Raising Cornish Cross Chickens for Meat
Raising your own meat birds is a wonderful way to be more self-sufficient on your homestead. You know what your birds are being fed and you give them a good life before it is time to eat them. The Cornish Cross is one of the most popular meat chickens. These are the large chickens you typically purchase from the grocery store.
A common misconception with the Cornish Cross is that they are genetically modified (GMO). They are not. The Cornish Cross are simply a cross between two breeds chosen by their traits, and selectively bred over time to create this hybrid. As a result, you get a meat bird with amazing feed conversion and an ability to mature in eight weeks. When butchered, this breed gives you high quality, very tasty meat high in protein.
When receiving your chicks, always provide them with a brooder that is enclosed, with a proper bedding of shavings, a towel, or pine pellets. A non-skid shelf liner can be used as well. Provide a heat bulb so the brooder is at a 95 degree F temperature. The lamp can be raised or lowered as needed. If the chicks move away from the heat source they are too hot. If they huddle around the heat, they are too cold. You want the birds to be scattered comfortably throughout the brooder. Reduce the brooder temperature by 5 degrees F each week until the birds are comfortable at room temperature. Having a thermometer in your brooder is highly recommended. Purely Poultry sells a chick starter kit as well as other accessories to help you get started.
**IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT FEEDING YOUR CORNISH CROSS
Feed and water your chicks daily. Because the Cornish crosses grow so rapidly, special care must be taken regarding their feeding schedule. For the first five days, give them free choice of food. At the end of the 5th day, remove their feed. 12 hours later, put their feedback and allow them to eat at will for another 12 hours. Remove the feed again that night. The exact time does not matter, as long as it is in 12-hour intervals and is consistent from day to day. You will continue this interval feeding until it is time to butcher the birds. Failure to do this can lead to growth and heart issues. A chick starter of 20-22% protein is an ideal feed for feeding the birds for the first 5 weeks of age.
When the birds are between the ages of 2-4 weeks, or when they have completely grown in their feathers, they can go into a grow out pen. Make sure they have shelter and proper fencing to prevent predator problems. A heat source should be added at night if the birds show behaviors of being cold. An 18% chick grower should be fed to the chicks from 5 weeks until butcher time.
The Cornish Cross are typically butchered between 8-9 weeks of age based on your preference or the weight of the bird. At 9 weeks of age, males will be around 10 pounds, females around 8.
Cornish Game Hens are the same bird but butchered around 4 weeks of age or around 2.5 pounds. Despite the name hen, these can be male or female.
Key Pointers
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It is recommended to have the feed and water easy to reach as the birds are short and can’t move much due to their body conformation
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Roosting bars are not recommended because it causes sores and blisters on the breasts
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Follow the proper feed guidelines. These birds grow fast and you do not want them die off early on due to overeating
Looking for an alternative to the Cornish Cross, you can try the slower growing heritage dual breeds or our free range broilers.
So, knew nothing about these chickens until I read this. Just bought 25 today not knowing they were fast growing meat chickens. Not for sure how old they are. Half are a little bigger. Since the meat tenderness is based on making sure I don’t wait past 10 weeks old, and size can vary so much based on everything I read here, how can I tell when they are ready to butcher when I am not sure how old they are? They are all still fuzzy. No real feathers yet.
How much feed do I put out for them to eat on for that 12 hours? I have 25. I’m guessing it will vary by their age and size? This is so new to me. I’ve always focused on egg layers…mostly rhode island reds so this is new territory for me.
My son is raising 10 Cornish Rock for a 4H market project. This is our first chicken experience. They are 1 week old. 1/2 have broken and/or missing belly feathers. What happened? What do we do?
Dear Debra,
I really hope you might consider emailing or calling us regardig this as well. I can’t determine the exact cause without additional information, is why I asked that you contact us, but I will guess that it’s one of two things. Either it’s typical feather growth of a CX, as the protein you give them will go to their deveoping bodies and not their feathers, like most birds, and they will have bare patches with no feathers. (Very typical of Cornish Cross) or they are being fed too much. Overfeeding is detrimental to the birds in that, with Cornish Cross only, they need to be fed 12 hours on and 12 hours off. Any more than this will cause them to gain too much weight too fast and they are likely to have a plethora of health issues because of it. I hope this helps! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us ( here or anywhere you please) if you can think of anything additional we can help with.
