[bedifferent]

I am picking up a handful of these birds to grow on for the table and i was wondering if someone could advise?

I plan to feed on chick crumbs (did not have any special sort in mind) and then, because i plan to house them with my egg layers i was hoping that they would be ok on layers? I have a feeling that i may have over simplified this plan, i was hoping someone could give guidence.

I don't want to work out ratios of feed to weight gained and all that i just want to feed an adequate diet that will result in moderate but not too quick growth, oh and i want them to taste good!!

Any ideas anyone?

[Bodger]

Growers pellets to follow on from chick cumbs rather than layers.

[bedifferent]

the problem with that is that i cant see any way of making sure the meat birds eat the growers and the egg birds eat the layers. Am i missing a simple solution?

[bedifferent]

also, at what point do you swap from crumbs to pellets?

[GrannieAnnie]

IMHO Yeah, keep them separate!  We've got our meat chicks separate from the layers as yes, after 4-6 weeks of chick crumb they should go on to rearer or growers pellets, then for the last week before you cull them, they should go onto finisher.  

It would be awkward to feed them separate as you say if they are housed together,  Have you got another house or shed you can keep them in? or perhaps divide the existing one or borrow a small shed until they are gone?

Also, are your layers chicks or grown up?  If you put them together while the meat chicks are still young, the layers could kill them.  You wouldn't put new hens in with old ones until they were old enough to fend for themselves.

Hope this helps.

[bedifferent]

Well, the plan was to raise them until they are a decent size and able to look after themselves and then let them live with the others. This variety of bird, i am told, will live happily for as long as i wish which will mean that i dont have to cull them all at the same time, just now and again as the need for a roast arises.

[GrannieAnnie]

Well its up to you how you raise them, but just don't wait too long or you'll have to stew them!!!!!    

[bedifferent]

i was thinking that they would all be contributing towards the running of our kitchen within 9 months. Does this sound reasonable?

[Bodger]

I've just killed a cock and eaten him at an age only slightly older than that and whilst he was tasty, he was a bit tough.
I'm with Annie, keep them seperate. Apart from the fact that they need diferent pellets, they will also be needing to eat different amounts. Your layers will simply get fat by eating too much whilst your fatteners may stay thin through not eating enough. Your fattening chickens need more food than your layers and if they are running together, you obviously wont be able to regulate the intake of the two types of birds.

[bedifferent]

In that case, and i know that this is going to sound like a stupid question.

I have a dis-used ark that i could keep them in, but this does require them to be able to climb a ladder and perch at night. I assume that this will not be a problem??

[mdueal]

Our 4 week old JA757s have just gone outdoors and they rae in a coop and run that has perch. They took to it really well. I fact we were finding that when they got big enough in their brooder, they were flying up to perch on the sides at night anyway.
We have just started to transition ours over to grower pellets by mixing them into crubs to wean from one to another. seems to be working fine. They have grown so quickly that they are big enough to eat pellets now. And boy do they eat!! I've never had to fill up a feeder so quickly before!

[bedifferent]

What is a JA575??? Had a look on your web site. Why do they not have a breed name like sosso or hubbard. Sorry if this sounds a stupid question but i am new to the world of keeping poultry for meat

[GrannieAnnie]

The ark sounds good while they can still walk up a ladder!  But they will get FAT!!!! lol  you may have to teach them the ladder at first.  Ours have some low perches and they manage them okay, but a ladder may need a bit more effort!

How many JA757's have you got MD?  the 57 I have left eat 10kgs a day of growers pellets at the moment!!!!

[GrannieAnnie]

I don't know why ome have names and some only have numbers bedifferent, but the JA 757's are the white quicker growing birds which mature in 8-10 weeks.

We have some of them, some Coloryield's which are brown and mature 1-2 weeks later and some Mastergris which mature at 12-16 weeks.  We are going to try them all and see what we like the best.  Like all meat, they are tenderer when young!

I've got photo's of them all on my blog!

[mdueal]

We have 15! They are just 4 weeks old and have just gone outside - thank god as they make a racket in the house!!
Don't know how we are going to get on with killing them - killing 15 isnt a problem - its the plucking and drawing and the freezer space! Mind you - loads of people have said they would have 1/2 from us oven eady but don't really now what the rules and regs are about that?
I thought JA757 was the number of a type of Hubbards - with Hubbards being the genetics company name? May be wrong??