The Big Red Broiler cockerels have been growing steadily and I was getting curious as to their actual weight. I caught one and weighed it. It was surprisingly easy. These birds are far more docile than the hens and pullets.
The bird I selected weighed in at 5.3 pounds. If he were dressed, he would probably end at 3 pounds, or so. That would be about the size of the rotisserie chickens we see in the grocery stores. They are only about six weeks old, at present. So, we have plenty of time for them to reach a better size before the end of summer. We would like them to reach 7-8 pounds so they dress out at 5-6 pounds.
We have kept them in the coop longer than we planned because our property development plan is not proceeding as smoothly as we would like. We are still working on the corduroy base layer for the driveway, but have been delayed by the poor air quality due to nearby wildfires. Some days, the air is so smoky that we can see haziness between the house and the trees across the yard.
Moving the broilers to our new farm site is on my to-do list to be accomplished right after we finish the driveway base.