~Shannon
We have been talking about getting chickens for awhile now and my husband went to Tractor Supply and surprised me with 6 white leghorn chicks. Here we are 7 weeks later and we realize that they are not leghorns, but Cornish Cross. I didn’t feed them according to the 12 hour plan and now I’m wondering what to do. Do you think they’ll be ok to butcher in a week or so?
Hey there, Retha!
Yikes! I bet your “leghorns” grew VERY fast! 🙂 Cornish Cross can be processed whenever they reach the correct weight for what YOU prefer. Birds dress out at about 80% of their undressed wieght so if that’s week 6, so be it! That said, they can go until 11 weeks without being stringy but will likely be huge. Unti then, try to get them on a 12 on/ 12 off schedule for feeding and let us know if you have any more questions! We are always here to help. ~The Purely Poultry Team
My grandson has 7 Cornish rock chicken he is raising for 4 H this is his first year, they are 4 weeks old, market weight is 4.5-7 lbs, they are 3-3.5 lbs now fair is July 14 for weigh in, will they be in good shape by then. Do we need to put them on 12 hours on feeding schedule,, don’t want them under weight but don’t want them over weight either. Thanks
Hi there Teresa and thanks for the question! Yes,absolutely, your cornish should be on a 12 hour feeding schedule. We recommend beginning this schedule by no later that two weeks of age. I know this seems a little young, but they can be ready for processing by 6 weeks in most cases. Because the cornish cross broilers grow so very fast, everything in their lives is amplified, including their food intake. I’ll include a link below to our Cornish Cross Broiler infor page. There’s a chart located there that won’t copy well to this comment page, but it might help you for reference purposes.
https://www.purelypoultry.com/cornish-cross-broilers-p-207.html
I hope this helps! ~Shannon
What have you found for a temp range for scolding? I believe last year I did 135-145 for water temp with 3-4 seconds dip intervals until wing feathers came out easy? Any help would be appreciated! Thank you!
Hi Cory,
We do recommend the following for scalding temps and times. I hope this helps!
SCALD & PICK
After birds are bled, they should be scalded then picked as soon as they can be added into your picker. SCALD AND PICK WITHOUT DELAY. The scald is the key a good pick. When analyzing damaged birds, please note: If bird shows a bruise, the bruise happened before the bird was killed or during death shudder. A bled bird will not bruise. The darker the bruise the older the injury. If a broken bone has blood around it, the breakage occurred while the bird was alive. The darker the blood, the older the injury.
Pick only long enough to pull feathers. Extending pick risks skin tearing. Excessive skin tearing in the breast and inner thigh are signs scald is too hot or to long. Fatty tissue under skin should not liquefy. If fat breakdown occurs, scald is too hot. To check if scalded long enough, tail feathers should pull out easily.
Recommended Scalding Time (Note temps below)
Broilers 1 minute
Pheasants 1 minute
Hen Turkey 1 minute
Tom Turkey 1 minute
Quail 30 seconds
Duck 1 minute
Recommended Scalding Temp
Broilers 1¼ minute @143 ° F (63° C)
Quail 30 seconds @ 127° F (53° C)
Duck 1 minute @ 155° F (68° C)
Hi Laurenda! Birds are all shipped out at 1 day old which means they are between 2 and 4 days old on arrival. We typically suggest allowing them to grow until 6-8 weeks depending on the size of the final product you desire. Most will grow them to about 6-7 lbs before butchering.
When feeding cornish cross, the chicks are allowed unlimited feed for 12 hours with feed being removed for 12 hours after. You can continue this right up until butcher. Many will not feed their cornish cross or other meat birds for 12-24 hours before butcher.
I got we Cornish Rock from tractor supply last Thursday. Guessing they are approx week old. I just started what you said about after day 5 with feed. My question is. It has been warm here in Pa , they were to warm in the regular brooder we use for other chicks so moved them to playpen with screen side and am keeping them in garage. Today it’s about 82 out which is cooler than it has been and they are acting like their to warm again. I turned off the heat source and have been changing their water throughout the day to keep them hydrated. What temperature should they be kept at , at this age.
I have always done layers and thought I would try meat birds. I got the Cornish cross, I didn’t know about the 12 hour on/off schedule and mine had food continuously. We had them processed at 7 weeks. We prepared one the same day it was butchered. I was sadly disappointed that the meat was really tough. It had good flavor but tough to chew and eat. Any idea why the meat would be so tough?
