for me. My second question is about weeds and plants they can eat. Have you ever heard of them eating creeping Charlie? Love the videos keep up the great work. Tyson Thomason
Can you give some tips on looking for a processor. I dread having the chickens suffer or feel fear whatsoever, so I would be very concerned about killing timing of processors. That KFC plant undercover video of employees using the chickens as footballs was horrific and I wouldn't put it past any processing employee to do so. Do processors cull your batch as soon as you bring them? Will they let you "in the back" so you can see for yourself the level of humane treatment?
John, what Rooster will you recommend for a medium coop that can hold 7 hens? and what is a medium hen? the chickens im interesting in is Bluebell and Sussex Star.
Hey John I think you’re ace I know how a Cornish Cross is made but how do you breed freedom Ranger I live in the UK and hatcheries are not allowed you’re not allowed to have them sent through the post So I am breeding my own I have Indian large game and Plymouth rock that’s how I make Cornish Cross How do you make freedom rangers ?
So where do you get them processed at? I live in CA, but is there a designated butcher somewhere or do you just have to find a butcher that will do it?
I have not tried fermenting my chicken feed yet. I don't know enough about it yet but it's something I'll look into because you're not the first to mention it.
its alot better for the chicken to digest you can do it in different stages you can germinate in 12 days and it will gain up to 8x wieght. just add water for at least 18 hours it should start bobleing when its ready, there most be water above the corn at all time do you use your own mix of chicken feed?
Again, great series. Really letting me know what to expect for next year. 3 Questions. 1) You touched on weather, and it seems like you have some really nice weather where you are, however I will be raising birds in Atlantic Canada, and there can be times where we get a stretch of rain that can last almost a week. How would you deal with keeping the birds safe and happy should an extended amount of rain move in? 2) What do you think are your estimated cost savings in feed raising birds on grass vs. raising them strictly on grain?3)What distance do your tractors cover from chick to processing? I would hate to have tractors set up and then be like "oh, shoot, we have to turn around and go back over his grass because I ran out of room to move them" Thanks again! Loving all your success!
It would get more circulation. They have tarps all the way down to the ground mostly so it'd only be some more circulation. I have a couple reasons why I don't stagger them. I show it and talk about it in the next video.
Possibly because roosting meat birds can deform their breasts which from a presentation point of view isn't best. These aren't normal chickens. Grown for size not behavior
The cornish meat birds don't really roost. They're awkward and a bit lazy. Freedom rangers can roost depending on the bird. In general broilers are managed differently than layers.
For me that's an easy choice because there was only one in my area that I could go to. There are more opening up now but it takes time so I still only go to the one. I talk about this in the next video.
I have been feeding a 20% protein broiler mash. I use the same mash pretty much from start to finish. Feed is an area I look to expand my knowledge base in the future. I have just been using what I can get from the mill right now but I'm looking into having more control in the future.
David Peters that's exactly what it is. He missed on the identification of that one! That is what I came to comment about. He said he wasn't sure about all of the plants but was learning. He is correct in the fact that Burdick is edible and medicinal. It's (velvet leaf) another plant that was brought to the US long ago. It is edible by both livestock and humans. The seed pods can be blanched (a must to remove an objectionable taste) and roasted. The leaves can be boiled and eaten and the stock can be used to make cordage or string (rope).
wee I am we do not have a government inspection presser in Thunder Bay on, Canada, we have one for the 4 legged split hoof animals but nothing for eggs or birds, we would have to drive them to a big city witch is over 1800 miles away, the stress alone you would loss half before you got there, and flying them you would never cover your costs, for 37 years I have done 500 meat birds a year, I do not process mine in this 8 to 10 week that everyone seems to do because that's what it written that is done by the big factories feeding that chemical, drug an hormone feed called chick starter or turkey starter, and chicken or turkey grower, then chicken or turkey finisher, all these feed are loaded in chemicals drug hormones, so they don't risk keeping them longer then 8 weeks as there al ready a 4 to 5 Lb bird, for years I mix up my own feed, I get my chicks in June and proses them in Sept, of each year, there is little profit in a small bird, at 8 weeks old even at my $6.00 CND per dressed lb, this way I have next to nothing for loss and the chicken hens dress out to 7 to 9 lbs and the males dress 10 to 15 lbs, my turkeys the hen dress out to 18 to 35 lbs and the toms 40 to 53 lbs. when you cook a bird the gravy is really dark like beef , were store bought crap is clear. ever since I worked in a pressing plant I could never eat store bought meat of any kind after working there for 3 years, so I started my own, it is funny all the you tub vids out here, a lot of them take how too, when they only been doing it on a small scale for 2 to 3 years, when I started there was no web and I am glad there was not, as so much of the info is so lame and off beat, when I started, every bird I cow pig I lost I sent off to the collage to find out why it died , yes it cost me heavy, but my out look was I'm doing this and I am going to do it the best I can no mater what, today if I loss a bird and I don't find what I am looking for when I cut it open, I send it off, I know the signs of a lot of things that kill them, so I do my own cutting carefully looking for known problems and why they happen
How do you store all your chickens once you get them back from the processors? Keeping 240 chickens frozen can't be any small feat. Do you have an on-farm walk-in freezer or several chest freezers?
