Cornish Cross Spring 2018 Cost/Profit/Loss or Freezer Meat

[CrealCritter]

The deep litter was getting gross. No, it was past gross. Since the chickens don't "shoo" very well, we wrapped some green plastic 4' mesh around some trees with a run to the coop. I just said CX don't shoo, and they didn't. I had to carry them to the enclosure, then we took the run down and hitched the coop to the tractor. DH pulled the coop forward to a nice clean spot. We went to the sheep round bale and filled the back of the Mule with spent hay off the ground. We deep bedded the coop, then one by one I carried them back.

DH flung pads of hay and poop all around, then watered them in well. Some he spread further with a rake. The smell rivaled a raw sewage plant.

Then we cleaned the sheep lot. DH took FEL buckets to the garden and dumped them in a spot that we pulled some TALL weeds from yesterday. The sheep poop was dry, almost dusty, and scraped up easily. Then we spread it in the garden.

DH is in the shower, waiting my turn. We have had a ****ty morning. How's yours?

Boy what a crappy day!

 

[baymule]

We delivered the chicken meat today. Then we went to the grocery store, feed store, paid house insurance, switched car insurance from Geico to Germania, went to post office, ran errands, went to Tyler for groceries, Sulphur Springs for feed. Why can't the things we want at least be in the same town?

 

[NH Homesteader]

I have the same problem. Grocery store I like is 35 minutes one direction, feed store is 30 minutes the other direction.

 

[baymule]

We have a feed store, grocery store and Walmart in our town. But the horse feed that I have used for YEARS is in Sulphur Springs, an hour away. So we go get 20 bags. We feed it to the pigs too. It doesn't have lysine in it, which is an essential pig nutrient, so we buy cheap eggs at Aldi's in Tyler to boil for the pigs. LOL

We went to Aldis in Tyler, bought a bunch of stuff and walked out for $80. There are somethings I won't buy in our local grocery stores, they are too dang high.

Tomorrow-butchering chickens again.

 

[baymule]

We just came in, butchered 15 today. I’m giving myself today and tomorrow to get them cut up and packaged.

 

[baymule]

15 whole chickens, before I cut them up, weighed 76 pounds, 5 ounces for an average weight of 5 pounds, 1 ounce. They are all cut up and in the freezer. I have 7 quarts of backs in the pressure canner now for dog food, and a big pot of the breast bones simmering for broth.

 

[Beekissed]

That's a lot of meat, Bay. Wish I could have been there to help, but probably would have melted in the TX heat like a snow cone in Phoenix.

 

[baymule]

I turned the burner off at 9:06. I canned 13 quarts of backs, liver and necks for dog food. I canned 17 pints of broth. We still have 16 more CX to butcher.

 

[baymule]

We butchered 15 today, 1 keeled over dead a couple of days ago. Heart attack? Diabetes? Old age? Fatty liver?

We took 3 whole chickens to Robert and Sharon, our neighbors and good friends. They were delighted. Sharon said she would stuff and bake one of them for Christmas dinner. Theirs weighed 4.11, 4.6 and 4.12 pounds and ounces.

The other 12 are packed on ice in the cooler in the kitchen floor. I will process them tomorrow. We had to go get me another case of quart jars for the dog food and 2 rolls of vacuum seal bags.

We came in at 12:30, took showers, ate lunch, sat down and we both fell asleep! We were tired.

I will post total pounds of whole chicken, cost of feed and cost of the chickens in a few days.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Ya'll are super processors! I have never processed more than 6 in a day....and that's just about too much...and I have a plucker, lol!