Meat Chickens

Initial Purchase

I found McMurray Hatchery from a you tube channel, Sowing the Land. I since have found many homesteaders order from McMurray. The initial recommendation was to purchase 25 to 30 chicks to start with.

After studying the various breeds, we determined to try the Cornish Crosses because the males are ready in 8 weeks for processing, and the females are ready in 10 weeks. McMurray actually vaccinates to guard against diseases, and they have a policy or guarantee for birds to arrive live via US Mail.

My chicks hatched on Oct 24 & arrived via USPS - alive & well - on Oct 26. McMurray also sent an extra chick as a perk for the order.

McMurray advised the following as soon as the chicks are received: The chicks will arrive very thirsty. So dip the beak of each one into the waterer. This also lets them know where their water is.

Shelter

We had a second coop that we were using for our ducks, and it is inside a large area that is fenced in. I had covered the fenced-in area with chicken wire ( to keep the hawks out ) and also with shade screen. After moving our ducks out, I tilled the ground and planted a cover crop. By the time the chickens arrived, the cover crop was a foot high, which is great for the chickens.

The chickens stayed inside the coop with food and water until they grew feathers. I had ordered a heating tray from RentACoop which helped keep them warm. I bought large pine shavings in the 12 cubic foot bags to spread inside the coop. Since the waterer was inside the coop, the pine shavings kept getting wet. Since they were laying on the pine shavings, their little undersides were staying wet. So I was cleaning out the coop & replacing the pine shavings frequently.

Now that they have their feathers to keep them warm, the routine is this: Every morning, I refill their waterer & feed trays, and open the doors to let them out of the coop. They eat and drink, and then spend the day munching on the cover crop and looking for bugs. If the day will be cold ( this is December ) I keep the heat lamp on for them inside the coop. If not ( this is the Texas Hill Country ) I unplug the heat lamp. Every evening before dark, I refill their feed & water. I leave the water outside, but put the feed inside the coop, and make sure the heat lamp is on. At or after dark, they all migrate toward the feed & the light.

Once they are all inside, I close & lock the doors. I do this just in case a wiley racoon manages to get inside the fenced area. Last year, a family of racoons ate 11 of my laying chickens, and a skunk managed to get his paw through the chicken wire and jerk the head off one of my favorite chickens.

Feed

I started out feeding Chick Starter - non-medicated per McMurray. After the first 50 pound bag, I changed to Chick Grower, which is protein-rich for growth.

The first two 50 pound bags of feed lasted about two weeks each. However, at about 5 weeks old ( Nov 28 ) I noticed they were eating a lot more. Now at 8 weeks ( Dec 19 ) they are going through a whole 50 pound bag in 5 days or less. The chick grower is $23.55 per 50 pound bag, and this cost makes it not at all cost effective to have meat chickens.

In researching what goes into making my own chicken feed rather than buying it, I came across an online community called Insteading. They have articles with ways to feed your chickens without buying the 50 pound bags. They also have an entire learning course on raising chickens !!

I also found a recipe for homemade chicken feed. It would be 30% cracked corn, 30% wheat, 20% peas, and 10% oats. This seems to provide all the protein & vitamins & minerals required for good growth.

I learned about a feed manufacturer that is 26 miles from me. They sell feed in bulk, and I can pick up or they can deliver. Today ( Monday ) is my errand day, so after I finish my errands, I intend to drop in and get details. If successful, I will post their information for future use.

Cost Analysis - My Great Experiment

Pilgrim Whole Chicken at HEB, Average 5.6 pounds, $6.10 per chicken, equates to $1.09 per pound.

Major costs to homestead meat chickens include:

( 1 ) up front cost of the chicks - I paid $103.20 total for 31 chickens

( 2 ) cost of the feed - I have paid a total of $221.19 for 10 weeks of feed

( 3 ) cost of the pine shavings - I have paid $21.01 for 10 weeks of pine shavings

These chicks should net 6 pounds each at 10 weeks, total of 180 pounds. So my cost is $345.40 for 180 pounds equates to $1.92 per pound. This is not at all cost effective. This is almost twice as expensive as buying whole chickens from the grocery store.

If I do this again, I could reduce costs by:

- Putting a rooster in with my laying chickens to impregnate their eggs, then hatch some eggs for meat chickens.

- Being successful at buying bulk corn & protein to make my own homemade chicken feed.

- Using my chipper spreader to crack the bulk corn and to make my own wood shavings for bedding.

Pressure Canning Chicken

This link is all about pressure canning chicken meat. It is from one of my favorite links, Melissa K Norris.

https://melissaknorris.com/how-to-can-chicken-raw-pack-method/?vgo_ee=hZfhr1%2FlflREs4W%2FWrlWG8stCf%2FBseG8%2FrjmQRnYJAVNpmnskOpxcmTjGQ%3D%3D%3A6YNcuXrg%2BWOsqIj3mOI08xmrEvO53p7I