I have several chest freezers. The trick with freezing them is to start right away and do them in batches. Freeze one layer, then add on top, wait until that next layer is frozen, then add more. If you put them all in one freezer at once it will take a long time for the middle birds to freeze.
Hey, I'm raising broilers for meat! I'm currently on my second batch of 70 this summer, and you can check out the things I'm learning on my blog (hopefarmblog.wordpress.com/). Click the "chicken" tag if you just want to see the chicken info. ;) I had a question: how much water do your broilers drink in a day?
I bought your book... I built the tractors. But I couldn't find the part of the book where it shows how/where to put the engine/transmission and how to exactly attach it- so I gave it some thought and did what I guessed you probably did. I ended up just using a 6.5HP from Harbor Freight and a C/V clutch and axle from an old go-kart the kids used to have. Steering was left out for simplicity sake LOL. Hardest part I've found to date, getting the damned chickens to run FORWARD when I throttle up to move the coupes! I may make another 3-4 tractors this fall(when it cools off a bit!) with added steering capability... if so I'll do pics! Thanks for all of the great info and inspiration, Scott in Florida
I am an ag teacher in Montana after 30 years of ranching- just want to let you know the vids are excellent. Although I have always had some reservations about alan savory. Great job!!
Your week is so helpful 🎉❤
I found you through Justin Rhodes and greatly enjoy your videos so far. I've gotten this far on your daily/weekly chick vlog and plan to continue watching ALL of your channel. Great work! Thanks!
4774,,🐶
Thanks for the chicken tractor design. I use your chicken tractor as a brooder for my newly hatched egg layers. I also use this tractor to introduce the babies to the rest of the flock of about 20 laying hens and 2 roosters. Next spring I will raise meat chickens in the tractor . It is a very versatile design with many uses on my small 1/2 acre farm . Thanks again
Now that's a success story bdennis. Great job on thinking outside the box, or chicken tractor in this case.
Our small farmette is called "Walnut Grove Farm" and we have a Facebook page but no website, we grow and sell vegetables and raise egg layer chickens and sell eggs at our stand we built inside our barn, we also raise Cornish X meat birds that we sell to friends and family and also give out as gifts, this year we are raising 3 hogs for our use and other family members, I enjoy your videos and have adapted many ideas from your videos as well as others on UA-cam to make our small farm better, keep up the good work
Wow, so much good info packed in this video
Hi John, I got your book and believe, after much study, that your design will work for me. I have only one suggestion, on page 34 you have a nice drawing of the tractor, you should add dimensions to the drawing for guys like me who are used to looking at floor plans and architectural drawings. It kind of orients things in space. Excellent videos and book, thanks for your help.
Our family just bought your book in preparation for next spring. Thanks for doing what you do! We watch every week!
So happy to hear! I'll do my best to keep the resources coming. Happy poultry farming!
shared on Facebook. I bought your book. Can't wait until I move and can put it to use.
That's soooo cool! Thanks for sharing and thanks for supporting.
Free range chickens have better egg production, and their meat is exceptional. Another great video:)
Thanks Gene
I never knew or thought about the reasons for darker meat. Great explanation!! - Mike
Glad that helped Mike
love dandelions personally... I also keep bees so that is huge for the hive in early spring.
Hi John, I'm new to farming. Am a couple of months into it. We are on 10 acres. I have been watching your videos and checking out your website. Loving your stuff. Really helpful and I like your philosophies. We currently have 12 hens (for eggs) and a cow and her new calf. I am keen to get into meat chickens for my family and some friends. So learning lots from you. We currently give our hens scarps ontop of their feed. Do you ever give your meat bird scraps? Cheers Kevin.
I do raise chickens, but I'm not a farm. Great series -- shared to Facebook!
Thanks Cheriette
I really like your videos...great content!
