Are you questioning which meat hen breed it is best to raise, Cornish Cross or Freedom Ranger?
There could also be an rising selection of meat hen breeds on the market to the patron these days, to not level out the selection of elevating greater, standard, dual-purpose, laying hens. The two hottest picks correct now are the white Cornish Cross and the Freedom Ranger Broiler.
The two breeds have some variations which may make but another suited to your homestead than the other. Let’s uncover these contrasts so you could make the selection that works biggest for you!
Cornish Cross or Freedom Ranger? Which Meat Hen Breed Should You Choose?
Cornish Cross Breed Traits
- Frequent Time to Improve: 8 weeks
- Frequent Weight at Harvest: 4 kilos
Cornish Cross are found with quite a few variations to their title nevertheless are often a heavy-bodied white hen. Cornish chickens are bred with large breast meat in ideas for purchasers trying to find low-fat protein.
They’re often inactive and for those who occur to’ve solely raised laying hens beforehand you may be shocked at how they really don’t behave very very like a hen. They primarily spend their lives consuming, consuming, sleeping, and defecating.
It’s a personality well-suited to bulking up quickly.
“These broiler chickens are recognized for his or her distinctive, speedy progress and feed effectivity. Whether or not or not you wish to elevate these top-selling meat birds in your private pleasure, or to spice up and promote, you obtained’t uncover increased.
Females could have a high-quality, simple finish when dressed and attain gorgeous roasting measurement. Looking for straight run chicks gives you a number of of each intercourse to have the ability to reap the advantages of the strong elements every strategies. Males will robe from three to 4 kilos in six to eight weeks, and females will take about one and a half weeks longer to realize the an identical measurement.”
McMurray Hatchery
Benefits of Elevating the Cornish Cross Meat Hen Breed
Quicker to Improve
Many uncover which you would elevate Cornish Cross to butcher weight further quickly than totally different breeds. They seem to get to the 4-6 pound ending fluctuate inside 2 months of age. Afterward, their progress value seems to decelerate… for those who want to hazard elevating them longer for an even bigger carcass.
Less complicated to Butcher
The inside organs on this breed are less complicated to remove and since they spend rather a lot time laying down, feathers usually don’t develop on their breast. This means there are fewer feathers to remove at butchering time.
Later Maturity
In distinction to Ranger Broilers, Cornish Cross just isn’t going to realize maturity sooner than butchering so the roosters obtained’t crow or act aggressively within the route of the females.
A lot much less Pricey to Improve
There is a bigger demand for Cornish Cross chicks which lowers the worth of day-old chicks. On account of they’re moreover an inactive breed that reaches a ending measurement further quickly, Cornish Cross have the subsequent feed conversion and are cheaper to spice up.
Cons of Cornish Cross
Pasture Raised
In case you’re eager on maximizing the effectively being benefits of pasture-raised meat chickens, Cornish Cross won’t be the breed you’re trying to find. They not typically forage for bugs and greens, preferring to hold round throughout the feed trough and waterer.
Effectively being Factors
For a variety of causes, the Cornish Cross are susceptible to have further effectively being factors compared with totally different breeds. They’re notorious for coronary coronary heart failure and broken legs, notably as they near maturity. They’ve moreover been recognized to experience rectal prolapse. Sadly, a majority of those effectively being factors are expert later inside the chook’s fast lives… which suggests nearly all of your funding in elevating them has already been made.
Freedom Ranger Broiler Breed Traits
- Frequent Time to Improve: 11 weeks
- Frequent Weight at Harvest: 6 kilos
Freedom Rangers are moreover hybrid chickens that fall under a variety of monickers. Usually, you’ll uncover the time interval “Ranger” inside the title though. They are much further energetic, healthful birds and behave further like what you’d rely on from a hen. They will run spherical, chase bugs, select at grass, and roost in its place of parking themselves on the feed trough all day. Their leg bones are stronger to help their physique weight and, in consequence, you’ll uncover they’ve an elevated yield of darkish meat.
“Freedom Ranger chicks develop at an affordable value, reaching their peak weight of 5-6 lbs in 9 to 11 weeks. These energetic, sturdy chicks are acceptable with out value fluctuate, foraging and pasture environments and produce tender, succulent meat with further yellow omega 3 fat and fewer saturated fat than fast rising breeds.
Our Freedom Ranger chickens attribute each purple or tri-colored feathers and have yellow shanks, pores and pores and skin and beaks. They’re an brisk breed and thrive when allowed to free fluctuate, scratch and dirt bathe in pure daylight.”
Freedom Ranger Hatchery
Benefits of Elevating Freedom Ranger Broilers
Pasture Elevating
That is no doubt one of many largest benefits of elevating Ranger Broilers. When raised on pasture they’re going to forage correctly, diversifying their weight reduction plan and rising the flavour and nearly positively vitamin of the meat by the addition of greens, bugs, and irrespective of else chickens love to look out and eat whereas scratching spherical.
