Broiler Adventure I

We have never raised broilers before so this should be quite the adventure. After paying $7 at a local farm for a fresh chicken, we decided to try it ourselves.  Not only would it provide our family with fresh poultry, we could also ensure the flock lived a healthy, happy life.  After all, God did give us dominion over the animals.  After much research, we decided on the Freedom Ranger Chicken.  They are very hardy and enjoy foraging and not just laying around the food container to see how much they can stuff themselves.  We did not want a bird, like the Cornish, which have very high risk health problems because of their fast growth rate and non foraging lifestyle.  These birds must be processed around 6 weeks just so they don't die of health related issues.  The Cornish get big so fast that their little legs can't even support their weight.  These FR birds are very active and fit.  Their processing time is about 9-11 weeks.  They won't be as big as a whole chicken purchased from your local grocery store but they will be all natural.

Two weeks ago, we made the plunge.  Needless to say, I was a little nervous about raising meat chickens, knowing they had a designated time to live with us on the farm.  I knew it was going to be in my best interest to keep myself as detached as possible. Water, feed, water, feed, clean out pen!  And no, no, no!! Naming them was out of the question!

On another note, I am very excited about knowing where our poultry is coming from and what they have been eating.  After all, what they eat, will be what we eat.  The huge bonus is knowing they will be humanely raised and processed.

The chicks are growing quickly into chunky little peepsters and are very happy and healthy. The kids and I spend a little time with them each day.  Yes, I know I said, " Staying detached is a necessity".  So much for that.  We have picked a couple of "chosen ones" that will join our other girls and live a pampered life here on the farm.

A couple of funny moments happened this past week.  On two different occasions we had to rescue a chick because it felt the grass was greener on the other side.  Unfortunately, it had already eaten a bit much and managed to get stuck in the fence.  Chicken Girl and the Gentle Giant were quick to use the pliers of life to extract it :)

Broiler Pen designed and built by our son

Completed Pen

Our 50 little Freedom Rangers picked up from the local Post Office

**  I want to take a moment to say, we were very impressed with the Freedom Range Hatchery!  All the chicks arrived in a timely manner and were healthy, feisty and ready to go to their new home.  They were putting on quite the concert when we walked into the post office.  Lol!  Everyone knew they were there :)

Chicken Girl is getting everyone settled in

Ready for their first night in their new home

One week old

Can you spot our little guinea?

Chicken Girl loving on the peeps

Two weeks old

Help, I'm stuck!

Our Gentle Giant (GG)

Three Weeks Old

Happy and healthy @ 3 weeks

Week 4

• Today, our broilers are 4 weeks old and they are already looking and feeling like little butterballs.  You can definitely tell they are meat chickens.  These FBs are very dense compared to other birds of this age.  We are letting them out of their pen now into a larger run to forage on some grass, bugs, worms, and whatever else they might find.   All of them are healthy and happy.  Lydia, our chicken girl, is taking good care of them.  She holds them, talks to them, plays with them and let's them know how good they are going to taste.  Lol!  As for me, I just keep telling myself, "Water, feed, water, feed.  Don't look them in the eyes!"  They are so cute.  Well, maybe not so cute at the moment.  This is really their ugly stage where part of their feathers are in and the other parts are still fuzzy.  It makes them look like they have the mange.

Chicken girl has made them a big nest :)

They like their clean bedding :)

These new feathers make me itch!

Mr. Gobble Gobble standing tall while
the rest swarm the freshly filled water.

Week 5

• I can't believe it!  The broilers are already 5 weeks old.  They are eating like crazy. We have been letting them out to forage for the past couple of weeks in addition to providing them with broiler finishing feed.  They can eat a bag of feed in about 5-6 days.  I would hate to see how quickly a bag would disappear if they weren't foraging.  Keep in mind, we do have 50 of the little butterballs :)  We do not have a self filling drinking system in place yet so everyday we have to insure we fill their 5 gallon water container. The kids just love this chore.  NOT!!!  I think we are going to be installing some low roost for them.  When we put them up in the evenings, they are all bunched together trying to get that prized seat on the few branches that are in the pen.  I know, they are just broilers, but I want them to be happy broilers :)  They will be sacrificing the ultimate for our dinner table.