AND straight run is way cheaperI noticed you had the reds out on pasture foraging where the whites wernt. Considering the longer time span, AND the reds being out on pasture, which eats less feed before processing.
i am very inspired to goal out to my own little farm. lo e your videos.
Glad I can help in any way.
Thnx for this series, I'm learning so much. How far is your processor from your farm? I'm told the cornish cross wouldn't handle a long drive to the processor very well.
Just ordered your book
Honesty is the best policy thumbs up for that. What part of Maine are your friends in?
Pittsfield
Holy smoke that's not far from my brothers town. Next time I'm down I may skip out there lol
In the UK they make drinks from the burdock. Its very nice.
Good to know.
What made you choose to build smaller A-frames over a 12' x 10' flat top or a larger custom A-frame? Wouldn't larger structures allow for more birds with less labor?
John, if the birds get too old, do you run into problems with roosters together, or do they always get processed before they fight too bad? Thanks for the videos and I request you do a video of setting your wire up at night before sundown. I think a lot of us are leery of predators and want to know how to protect these tractors as best as can be done.
I've had a terrible time with the tarp getting torn up when we get high winds, even tearing completely loose from the tractor. Have you had any trouble with that?
John do you breed your chickens. Also how do you keep there water cold for the day mine always gets warm. Love the video and love your channel
Great videos John. There only appears to be one water source within each tractor, and I would be concerned that if it failed for some reason the birds would be without water. I'm sure you've considered that and wonder what your thoughts are on that?
On the bottom of the bucket you can see multiple nipples. It seems very unlikely that they would all fail at the same time.
Hey John thanks for answering my last weeks question. I'm currently in week 3 of raising Cornish X, this is my first time ever doing meat birds. I've been feeding non-gmo grain 21% protein and I've been giving them a save-a-chick vitamin pack in their water weekly and I did a probiotic kind on arrival day and did one today when I moved them outside to my salatin style chicken tractor which I'll be redoing next spring after reading your book 👍🏼. Also I've notice some liquid stool from the chicks which is pretty smelly, I've read that this can be normal and it's called cecal poop :-/ don't know if it's that or coccidiosis, the birds all look great and are acting normal, most are a 1 lbs to 1.5lbs. Thanks for the videos
how much are the chicken tractors and how long do they take to pay off?
How late in the year can you raise the broilers on pasture? When do you begin in the spring to raise broilers on pasture?
I go to about October as far as late in the season. I get my first chicks in mid-April and have them out on grass by early May when the grass is growing. The key for me is when the grass is growing I want chickens on it. April to October is about my window.
do you ever have a problem with fleas since you have so many animals on grass?
John, do you pull the birds feed at night or are the birds with feed for 24hrs?
Awesome videos!! How do you keep from catching any chickens feet under the trailing edge of the tractors? Our tractors are smaller and made of pvc with a tin roof at one end.
Occasionally they will get their legs caught a little but if you're paying attention you can avoid injuring them.
how often do you run the chickens through the same area as the last batch? if there is overlap, how much time in between the overlap of the same grass/area?
thanks and great videos!
Hi John! New subscriber here, just found your channel. Nice work! Going to look into your book but have a question and am hoping you can help. We recently bought 20 acres in central Florida which for the most part was an abandoned citrus grove with a house (3+ years vacant and foreclosed) we have cleared about 5 acres, most of which is sand, dirt and whatever Mother Nature decides to grow. The rest of the land has largely been taken over by weeds scattered with other plants (mint, dandelions, ginger, aloe vera, etc). Since grass seems to be a large part of their diet, where would you recommend us starting our focus? Growing grass or getting started on the chickens with what we have, seeding as we go? I can send pics if you'd like. Thanks for your help. We currently have free ranging chickens but love the idea of keeping them contained but moving so we can make better use of their poop, since right now it's all over the place. That and I have raised garden beds in the making and am worried they'll destroy our food before it has a chance to grow.
I love that ginger is a highly specialized crop in my area and fetches a premium at the market and it's a weed for you, haha.
Hard for me to make that call for you from a UA-cam comment. I would suggest starting with some chickens on the ground and seeing how it goes Don't go huge in the beginning. At the same time seed some grass without chickens and see how each performs. Farming is all about the long game, no quick returns here. It can be painful at times.
I also strongly recommend getting Alan Savory's Holistic Management Guide. He talks about land and business management in a way that would help you a lot I think. There's a lot of information there but it keep in mind he presents a framework and it is up to you to adapt it to your farm.
I have two questions. My first would be at what point to the roosters start to crow? I'm wanting to raise some meat birds but living in a residential area noise is a concern for me.