I am new to meat birds…I bought 10 cornish crosses in the middle of October. They will be about 9 weeks on the 13th. I fed the 21% chick starter for the first month or so and switched to an 18% grower like I had read to do. However, they don’t seem to be growing like they should. I weighed one a couple days ago and it was about 4 pounds. I have some a bit smaller than that one and some bigger. I thought they would be much bigger by now. What am I doing wrong? I am giving them free choice feed because they are small. They also don’t finish what I give them. (Coffee can full) I ordered them from Tractor Supply. Any help or insight would be greatly appreciated!
How much space is recommended per bird? I don’t want to do more than 25 birds at a time, what is the square footage recommended? Also, are they heat hearty, I am in Florida?
Hi Wendi and Thanks for your comment! We recommend at least 1 square foot per chicken in the coop for birds that are allowed to free range or be out in a large pen during the day, or 2 square feet per bird if they are cooped at all times. With proper ventilation, shade, and water your birds will do well even in the heat of Florida. They are hardy birds. I hope this helps!
~Shannon
Hi Jennifer,
I am so sorry this is happening. I would assume that the breed you got were likely not proper cornish cross. Without further information, I would say to contact Tractor Supply. A standard Cornish Cross,fed free choice for 24 hours, should be so large that they are having leg problems and are unable to move by 9 weeks. This is why we always recommend feeding 12 hours on and 12 hours off. I hope you are able to find a solution.
~Shannon
Hi Cynthia,
My guess would be because they were growing at such a fast rate because of being fed too much. The meat needs to develop slowly and then butchered off before it has time to become stringy and tough. I would highly suggest to try again and feed at the 12 on/12 off schedule and see the difference. Also, provide a little corn with their feed now and then and a little more in the final week to allow tenderizing fats to develop and don’t feed them anything for the final 24 hours before butcher, only give water. Keep them happy while they are growing and you should have a much better experience. I ended up letting mine go too long once and the meat got tough so I canned it and it was wonderful! I hope this helps!
~Shannon
Cynthia you should let them rest for min 24 hour in fridge after butchering! Any kind of chicken will be tough if you butcher and eat on same day. Need to give time for rigamortis to go away and let all the muscles relax. If you can let them sit 48 to 72 hours before freezing or eating meat will be eeven and more tender!
Ok so I didn’t know abt the 12 hours on and 12 hours off my chicks are abt 2 1/2 months old and have ate constant they are huge and no feathers on breast is it too late to butcher? I have 2 rooster and 1 hen wanted to keep her for eggs should i butcher 1 rooster?
Hi There
Most Butcher about 6-9 Weeks on the CCB they can be successful for laying to breed but keep in mind these are bred to be butchered in that time frame~
Nice info
I have feed in front of mine for the first 4 weeks, however long they are on starter. This year I raised 2 batches, 33 and 40. The first batch grew slower than the second batch, I didn’t limit their feed until the last 2 weeks, they didn’t seem to have much of an appetite. This is the first time I have had chickens do this. They were butchered at 8 weeks on feed, they are 2 days old by the time I get them. The second batch seemed to start out the same way but picked up by week 4-5 and finally started growing. I let them have feed about 14-15 hours and they are doing good. They won’t get butchered until they are actually 9 weeks old, 8.5 weeks on feed as they were 3 days old until they arrived. I think the slow start kept them from getting too big too young, and they grew some dandy legs to carry them around. I had 36 and lost 3 from the first batch. I got 40 and still have 40 which I am so pleased with. I hope they behave for a few more days until we can get them to the butcher, I don’t want to loose one now. I have never not lost a couple before from my batches, but I am doing my best and hoping all ends well here.
hello! We have 40 cornish crosses that are 15 days old. We are trying very hard to feed them organic and are having an insanely difficult time finding organic meat bird feed! We were wondering if we could feed a lower protein feed and supplement with higher protein options to get to the desired protein level. We would supplement with eggs, seeds, and other options. Has anyone else done this or have any suggestions??
Need some advice. Please!! My White Rock Cornish X have been problematic from the start. They were in a large brooder with two heat lamps, easily achieving recommended temps. But they start piling on one another and suffocating one another to death. Apparently it is a phenomonen that is relatively common, and has been studied. We lost 15 of 60 in no time. The remaining ones, now 10 weeks are not ready to be processed. Some are so tiny, that they look 3 weeks old. Some are quite large, but still underdeveloped. They have been on a grower, with several feeders around and fed 12 hours on/ 12 off. Fresh water daily, and bedding changed 2 times per week. I suspect maybe they have a disease?
