Simon_and_Lynda Posted February 6, 2008 Share Posted February 6, 2008 Hi there, We've had our Omlet chickens for about a year now, and are about to move house to a much bigger place. Like some other members of the forum, we have been inspired by Hugh and Jamie to consider raising some chickens for meat aswell as eggs. I've read some the other forum posts and learnt more than I thought possible about despatching (what an odd word!), dressing and so forth. However, I still have some dumb questions that I hope somebody can answer. - I know about buying fertilised eggs and day old chicks etc, but what would happen if we let them all mix with our omlet girls? Would a cockerel fertilise the eggs, and if so, can you eat them? - If we just let them all mix (omlet and meat breeds), pick one now and then to eat (boys first), would they naturally hatch some chicks? (I wondered if it is bred out of them?) Also, would we still get eggs to eat if we are also trying to breed? - How would we know which eggs were fertilised? Is it all of them? - What is the difference in taste between chickens bred for eggs? (also, why don't they just keep the male chicks and then eat them rather than gas them at 1 day old?) - If we bought and hatched fertilised eggs or got day old chicks, are there any problems letting them mix with our omlet girls (and we intend to get some more egg birds, probably some ex-batteries first). I'm guessing the meat and egg breeds will look different, so we know which to eat. I realise these questions are a little silly, and I could probably get some books to tell me, with when everyone here is so knowledgeable (and good looking) I thought it was a good a place to start as any! What do other people do? Thanks very much, Simon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronze Posted February 6, 2008 Share Posted February 6, 2008 - I know about buying fertilised eggs and day old chicks etc, but what would happen if we let them all mix with our omlet girls? Would a cockerel fertilise the eggs, and if so, can you eat them? Yes and yes - If we just let them all mix (omlet and meat breeds), pick one now and then to eat (boys first), would they naturally hatch some chicks? (I wondered if it is bred out of them?) Also, would we still get eggs to eat if we are also trying to breed? If you get a broody one then yes. Omlet breeds and meat breeds dont tend to go broody though so you're better off with an incubator. Obviously you cant egg eggs that are to be hatched and chickens that are sitting wont lay eggs but the others should continue to and those you can stille at.- How would we know which eggs were fertilised? Is it all of them? Pure luck and no its nevr 100% no way of telling which though until incubation is underway - What is the difference in taste between chickens bred for eggs? (also, why don't they just keep the male chicks and then eat them rather than gas them at 1 day old?) Females tend to have more meat on them and dont get aggressive in the same way. On a small scale plenty of people keep the males til theyre of eating size- If we bought and hatched fertilised eggs or got day old chicks, are there any problems letting them mix with our omlet girls (and we intend to get some more egg birds, probably some ex-batteries first). I'm guessing the meat and egg breeds will look different, so we know which to eat. Yes it should be fine. you would have to wait until the hatched birds/day olds were big enough to go in with the others though hth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted February 6, 2008 Share Posted February 6, 2008 Well done on getting some more land - I would love to do what you are doing, but unless I get an allotment with chook rights, its unlikely Anyway, I may be able to answer some of your questions (just to show that I am not just a pretty face) And the only silly questions are the ones you don't ask! - I know about buying fertilised eggs and day old chicks etc, but what would happen if we let them all mix with our omlet girls? Would a cockerel fertilise the eggs, and if so, can you eat them? You would need to let them grow to a decent size before mixing them with an existing flock, otherwise they would get beaten up. Yes a cockerel would fertilise the eggs, but they could still be eaten. - If we just let them all mix (omlet and meat breeds), pick one now and then to eat (boys first), would they naturally hatch some chicks? (I wondered if it is bred out of them?) Also, would we still get eggs to eat if we are also trying to breed? You may possibly get your omlet chooks to hatch eggs, but the broodiness has mostly been bred out of them, so it would not be a reliable method. You could still eat surplus eggs. If you did get a broody hen sat on eggs, she would need to be kept seperate from the main flock or they may injure her chicks. - How would we know which eggs were fertilised? Is it all of them? You don't, unless you can tell which hens your cockerel has been getting jiggy with. I would assume it would also depend on how many hens per cockerel as to how many he would be able to fertilise - What is the difference in taste between chickens bred for eggs? (also, why don't they just keep the male chicks and then eat them rather than gas them at 1 day old?) Chickens bred for eggs are much lighter weight as they convert most of what they eat into eggs. Meat birds are bred to pile the weight on and mature quickly. Some birds are bred to be dual purpose, for example the light sussex and the black rock, but they are unlikely to be as meaty as a true meat breed. The chicks are gassed because it is too expensive to convert them into meat - they would need to eat a lot more and be kept a lot longer in order to produce a bird with any decent amount of meat on it - If we bought and hatched fertilised eggs or got day old chicks, are there any problems letting them mix with our omlet girls (and we intend to get some more egg birds, probably some ex-batteries first). I'm guessing the meat and egg breeds will look different, so we know which to eat. Again, I don't think there are any reasons why they can't run together, providing they are big enough not to get bullied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...