We spend most of our day foraging :)

Coming in for a little shade and drink

I'm 5 weeks old

It's shadier in here :)

Yay, there is some shade in the grass now:)

Week 6

• Well we lost a broiler this week.  We found it in the outer pen, headless :( Other than that little incident, all are healthy and happy.  We started letting them out in our yard with the other chickens this past week while we were out working in the garden and such.  They are already as big, if not bigger than some of our pet chickens.  I wish you could feel how dense they are.
• We decided to try hay for their bedding area a couple weeks ago.  Well we decided that was not the best choice.  The poo stays on top, the chicks don't or can't scratch in it, and it starts to stink really fast.  We changed back to shavings and everyone is much happier.
• Another thing we did this week was add a couple of roost.  We didn't make them too high because they are so heavy, they can't jump up. The poor things were always fighting for the lone branch in the outside pen area.  The goal is to give them a happy, healthy life while they are here on the farm.
• Everything we have read about the FRs says we should process them at the 9-11 week mark.  As long as they are healthy, I think we are going to shoot for 11 weeks. There may be a few we process at the 9-10 week mark because they are already little fatty patties :)  
• Here are their 6 week old pics

I'm 6 weeks old

The lone branch everyone battles for
in the evenings 

Enjoying the outdoors

Look closely and you can see the
new roosts in the back and along the side

Week 7

• Wow, where have the weeks gone?  We are letting the broilers out with the laying hens now.  They really enjoy chasing the bugs :)  They are so large these days, they blend right in with our laying flock.
• Not to much to report on this week.  Everyone is happy and healthy. They are living the good life.
• Gobble Gobble and the two guineas, Lightening and Bolt, are growing nicely as well.  They can really fly.  It is a hoot to watch them :)  Even though they are residing with the broilers for now, they will remain here on the farm as an addition to our alarm system :)

I'm 7 weeks old

Gotcha! 

Living the luxury life

Gobble Gobble likes the high view :)

Week 8

• The broilers continue to grow healthy and happy.  They have gotten used to their routine of being let out to roam the yard and field along with our laying flock these days.  It's fun watching them swarm the gate for their day of freedom ranging.  Did you get it?  Freedom Rangers enjoying freedom ranging:)
• I am not sure how much the broilers are weighing at their 8 week mark, however, I can say they are heavier than most all of our layers, to include our roos.  Even the kids say, "Those are gonna be some big drumsticks!"
• Because of their fast growth rate, some of the roos are starting to crow.  It's funny listening to them.  They sound like a boy when his voice begins to change.  Some of our pet roos are even trying to "date" the broiler pullets, which brings up another question.  I wonder if the pullets will start laying early because based on my experience, when a roo finds a young lady attractive, laying eggs is not far behind.  And because they are free to roam, I often find the girls hanging around and resting in the nesting boxes.
• I sure am glad we decided to put in those roosts a few weeks back.  They are really enjoying them.
• Well that is all I have for this week so you can see some pics below of their progress.  I hope you are enjoying our journey along with us.

Hanging with the Big Girls and Boys

Loving their freedom!!!

Look at all these goodies out here :)

Mid week update

• This weekend we decided to process one of our broilers even though they are only 8 weeks old.  The suggested time for these Freedom Rangers is 9-11 weeks.  Kevin has been doing a lot of research on line about the most humane and cleanest way to go about the process, so he really wanted to give it a trial run.  We do not have any type of processing station in place just yet, so this was kind of like the pioneer days.  The family decides they want fresh chicken for dinner and someone goes out and gets it.  It took him about 20-30 minutes to complete the entire process, to include clean up and making it grill ready.  Conveniently, Lydia and I were taking Noah to youth.  By the time we got back, everything was done but the grilling :)  Of course, before we left, Chicken Girl had to tell him which ones he could not  choose.  She didn't want to know which one was on the dinner plate.  We have held to our commitment not to name them, however, there are a few that just stand out and if they were missing, well......  You may be asking yourself what the difference is going to be when we process the rest.  Well, the difference is, more than one will be done at a time and once they are plucked and cleaned, no one will know which one is which.  :)))  That is a good thing.
• I know I was the last one to jump on the band wagon for this adventure, however, it has been pretty amazing.  I still do not want any part of the processing.  If we do it again, I might put on my big girl pants and try to be tough.  Lol!  As for this time, I will just feed, water, and finally, vacuum pack them at the end.
• This coming Wednesday, our broilers will be 9 weeks old.  Some of them will definitely be ready for processing, however, we have relatives coming to visit for ten days, and they have made it very clear that they do not want to experience any part of the processing.  Lol!  Plus, all the birds are very happy and healthy so there is no rush.
• Sitting down at the dinner table last night, knowing we were eating food we had grown, felt pretty awesome.  The meat was a bit tough but the flavor was great.  I think because they are allowed to roam and forage, it builds up their muscles a bit, therefore making the meat a bit tougher than store bought chickens that are just raised in cages.  I will try marinating the next one.
• The one that "took it for the team" as Kevin said, was not one of our largest, but rather medium in size.  After cleaning, it weighed in at 4.2 lbs.   We were pleased with the size.  That means that we will probably have some 5-5.5 pounders in a couple of weeks.  We probably already have a few.

