| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| chickenladycris |
Posted - Feb 02 2012 : 07:51:08 AM
Hi all,
I am thinking about expanding my pastured poultry summer business, and I'm checking out meat chicken breeds. I hear good things about Freedom Rangers, in that they grown nice & steady, and also actively forage for their dinners. This would be a nice change from my Jumbo Cornish birds, that live to waddle to the feed dish. I don't know anyone near me who has raised them, so anyone out there tried growing these guys? Do they really remember how to forage? And, if I kept a few for breeding stock, do they reproduce true across generations?
Thanks girls! 
"A farmgirl can never have enough chickens!"--me |
| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| one_dog_per_acre |
Posted - Feb 03 2012 : 03:28:11 AM
I have been looking into this for about a month or so.
I am getting Marans. They are still really good to eat after they are spent.
Most people do all of their meat birds at once. I like the idea of culling one by one. Which makes me think I'd do ok at breeding.
I would start my homework at hatchery website, and find out which dual purpose or meat breed sounds appealing.
“It always looks darkest just before it gets totally black.”-Charlie Brown |
| chickenladycris |
Posted - Feb 02 2012 : 6:34:55 PM
So, any recommendations on a heritage breed to try? I don't have a lot of space, and I'm mainly looking at raising over the summer months when I can rent some old pastures and house birds in "caravans", but I like the idea of perpetuating at least a small flock of birds primarily used for meat...
"A farmgirl can never have enough chickens!"--me |
| one_dog_per_acre |
Posted - Feb 02 2012 : 3:31:39 PM
Frankenbirds!
“It always looks darkest just before it gets totally black.”-Charlie Brown |
| oldbittyhen |
Posted - Feb 02 2012 : 12:42:18 PM
unfortunatly none of the desiner chickens breed true, they are usually a 4 way cross, you are better off with a heritage breed...
"Knowlege is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad" |
| one_dog_per_acre |
Posted - Feb 02 2012 : 10:10:06 AM
I have been looking into this, and as far as I have found, they don't breed true, but they will lay eggs and act like a normal chicken. I have heard they do forage, and need less feed than the cornish crosses.
Thanks for this post, I am interested as well.
“It always looks darkest just before it gets totally black.”-Charlie Brown |