My second question is about weeds and plants they can eat. Have you ever heard of them eating creeping Charlie?
Love the videos keep up the great work.
Tyson Thomason
how much do you pay to have the chickens processed and are they packaged or packed in ice?
Can you give some tips on looking for a processor. I dread having the chickens suffer or feel fear whatsoever, so I would be very concerned about killing timing of processors. That KFC plant undercover video of employees using the chickens as footballs was horrific and I wouldn't put it past any processing employee to do so. Do processors cull your batch as soon as you bring them? Will they let you "in the back" so you can see for yourself the level of humane treatment?
Hey there, where do the chickens roost in the chicken tractor
What is the white covering made out of, simply a white tarp? where’d you buy it?
John, what Rooster will you recommend for a medium coop that can hold 7 hens? and what is a medium hen? the chickens im interesting in is Bluebell and Sussex Star.
they grow so big in less than no time.
Hey John I think you’re ace
I know how a Cornish Cross is made but how do you breed freedom Ranger
I live in the UK and hatcheries are not allowed you’re not allowed to have them sent through the post
So I am breeding my own
I have Indian large game and Plymouth rock that’s how I make Cornish Cross
How do you make freedom rangers ?
Great ideas but do you offer visits for starters
I’m looking for land in the Texas Hill Country. I’m interested in learning from you.
Not sure you've answered this question but what made you settle on a one day rotation; why not two or three?
Do you have plans for your chicken tractors
That wasn't orchard grass. Looked like some variety of foxtail.
So where do you get them processed at? I live in CA, but is there a designated butcher somewhere or do you just have to find a butcher that will do it?
Is raising chickens in tractors considered "free range" when you go to market and sell them?
How do you keep the chickens warm
awesome videos
have you tried fermentation your chicken feed?
in denmark we don't have cornish cross yet we use Scan Labbel
I have not tried fermenting my chicken feed yet. I don't know enough about it yet but it's something I'll look into because you're not the first to mention it.
its alot better for the chicken to digest
you can do it in different stages you can germinate in 12 days and it will gain up to 8x wieght. just add water for at least 18 hours it should start bobleing when its ready, there most be water above the corn at all time
do you use your own mix of chicken feed?
how many birds fit in a crate?
Are the chickens prone to getting fleas? If so what do you do about that?
Where do the chicks sleep or roost at night in the tractor?
loved ur video
Hello. Its Anicia in Francistown, Botswana, Africa. I would like to start chicken business. Please let me know the access to the book .
Is it more expensive to get all male chicks vs straight run?
When it winter does you chicken shrink?
l am rising chicken for meat but now the 2 months chicks stop eating grows pellet what can do?, allread l have finish pellets
Bro what is the size of one coop and how much chicks you kept in it
What about rain & wind ???? It's been 9 days straight here " when your ground gets to wet !
Can i see your record book? I wan
t to know what it looks like so I can adopt it for my farm.
I don't have that much space to move the shed form day by day wt to do
Again, great series. Really letting me know what to expect for next year. 3 Questions.
1) You touched on weather, and it seems like you have some really nice weather where you are, however I will be raising birds in Atlantic Canada, and there can be times where we get a stretch of rain that can last almost a week. How would you deal with keeping the birds safe and happy should an extended amount of rain move in?
2) What do you think are your estimated cost savings in feed raising birds on grass vs. raising them strictly on grain?3)What distance do your tractors cover from chick to processing? I would hate to have tractors set up and then be like "oh, shoot, we have to turn around and go back over his grass because I ran out of room to move them"
Thanks again! Loving all your success!
Are baby chicks more tender than adult birds???
If you staggered the chicken tractors would they get more air circulation?
It would get more circulation. They have tarps all the way down to the ground mostly so it'd only be some more circulation. I have a couple reasons why I don't stagger them. I show it and talk about it in the next video.
Why don't you have any roosting bars in the chicken tractors?
Possibly because roosting meat birds can deform their breasts which from a presentation point of view isn't best. These aren't normal chickens. Grown for size not behavior
The cornish meat birds don't really roost. They're awkward and a bit lazy. Freedom rangers can roost depending on the bird. In general broilers are managed differently than layers.
John how do you source usda processors?
For me that's an easy choice because there was only one in my area that I could go to. There are more opening up now but it takes time so I still only go to the one. I talk about this in the next video.
Large list. Appears to be all states. Egg processors to bird processors.
www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/inspection/mpi-directory
Hey John, what do you do and recommend doing when it rains?