Our 1st broiler

Weighed in @ 4.2 lbs

Papa Roo can grill some chicken !

Mmm, mmm!  Is your mouth watering?

Week 9

• Well our broilers are 9 weeks today and are still happy and healthy.  As mentioned above, we tested our processing method, minus the mechanical equipment and all went well.  Just a little time consuming.  By the time we process the masses, we will have a more time efficient method in place.  My son is going to build us a chicken plucker.  Of course I am working that into our homeschooling.  After all, the project is full of research (read, read, read) and math, not to mention lots of room for imagination and engineering.  I will definitely post pics.
• Thanks to my friends on BYC, I now realized why our broiler was so tough.   It went straight from the yard to the grill.  We didn't give it time to rest and therefore the meat was tough, however, it did taste delicious.  We didn't let it go to waste though.  We deboned the left overs and put it in the crock pot with a some delicious beans.  Then we took the carcass and boiled it down for some yummy broth for a future meal.
• Not too much else to report.  The boys are really ahead of the girls on there growth but that is not a news flash.  It is funny listening to the guys trying to find their voices.
• We are hoping the average bird weight will be around 6lbs.  That is a good size for our family.
• Here are a few pics from today.

One of our girls 

Just chillin' in the shade

We are 9 weeks old today!

Week 10

• I find myself a little behind in sharing our broilers' story.  We have had relatives visiting and we put our project on the back burner.  Just wanted to spend quality family time making memories for a week.  Here is a couple of photos though.

Getting lazier by the day.

All still happy and healthy

Week 11

• Here we are at week 11 and find ourselves scrambling to get our processing station set up. **Light bulb moment - should have started this project as soon as we got our broilers.  
• My son is going to build us a barrel chicken plucker but we don't have all the parts needed at the moment so he has created the more simplified version we found on YouTube, DIY Chicken Plucker.  Of course he had to adjust it a bit to make it unique to him:)  I just love his creative spirit.
• We will be harvesting a few of the broilers this evening and a few more tomorrow.  There are several of them that are getting a bit large. We noticed one yesterday that had some labored breathing.  That is exactly what we didn't want to happen, however, he is fine today so it may have just been the heat. Other than that, all are still very healthy and happy.  We will begin processing the larger ones first and work our way through all 50.  Well, not 50 because we are keeping a couple of lucky ones. :)  I think our goal is to do half this weekend and the rest next weekend.  There are a few runts that we will be waiting a few more days/weeks on.  Right now, they would be considered single serving size.  Lol!  I will try and post some pics of our process.  Just FYI, I will not be posting the actual slaughter, mainly because I will not be watching that part myself.  If you have been following this adventure, you already know I am a softy when it comes to that part.

I'm 11 weeks, going on 12:)

Giving his best crow!

LET THE PROCESSING BEGIN!!

