Raising Chickens for Meat: Week 3 of 8, Move Chicks to Pasture

Putting poultry out to pasture for a life on grass. One of the most rewarding moments when raising chickens.
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NOTES:
In this video I move my cornish cross chicks out to pasture and in the yard on the homestead.

[@Keen_Collector]

Nice work. I raised 2500 but lost 14 out of that on my first raise. Thanks to several KZbin videos and good friends

[@grom1778]

After 13:30 you are litterally "OUT..STANDING..IN YOUR FIELD" LOL love the humor and keep up the fun videos.

[@farmmarketing]

: - )

[@SDM_Arcugos]

1:40 am i the only one that can't tell wether he's actually on the field or if that's a green screen? Lol.

[@djpedromixhouston]

SDM Arcugos yeah it’s a picture background 😅

[@kurtobermeyer3356]

Glad to see my dog isn't the only one who likes chicken moving time. Haha

[@journeyfortwo5211]

Thanks for doing this series. Moving my birds out today, excited!

[@Liamluv707]

LOVE your awesomely, glittery & colorful Kent Falls Brewing Company shirt! You’re the most awesome farmer EVER!

[@cheriettejackson4248]

Thanks Juhn! A very informative series for those of us who want to try this!

[@farmmarketing]

That's the goal Cheriette, I'm glad you're enjoying it!

[@ladyeclectic]

Been looking forward to this update, I'm really enjoying this series!! No questions, but I appreciate you taking time in the video to answer YT comments as I think it adds to the information (which IMO is the point of this series). Looking forward to more next week!

[@farmmarketing]

Glad you're enjoying it! Thanks for following along.

[@ecoavesfarm6131]

john, i have just recently started my own chicken farm. these video are opening my vision on farm, but need more information on raise them. thank you guys

[@jsilva3440]

Great series John. I am seriously checking KZbin constantly for your updates on the chicks. Very informative especially since I plan to do something like this on a smaller scale very soon. Keep up the great work greetings from Central CA

[@farmmarketing]

Thanks for the nice comment Jon. Glad to hear you'll be raising chicks soon!

[@shannonhall8518]

Great info! My cornish rocks are 2 weeks old today so 1 more week until they can go out.

[@paijoaf]

Amazing poultry farm sir 👍👍

[@juliacameron1449]

Hi from Nova Scotia! We purchased your book and have built a chicken tractor. Our chicks are doing well in the brooder and are one week old now! If we keep them in the brooder for three weeks, gradually reducing the temperature, will the chicks adapt to cool maritime nights once in the chicken tractor? Thanks so much for your book and videos!

[@kabomoetse4391]

very useful video...

[@henkjanssen1252]

Hey John, love the videos as always! One question, or more like a request: I would be super curious to see a before/after picture of the grass, and the effect the chickens have on it short term and long term.

[@farmmarketing]

That's coming in the next video Jef, just you wait. It's pretty fun.

[@adanacummings-sylvan2396]

very good, videos must say

[@robertlyngdoh2833]

Hey John i want to know which types of medicine you give from start to finish

[@jasonandsara5667]

Great videos! At what age would you process for game hens?

[@KaleidoscopeJunkie]

Have you noticed if the mint in your pasture has any influence on the flavor of the meat?

[@rayjeffers]

Hey John excellent videos what are your production months you raise your birds?

[@elvisk9agro1982]

Great KZbin channel. I’ve subscribed. I have a question Is there a specific grass for those chicken? Or any grass can be good for them? Thank you.

[@markcrockett6115]

Hey John, Your videos have been extremely helpful as I incubated 6 of them in my school classroom. They are now at home and I plan on taking them outside on Week 3. The outdoor chicken coop I currently have has 12 one year old laying hens. Will the young birds get along with the more mature egg layers or do you recommend they be separated throughout the entire process? Look forward to hearing back, Mark

[@johnasare1451]

John, thanks for the videos and the great insight you provide for us to follow. I am currently raising 100 broilers for the Christmas season, However i facing major crisis with my broilers right now. I am told they are infected with respiratory disease called CRD. I have administered a respiratory disease drug to them which taming it down a little. I have lost 12 birds so far and i am getting concerned what to do next. Please kindly advise.

[@raquelhernandez1209]

I guess you are the best person I can ask you seem very educated on chickens and different types. When I was living in Mexico the chicken meat is yellow and for me it's normal because that's where I'm from I was a little weirded out when I seen chickens with white meat I thought they were sick and tasted very different. My question is for you know where I can get some chickens with the yellow meat here in the USA? I want the them for homestead only.

[@suttonbogedain5874]

John, you mentioned losing a couple birds due to weather. What is your thought on having a fly leaf available for the back of the tractor in case the weather suddenly becomes unfriendly? really enjoy the videos.

[@farmmarketing]

I think that's a great idea is what I think.

[@markschuemann7967]

I am starting broilers this spring 2023. I have 30 acres of pasture have made a tractor and designated a shed for a brooder. Do you have a list of products you use for heat lamps, feeders, and watering for both? Need equipment list to set the up. Do you mind mentoring? I am in Northern Illinois. First batch starts Feb 15 - March 15

[@jennypetersen7822]

Have you ever tried using wood pellets instead of pine shavings for bedding?

