Free range versus pellet fed chickens--- WARNING GRAPHIC pics

[milkmansdaughter]

We culled one of our hens today along with four young roosters. ALL five birds came from the same people, but we got the hen last summer, and the roosters last night.
We switched to Fermented Feed and free ranging at the end of October, so the hen has had 3 months of FF and free ranging. In case you can't guess, or have never seen the difference, our hen is the yellow one on the left. Here's the difference:

 

[sumi]

Wow, that is quite a difference! You must let us know how they compare taste wise when you eat them, please.

 

[milkmansdaughter]

@sumi, we ate our hen last night, but froze the roosters to return to the other family. I'm going to show them the difference, and encourage (again) the change in feed. They live in town, and I don't know if they can free range, but they can do FF. Usually when we plan on culling at our house, we'll offer to do their as well. I know their egg count is down. I think they have too many chickens for their property, and there's not one blade of grass left in their yard where the chickens are.
Ours tasted DELICIOUS! We cooked it slow all day in a Crock-Pot, then shredded it, and made a casserole with shell noodles and cheese, served with fresh steamed broccoli.