![]() ![]() Leg issues that cause them to become lame before slaughtering time Make sure they aren’t overeating and getting enough exercise.Ĭornish Cross chickens can suffer from some of the following health issues: Therefore, it’s important that you keep a close eye on them. Because they grow so quickly, it’s very easy for their legs to become swollen and infected. Leg and Heart IssuesĬornish Cross Chickens are, sadly, known to be more likely to suffer from various ailments than other chicken breeds. ![]() They just aren’t as full of zest and vigor as heritage birds are (helpful when you need to catch them, I might add). They do eat some grass and bugs and good stuff and they deposit plenty of soil health-boosting nitrogen in their manure as they go. That said, Cornish Cross chickens CAN be pastured. That’s something we aren’t used to, for sure! They sniffed around it, then went back to the grain feeder, leaving the yogurt mostly untouched. We did this to give the chicks a healthy dose of probiotics yesterday. We discovered this firsthand when we put a plate of Greek yogurt in our brooder. They are the true loafers of the chicken world! While they’ll nibble at it occasionally, they don’t like to move around quite as much as other chickens. Challenges of Raising Cornish Cross ChickensĬornish Cross chickens are a bit more lackadaisical and would much prefer grain to grass. Of course, this also means that Cornish Cross chickens tend to be less expensive to raise. You won’t be feeding them for months before it’s time to get them on the dinner table. Cornish Cross birds are ready for slaughter at around 7 to 10 weeks and have a great feed conversion rate. The most obvious reason to raise Cornish Cross chickens is that they feather out and mature rapidly - almost at a truly unbelievable rate. The internal organs tend to dislodge from the chest cavity more easily, and they also produce fewer features than other birds, reducing your plucking chores, too. Here are a few of them: Easy to ButcherĬornish Cross chickens are some of the easiest chickens when it comes to slaughtering and processing time. However, when raised properly, there are plenty of good reasons to raise Cornish Cross chickens. There are lots of myths floating around out there about Cornish Cross chickens - they’re smelly, they’re lazy, they’re fat - and to be fair, this sometimes might be true. ![]() We wanted to be able to expand our meat bird offerings as we start selling to the local community.Īs much as I love raising heritage chickens, they are unfortunately really difficult to sell unless you’re selling to an audience that is well-educated in all the benefits of heritage meat. For us, there was one big reason to raise Cornish Cross birds. ![]()
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