2021 Meat Birds - Week Four

Here we are at Week Four.  If things go well, we are at the halfway point as our goal is to butcher at the 8 week point.  At the end of this post, we'll show where we are at this stage of the process in comparison to previous years based on today's weigh-in data.  Despite a few nights of temperatures in the mid to upper 20's, we had no fatalities.  We still have 50 Cornish Cross Meat birds and they are about the size of Cornish hens right now.

You can notice that our gutter that we use as a feed trough will need to be supplemented at some point in the upcoming week with a second gutter.  The birds have grown and have filled up all the spaces around the table to eat.  I have a second gutter out at the barn just for this purpose.  Humans (and birds) need a little elbow room at the table, don't they?

The next photo shows a couple of things.  First, we have the chicken tractor in the back yard instead of in the pasture.  Ideally, the pasture is the place for this operation as the chicken poop fertilizes the grass, the grass grows, the cows eat the grass and convert it to milk.  A happy, healthy cycle.  Only one problem, we also have goats on the pasture.  Goats are curious and nosy and destructive.  They would climb all over the chicken tractor and destroy it in an hour.  So, the chickens will be fertilizing the grass in the yard.  In the spring we'll set up the portable electric fence in the yard run the cows through the yard eating the grass fertilized by the meat birds.  It'll work out just fine.  Darn goats!

You can see the areas where the chickens were.  There is a trail of brown and that is chicken poop, but is also dirt.  The chickens are eating the grass and that's good.  In a few weeks, the grass will be lush and green in those patches of brown.

So, without further ado, let's weigh the bird.  As usual, I grabbed the bird nearest to me to avoid picking out the largest (or the smallest) bird.  It is healthy and feels heavy and solid.  I carried him into the garage and put it on the scale.  I had to move the scale to another location as the birds have grown and no longer fit under the work light on the work bench where I usually weigh them.

And here is the verdict:  On week 4, the bird weighs 2 pounds four ounces:

As you can see, the weight was 2 pounds 4 ounces this week (Week Four 2021).  Last week they weighed 1 pound 8 ounces.  So that is a 12 ounce gain over the last week.  Here's a comparison of same period, previous years:

In Week Four 2019, the birds weighed 2 pounds 8 ounces

In Week Four 2018, the birds weighed 2 pounds 15 ounces. 

In Week Four 2017, the birds weighed 2 pounds 4 ounces 

In Week Four 2016, the birds weighed 2 pounds 15 ounces

As you can see, they are a little light in comparison to prior years.  I will go up a little on their feed to see if we can catch up.  See ya next week when we check in on their progress.