Beach umbrella works fabulously- just make sure it's secured or if it gets windy it'll blow off!
what kind of feed are u feeding them and will u change the feed once they get bigger
I have been feeding a 20% protein broiler mash. I use the same mash pretty much from start to finish. Feed is an area I look to expand my knowledge base in the future. I have just been using what I can get from the mill right now but I'm looking into having more control in the future.
Your burdock looks like velvet leaf to me.
David Peters that's exactly what it is. He missed on the identification of that one! That is what I came to comment about. He said he wasn't sure about all of the plants but was learning. He is correct in the fact that Burdick is edible and medicinal.
It's (velvet leaf) another plant that was brought to the US long ago. It is edible by both livestock and humans. The seed pods can be blanched (a must to remove an objectionable taste) and roasted. The leaves can be boiled and eaten and the stock can be used to make cordage or string (rope).
Can you mentor me?
How many chickens in one tent house??
30 birds per chicken tractor typically
wee I am we do not have a government inspection presser in Thunder Bay on, Canada, we have one for the 4 legged split hoof animals but nothing for eggs or birds, we would have to drive them to a big city witch is over 1800 miles away, the stress alone you would loss half before you got there, and flying them you would never cover your costs, for 37 years I have done 500 meat birds a year, I do not process mine in this 8 to 10 week that everyone seems to do because that's what it written that is done by the big factories feeding that chemical, drug an hormone feed called chick starter or turkey starter, and chicken or turkey grower, then chicken or turkey finisher, all these feed are loaded in chemicals drug hormones, so they don't risk keeping them longer then 8 weeks as there al ready a 4 to 5 Lb bird, for years I mix up my own feed, I get my chicks in June and proses them in Sept, of each year, there is little profit in a small bird, at 8 weeks old even at my $6.00 CND per dressed lb, this way I have next to nothing for loss and the chicken hens dress out to 7 to 9 lbs and the males dress 10 to 15 lbs, my turkeys the hen dress out to 18 to 35 lbs and the toms 40 to 53 lbs. when you cook a bird the gravy is really dark like beef , were store bought crap is clear. ever since I worked in a pressing plant I could never eat store bought meat of any kind after working there for 3 years, so I started my own, it is funny all the you tub vids out here, a lot of them take how too, when they only been doing it on a small scale for 2 to 3 years, when I started there was no web and I am glad there was not, as so much of the info is so lame and off beat, when I started, every bird I cow pig I lost I sent off to the collage to find out why it died , yes it cost me heavy, but my out look was I'm doing this and I am going to do it the best I can no mater what, today if I loss a bird and I don't find what I am looking for when I cut it open, I send it off, I know the signs of a lot of things that kill them, so I do my own cutting carefully looking for known problems and why they happen
How do you store all your chickens once you get them back from the processors? Keeping 240 chickens frozen can't be any small feat. Do you have an on-farm walk-in freezer or several chest freezers?
I have several chest freezers. The trick with freezing them is to start right away and do them in batches. Freeze one layer, then add on top, wait until that next layer is frozen, then add more. If you put them all in one freezer at once it will take a long time for the middle birds to freeze.
sounds like the freedom rangers might be a tastier bird. haven't decided yet on which kind so thanks for all the great info☺
They're a little tastier but it all comes down to personal preference.
Hey, I'm raising broilers for meat! I'm currently on my second batch of 70 this summer, and you can check out the things I'm learning on my blog (hopefarmblog.wordpress.com/). Click the "chicken" tag if you just want to see the chicken info. ;)
I had a question: how much water do your broilers drink in a day?
buddy don't u do parent farming as eggs will b fertile...ys r no plz explain...
I'm doing the same as u and I'm 11 on a smaller scale with 30 to 60 I get land for free because my dads a farmer
That's so cool Rory! How do you like raising chickens and what do you do with them?
+John Suscovich in the Sumer we sell the eggs and in the winter we sell them as food for Chrismas and then by them in again
+John Suscovich there free range
I proses all my self and I have 50 to 75 chickens
You are too cute thank you for the info
I'm just here to develop an unhealthy attachment to the growth of these little chickies.
you're eye candy :D
wennepher Farms
Success story in progress...lol. Take a look! thenakedhog.com Just finished the first tractor using your recent book!
Horray! More chickens are going to be raised on grass, that's the goal! Congrats and I encourage anyone else to visit your website and check it out.
1) do you need to teach the birds to drink from the water feeder nipple?
2) do they lay eggs? If so what week do they start
1) do you need to teach the birds to drink from the water feeder nipple?
2) do they lay eggs? If so what week do they start