Ooooook . Here we go . I’ve raised Cornish cross before and had great success ( 1997 – 1999 ) Only had about a 2 percent loss rate . I raised 100 at a time . Before I started the project I contacted the professor of poultry science Ohio state . He advised how and what type of grain . But he never mentioned this 12 and 12 feeding schedule. I kept free choice on them at all times . Took the hens out at 6 weeks for frying chickens ( 3 pounds dressed ) and kept the males to 10 weeks ( dressed 8 pounds ) . Then I got out of it a few years and just starting up again . But now everybody is saying ohhhh no don’t free choice feed . This I’m not understanding because of my first experience. Never had problems then and I’m not having any problems now with free choice feed . And actually the loss rate is none . So why the big change ?
Can I feed my meat chickens 24hrs if I’m butchering in 4 weeks?
My question involves turning cornish rock roosters on hens and having a perpetual production of cornish hens or broilers, always maintaining the Cornish Cross. Why do some suppliers of chicks recommend that egg production not be used for Cornish chick raising when in all reality they are just a cross, not a hybrid and for you to buy your chicks from only a certified CX broiler facility.? Grew up 50 years ago raising barnyard free range chickens, not cornish cross and the taste was awesome compared to todays supermarket chickens. Is this a racket or is the advice sound and the norm for raising cornish cross hens and broilers. Just wishing to get back to the farm life and have the best production of the best birds. Otherwise may just raise quail as I love the meat they provide. And what is the number of roosters to egg layers to keep your production constant and do you swap off roosters after a certain time to maintain your pure cornish cross strain and longetivity of the horny rooster?
Hello, Cliff, and Thanks for reaching out!
Cornish Cross is an odd hybrid strain that we don’t recommend trying to breed and raise to continue the lines because of a few reasons. One is that the birds are generally too big by the time they reach breeding age to mate effectively for reproduction. Another being that the hybrid strains breeding will not develop the same qualities as the original bird, so your expectation should be set as such if you do decide to try it. Some have had success breeding the Cornish Cross to Plymouth Rocks but again, they simply don’t have the exact genetics as the chics that are bred and raised in our professional facilities. I’m not trying to discourage you from trying to do it, I just want your expectations to be set properly in doing so.
That said, 5-8 hens for every roo will do nicely to continue the population. Extra roos should be culled or rehomed for the health and safety of your entire flock.
Something I would suggest in your situation would be to raise dual-purpose birds like ISA Browns or Barred Rock and the like. The roos make great meat birds once matured and the hens will lay eggs and still be good for the soup pot down the road if necessary.
If you have more questions or wanna chat about it, please do give us a call at 920-472-4068 or email us at chicks@purelypoultry.com as we’d love to help make you as successful as possible with your farm!
Warm Regards,
Shannon
Hi John,
There is a certain age that you are ok to be feeding them 24 hours a day, but I would suggest that to be very early on (through their first week) and then their last week, possibly. We suggest 12 hours on and 12 off because if they grow too fast they will outgrow their legs and THAT situation is deadly to a bird. I do start feeding mine additional corn and such about 10 days before they go to butcher to give them a nice layer of fat and some moisture to the meat. Don’t forget, however, to only give them water for the last 24 hours before processing to clean them up and make butchering easier. Not doing this step can cost you more per bird at the butcher or make your job at home much messier. I hope this helps!
Warm Regards,
Shannon
Hi Robert,
This is interesting. I’d love to hear more about what your professor recommended for feed. Is it high in protein? I can only guess that the grower rations that are sold these days to feed Cornish contain different additives and protein than what you’ve fed in the past because I have definitely seen damage from free-choice feeding, AND they eat a TON more than what they need, costing a small fortune comparatively. I’d love to chat more if you have the time. Give us a call 920-472-4068 or email us at Chicks@purelypoultry.com if you find the time! Thanks so much for your input!
Warm Regards,
Shannon
Hi Devon,
You certainly can! A good organic feed and supplementing protein with many different options such as smashed cooked egg yolks, meal worms, or even an organic game bird feed mixed in would be acceptable. I would also reach out to your local feed supply store as they can mix specialty varieties for you pretty inexpensively.
Warm Regards,
Shannon
Hi Kristy,
I’m unable to pinpoint the exact problem without a question and answer session, but your information leads me to wonder if they have enough space in their brooder? Is there something that is stressing the birds nearby (loud noises, family pets, etc). The short life of the Cornish X leads everything that happens to them to be magnified and stress can ABSOLUTELY affect whether or not your birds thrive. If you care to call or email us, we would be happy to trouble shoot with you!
WARM REGARDS,
SHANNON