• The kids and I set up our processing stations that you can view in the video above.  We were hoping to have a whizbang style chicken plucker made, however, procrastination got the best of us.  Thankfully, our son watched a couple of YouTube videos and made us a handheld plucker.
• On Friday, when Papa Roo arrived home, we showed him our set up and he was anxious to try it out so Chicken Girl collected a few volunteers.  It didn't take long for us to see that we needed to make some adjustments to our setup and process.  First, the kill cones on the ladder didn't work at all.  They were too mobile so we moved them to a tree.  Second, our water was not at the right temp, which made for tougher plucking.  140-150 degrees works perfect.  Third, the rubber fingers on our plucker were too long and flimsy so we cut them down to about 2 1/2 inches.  Works great if you don't mind a few feathers in the face. Lol! And finally, eviscerating wasn't as easy as we thought.  At the end of an hour or so, we had processed three chickens.  We were not very efficient and the chickens weren't very pretty with their torn skin, but we had done it.  Our first three broilers were now in their ice bath.  No pics of these guys until they get cut up because they are not pretty.  Lol!
• Our first three broilers weighed in at 5.6, 5.2, and 4.2 lbs.  We are quite pleased with their size :)

Breasts from our 5.6 pounder

Legs, thighs, wings

Boneless, skinless breasts

Gonna be some delicious broth!

• Time to regroup and do a little homework.  After finding a great thread, on BYC, we learned a few great techniques which would make our next attempt at processing go much smoother.  Thank you "frugal" for your great thread, Killing, Plucking,Eviscerating, & Cutting Up Your Chicken.
• Saturday morning, we were all ready to get started after a good nights rest.  Chicken Girl started rounding up broilers and bringing them to our staging area via her ATV :)  Gotta have a little fun while working:)

Chicken Wrangler

Our Gentle Giant wanted to jump right in and and took the kill station. He also shared the scalding and plucking station with Papa Roo.

Scalding station being supervised by dad

Notice the feather on Papa Roo's glasses.  Lol!

Homemade plucker is working like a charm!

Getting a lesson on eviscerating :) 

Once we got into a rhythm and found the station that we felt most comfortable with, we were able to process a broiler from cone to fridge in about 12 minutes.  I don't think that is too shabby for a family of beginners.

A few of our broilers resting in our RV fridge

• This coming Friday, Papa Roo is off so we plan on processing a few more of our biggest broilers.  We still have some pullets that just aren't as big as we would like and since they are still very healthy and happy, we will let them continue to forage a bit longer.  Plus, processing 10-12 at a time is not as tiring as doing all 50 at once.  It also gives our family a chance to spend quality time together and make some awesome memories.
• Tonight, we plan on grilling Daddy's chicken, everyones' favorite, with those skinless breasts.  Fried chicken is also on the menu for the near future.  Lesson learned from our very first broiler a few weeks back, we let these guys rest for three days before cooking :)))  Looking forward to a more tender experience.

Week 14

• We processed 10 more broilers this past Friday.  Our family of four managed to continue processing a bird from start to finish every 12 minutes.  Chicken girl rounded up the bird, Gentle Giant manned the killing and hot bath station.  Him and Papa Roo shared the responsibility of plucking.  The plucker is still working great for us!!!!  The final station was shared with Papa Roo and myself.  I never thought I would be helping at this station, but I DID IT!!!!!  Go me!  Lol!  I was much slower than Papa Roo but I got the job done, did the touch up cleaning, bagged, and put in the RV fridge to rest.  All in all, I believe we have a good system down.  We now have twenty three birds in our freezer.  We shared a couple with friends, who were very excited to share in our bounty.  I love when we can give to others. It is such a blessing!
• So far, the weight of our broilers have averaged 5lbs.  A couple weighed in at 6lbs.  We are very pleased with their size.
• We currently have about 24 broilers left, mostly pullets. Maybe next week we will process a few more.  As mentioned in an earlier post, 10 is a good processing number for our family.  Everyone remains focused on their duties and at the end, there is still high confidence and pride in the work done.  Anyone of you with children know how important this is.  We just feel extremely blessed that our children are ready and willing to step up along side of us in this adventure.  At 13 and 8 yrs of age, they are way more knowledgable about this process than either of their parents were at those ages.  Heck, we didn't even own a chicken until our 40s and it all began because of a homeschool project. :)

Our smallest little guy

Hey, I'm bigger than you!

A couple of our remaining girls

How did we miss you BIG boy?

• Oh yeah, the grilled chicken breasts were delicious!  They were not tough at all and had a super flavor.  Sorry!  No picture :(  I forgot to snap a shot because I was too anxious to eat them.  The aroma alone made my mouth water :)))  I promise a pic next time :))))