Farmfresh
City Biddy
Many of the commercial hatcheries that we buy our personal birds from are the same hatcheries that supply commercial producers.
You are right the genetics involved in these birds IS a carefully guarded secret. The developers of these birds then market them to make as much money as possible. The hatchery that I usually buy from has a number to call if you are purchasing "600 or more chicks". Not too many back yarders raise broilers 600 or more at a time! They are not losing their trade secret by selling birds anymore than the cola people are losing their formulas by selling you a soda.
Commercial producers of MOST meat animals have been feeding medicated feeds of one form or another since the late 1940's they DO change feeds usually before the butcher dates. It is possible that some don't. The commercial bred birds do grow extremely fast and have been all vaccinated before they are shipped from the hatchery.
I subscribe to both commercial and backyard poultry sites and have done so for years.
"Dead birds make it very apparent and either the contents of the house are destroyed or saved by medications given in the water. biosecurity is much cheaper than medications!" "
This is a true statement, except that sick birds commercially are almost never treated. If disease is contracted commercially the birds are usually destroyed.
"No trace of these medications is allowed to be found when the birds are butchered." Also true, which is why they have a withholding period from medications before the birds are shipped.
"In any case the grow house is completly cleaned and sterilized between each batch of chickens."
You are right again. Once every 38 to 45 days the warehouses where these chickens by the thousands are kept are completely stripped and sanitized. Then they are re bedded and filled with another batch of thousands of chicks, who in turn get to live their whole lives messing on each other and the same litter without change. These birds live such unnatural lives in dimly lit filth no amount of natural resistance could be enough.
"For these outdoor (backyard) birds are exposed to wild birds which carry and spread diseases. once you have a disease in the soil it is almost impossible to get rid of it. If you haven't had an outbreak of disease in your outdoor birds you have been very lucky."
Again true! But disease outbreaks from exposure to will cause losses, but seldom does a disease outbreak in a backyard flock result in the loss of the entire flock. The more natural conditions will give birds a chance to develop real immunities and the strong will survive.
You are right the genetics involved in these birds IS a carefully guarded secret. The developers of these birds then market them to make as much money as possible. The hatchery that I usually buy from has a number to call if you are purchasing "600 or more chicks". Not too many back yarders raise broilers 600 or more at a time! They are not losing their trade secret by selling birds anymore than the cola people are losing their formulas by selling you a soda.
Commercial producers of MOST meat animals have been feeding medicated feeds of one form or another since the late 1940's they DO change feeds usually before the butcher dates. It is possible that some don't. The commercial bred birds do grow extremely fast and have been all vaccinated before they are shipped from the hatchery.
I subscribe to both commercial and backyard poultry sites and have done so for years.
"Dead birds make it very apparent and either the contents of the house are destroyed or saved by medications given in the water. biosecurity is much cheaper than medications!" "
This is a true statement, except that sick birds commercially are almost never treated. If disease is contracted commercially the birds are usually destroyed.
"No trace of these medications is allowed to be found when the birds are butchered." Also true, which is why they have a withholding period from medications before the birds are shipped.
"In any case the grow house is completly cleaned and sterilized between each batch of chickens."
You are right again. Once every 38 to 45 days the warehouses where these chickens by the thousands are kept are completely stripped and sanitized. Then they are re bedded and filled with another batch of thousands of chicks, who in turn get to live their whole lives messing on each other and the same litter without change. These birds live such unnatural lives in dimly lit filth no amount of natural resistance could be enough.
"For these outdoor (backyard) birds are exposed to wild birds which carry and spread diseases. once you have a disease in the soil it is almost impossible to get rid of it. If you haven't had an outbreak of disease in your outdoor birds you have been very lucky."
Again true! But disease outbreaks from exposure to will cause losses, but seldom does a disease outbreak in a backyard flock result in the loss of the entire flock. The more natural conditions will give birds a chance to develop real immunities and the strong will survive.
Commercial fried chicken anyone? 
