We are always fielding questions about raising chickens for meat.  And even though out meat birds are already half grown, you can use this post for planning next years meat bird adventure. 

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There is great satisfaction raising your own food and chicken is no exception.  Raising your poultry as a meat source is a way to live more sustainably while having control over where your food comes from. It is gratifying to know what goes into them, how they are raised,  how they are processed and finally, knowing there is  a years supply of fresh, tender chicken in the freezer.

There are a couple of general options when it comes to raising chickens for meat.  You can buy hybrid chicks that are specifically bred to grow rapidly and produce a high volume of meat in a short couple of months. Or you can raise dual-purpose heritage chickens that grow much more slowly (reaching full growth in about six months), but can also provide eggs.

Meat Chicken Breeds
Which meat chicken breed is best?  That is usually the first questions we get asked,  The white Cornish Crosses are a mix between a Cornish rooster and a White Plymouth Rock hen, and are known as the “Meat Kings” or simply “Jumbo Cornish X Rocks”. They are a very popular choice because they are the most efficient at converting their feed to muscle weight. By the time they are between eight and ten weeks old, they are ready to be processed as broilers. They can also be kept a little longer to be used as roasters. Some colored hybrids are also available, although they grow a little more slowly, maturing in about 11 weeks.  In our experience, they are also more difficult to pluck cleanly (we typically skin our birds), but sometimes people find the meat more flavorful than the white hybrids.  After raising both the cornish X rocks and several different hybrids we generally raise hybrids because we have seen have fewer leg issues and less mortality.

Some of the heritage breeds that are great dual-purpose egg and meat chickens are Plymouth Rock, Delaware, Wyandotte, and New Hampshire (to name a few).  They have a slower growth rate than the meat breeds. These reach target weight around 15-16 weeks, and their meat is firmer with a lower fat content due to the fact that they are such good foragers. Also, in general, the chicken flavor of the meat can be more intense because they are slaughtered at an older age.

How to Raise Chickens for Meat
We order our meat birds in January (to ensure availability) and they are delivered mid-April.  In SW Montana, temperatures are still pretty chilly so you have to have a brooder or set up to keep the chicks warm until they can get outside.  The brooder should give warmth, ventilation, and protection from predators. They will only be in it for about a 3-4 weeks so. think simple. Chicks require a minimum of 0.75 sq.ft. each in a brooder, so make sure you plan accordingly when you order your chicks. The floor needs about four inches of litter, whether you use wood shavings and/or newpaper.

Use a small waterer initially to prevent drowning, but keep it filled because they will go through a lot of water to wash down the feed. Use a chick-sized feeder (don’t forget the chick grit sprinkled on top like salting your food). When the chicks come, dip their beaks in the water as you gently put them into the brooder. They will instinctively find the food.  And always feed a meat bird food that is at least 22% protein.  We also add vitamins to their water from the beginning.

Use a heat lamp or radiant heater to keep the area warm. Then keep an eye on them for the first few days and in extreme weather when temperatures can fluctuate wildly . If they scatter away from the lamp, they are too hot; if they huddle together under the lamp, it isn’t warm enough. You should raise or lower the lamp accordingly to adjust the temperature based on their behavior. As a general rule, you can use the following temperature guidelines: The first week, the temperature should be 95°F. Every week after that, reduce the temperature by 5°F until it’s down to 70°F, and at 4-5 weeks old remove the heat source altogether (weather permitting).

Around three weeks of age the chicks need two sq.ft. of space per bird.  You can now allow the birds to forage a bit or you can continue to keep them in an enclosed space. We keep our meat birds inside a large enclosure where they can forage about or retreat to a three sided shed for shelter (from heat and cold).

Feeding and Watering
This is another popular question and an important one- “what do I feed them?”  Meats bird (hybrids) require a higher protein diet than your layer hens.  It is essential that you provide them a feed that is at least 22% protein.  Because the modern hybrid meat chickens are selected for their fast growth rate and high feed efficiency (they put on weight fast), care must be taken to limit their food intake, especially during the first three weeks, or problems with legs and mortality will result.  We limit feed by removing the feeder at night and returning it again in the morning (12 hours).

We also provide the birds with a lot of fresh water and add vitamins and probiotics with every refilling. 

Processing.
Around six to eight weeks, if you are growing hybrids and you just want broilers, check to see if their weight is big enough (at least 5-6 pounds). At that point, you can begin processing them. If you want roasters, you will need to let them grow a few more weeks. Heritage breeds need to grow for a much longer period before they’ll reach a weight suitable for harvesting meat. Keep in mind that the edible portion of live weight differs by breed: about 75% for white hybrids, about 70% for colored hybrids, and about 65% for heritage breeds. This excludes fat, intestines, blood, head, feet, and feathers.

You have a few choices to make during processing.  Do you want chicken with the skin on or skinless?  Do you want the chicken whole or cut up?  As a child, we used to help our parents manually scald and then pluck feathers and it was not a fun job (burnt fingers, the stench of wet feathers) as I remember it.  If you are lucky enough to know someone with a time-saving automated poultry plucker, you could handle up to 3-4 birds at a time and be done plucking in minutes!  We like our chicken skinless and thereby can forego the entire plucking process altogether.  Either way, the payoff is great when it come time to simply open the freezer and pull out your own homestead raised chicken,

Enjoy!