Whereas Rangers do have a further numerous weight reduction plan, it isn’t an enormous enough consumption to offset manufacturing feed costs that can assist you get financial financial savings if you subject inside the longer time to realize harvest weight.
Fewer Effectively being Factors
Freedom Ranger Broilers often do not experience the effectively being points that the Cornish breed is susceptible to endure from. That’s correctly worth noting since these effectively being factors usually occur after the overwhelming majority of the funding has been made inside the chook.
Bigger Darkish Meat Ratio
On account of their legs are bred to be sturdier to help their heavy weight, they’re greater and have the subsequent ratio of darkish meat. Your selection for darkish meat will resolve if this generally is a skilled or a con. I place it inside the skilled column on account of the moist flavorful darkish meat is my favorite!
Richer Style
The flavour of Freedom Ranger meat is significantly richer than Cornish Cross, notably the darkish meat. You may uncover the meat to be juicier and the texture barely further company. (Which is not a tricky feat to carry out since Cornish Cross breast meat is kind of sawdusty in texture. )
Reside Longer
On account of they don’t experience effectively being factors, Freedom Rangers can reside longer than Cornish Cross. Now we have now saved one alive and healthful for 3 years.
Can Lay Eggs
A Ranger hen will likely be saved for laying, nevertheless they don’t seem to be extraordinarily productive. They lay an enormous pointy egg about 3 events per week for about 2 years.
It’s a shame that they are a hybrid cross on account of you presumably can’t hatch out these eggs for regular self-sufficient meat manufacturing. Chicks hatched from Ranger broilers obtained’t show with the an identical traits as their mom and father and won’t make a great meat chook.
Cons of Freedom Ranger Meat Hen Breed
Longer to Improve
The growth value of the Ranger meat hen breeds is slower than their Cornish counterpart. It seems the Cornish receive the 4-6 pound aim fluctuate further quickly sooner than slowing off their progress value. Nonetheless Rangers seem to take the an identical measurement of time to realize an even bigger carcass weight (we select the 7-pound fluctuate). Every breeds get to that weight in about 14 weeks or so in our experience.
Further Troublesome to Butcher
The excellence is totally negligible and for those who occur to haven’t butchered Cornish you may certainly not uncover, nevertheless the within organs in a Ranger are a bit of additional problem to remove. They’re moreover further completely feathered than Cornish and because of this truth require further work at plucking time. Once you’ve obtained a plucker, this isn’t an issue the least bit.
Within the occasion you’re taking your chickens to a butcher to be processed, they might value the subsequent value per chook (usually decrease than a buck each) with a function to accommodate the additional work eradicating feathers.
Further Pricey to Improve
As a result of longer time it takes to spice up them, Rangers will likely be costlier. It’s a troublesome variable to seek out out on account of it’s decided by many components furthermore feed conversion, similar to effectively being factors.
Can Be Aggressive
On account of they attain maturity further quickly, Rangers may become aggressive. That’s usually solely an issue for those who occur to raise a straight-run flock. With all males, they’re going to do the squeaky teenage hen crow, nevertheless obtained’t run spherical and chase each other one of the best ways they do when the ladies are spherical. Now we have now certainly not as quickly as had them flip that aggression in the direction of people, along with our children.
We’ve been elevating meat chickens for our family for over a decade now. We’ve expert elevating every meat hen breeds many events and have achieved intensive comparisons of their effectively being, hardiness, longevity, costs, and style. Lastly the choice as to which breed to spice up comes all the best way all the way down to your needs, homestead set-up, measurement requirements, and style selection. Part of the homesteading journey is having satisfying and experimenting to seek out which breed works biggest for you! So now that you simply acknowledge what to anticipate, attempt elevating every breeds and research which you like to spice up in your homestead.
Regarding the Author
Quinn and her family have been homesteading in Ohio for over 17 years, loads of which she spent sharing their experiences and provoking totally different homesteaders at Reformation Acres until 2018. Along with elevating their most necessary crop of 8 kids, Quill Haven Farm revolves throughout the Queen of the Homestead, the family milk cow. Together with cheesemaking and totally different residence dairy, the cow moreover provides skim milk to fatten quite a few hogs yearly, elevate up a beef calf, complement the feed for his or her flock of laying hens & broilers, and beautiful compost for his or her 14,000 sq. ft of pure gardens. Yow will uncover her writing these days on her Substack- https://www.quillhavenfarm.com
Further About Elevating Chickens
Whether or not or not you’ll be free-ranging them or not, protect finding out for further particulars about elevating the healthiest and happiest yard chickens in your homestead!