[@albertabuckhunter]

Chicks will eat small bits of pine shavings, plugging them off adding to your mortality. Been using grass clippings from the lawn with success... so far.

[@JesseCarstairs]

Are there certain grasses you recommend planting for meat birds?

[@Kasei.T]

Do you have some kind of wire under the tractors to keep wild animals from digging under it?

[@chris-wh2mo]

How do u manage the flue in broilers What treatment do u use

[@charliealexander1096]

How long do you keep your coops in one spot?

[@HLHaidysh]

I am loving this series! This is just what I was looking for. I raise my own chickens just as a hobby and for eggs, however next year I am moving to a new homestead and will be looking into raising meat birds for some side income, but I didn't know where to start. Now I do! By purchasing your book! :D And thanks for answering my question! Can you keep us updated with how much feed you use from start to finish? Thanks!

[@farmmarketing]

I'll work on that with the feed numbers. By the end of this I will also have a breakdown of inputs and such.

[@Monkeyinthemiddl]

Baking soda in water 1 teaspoon per 2 litter no mre heat stress

[@colleenferris1830]

At three weeks are all your cornish hens fully feathered? I have Freedom Rangers for the first time and wondered when they would be ready.

[@mrsmagandelatour]

Hey Josh I was wondering after three weeks do you feed him the same type of Seed or do you change it

[@alexisfishinhuntinandfarmi2923]

I compost too

[@TheMinecraftguy65]

You mentioned wind, is wind a issue for chickens? I only get wind one way, I can block off one side of my tractor so wind blows against it not into it?

[@kasiecrisman2015]

What breed of chicken did are you raising for meat??? I like ur videos...

[@halilbalaban1056]

Hello John, how are you to day? How long do these birds need to incubate between the day they hatch and the day they go out into the field? How many days or weeks of age is considered standard for these chicks to be taken out to the field?

[@mattmauk1465]

What type feed you use during the process

[@Bobcagon]

What is the minimum temperature you would take your birds from brooder and place them in the tractor until ready for processing?

[@David-fv7zg]

John, fantastic series. I'm really enjoying it, thanks for sharing this. So I finally figured out why you are so good at what you do, you are out-standing in your field....see what I did there....yeah ok, sorry. I did have a few questions though. 1. Did you ever figure out a hack for your tractor issue and the overheating problem? 2. Why separate the homestead chickens from the business ones. Wouldn't it be easier to manage them all in the same place? There must be some government regulation involved....LOL OK, thanks again. Keep up the good work. Dave.

[@farmmarketing]

Thanks for following along Dave, and I see what you did there. Out-standing in the field, haha! 1. Yes, I did. Video coming this fall when I can concentrate back on equipment. Has a removable screen and a refrigerator cleaning brush. 2. I have them separate to illustrate a point. It can be done for home or it can be scaled up and I'm doing both successfully. That's really all, it's a video project thing. I don't always do that.

[@lilfear]

What do you do with the dead chickens at any age? Do you put them in the compost?

[@collins.oalozie8885]

Please my birds are 5weeks old bt they are looking like 3 weeks old please what can I do to improve their growth

[@momslife853]

Wht type of feed n tonic u give to your chicken

[@annelall6337]

What abt paddy shells for bedding?

[@oluseunolayemi9669]

What injection can I use for two weeks broilers and three weeks and four weeks broilers

[@kwameappiahgyamfi2358]

Which feed do you give to them

[@heleneauclair5379]

How do you prevent attack from predators?

[@mcclungfarm7965]

Love the series since I have been doing this for 5 years myself. Wondering where you get your chicken crates from??

[@farmmarketing]

I don't remember exactly where. For quality and price currently I'd go through farmmarketingsolutions.com/premier I like their crates.

[@saifmaths8988]

hai!what to feed ?

[@lacoyotitaranch8281]

what do you feed them? chick starter? meat bird crumble? orgainic? non gmo? natural?

[@rishikeshjagdish8242]

I'm just about to start small scale poultry farming.... i wanted to know whether u use any kind of vaccines or medicines for ur birds or u simply go for organic ones??? will cornish broilers survive without vaccines in farming with chicken tractor??

[@stemy7]

Great series!! You might have mentioned it elsewhere, but what type of grass is in the pasture and do you do anything (other than chicken-mowing) to manage grass height?

[@farmmarketing]

I have a mix of grass. It's whatever grows locally and I have to do the least work to maintain. Because you know, I'm horribly lazy. I maintain it with animals and the bush hog on my tractor.

[@josephmichaelanthony1492]

Do you need to do anything to show the chickens to get water from the water bucket / nipples .... or do they just figure it out

[@user-vq5uj2le3d]

Hi now what you do when it rains

[@collins.oalozie8885]

What is the measurement of ur chicken tractor

[@kylieseukaran1.423]

How much broiler do you have

[@shawndickinson120]

do u ever limit te Bird feed

[@soulfirexit351]

Do you feed 24/7 or 12/12?

[@Avidarcher88]

do you have fox in your area ? I have permanent coop for layers but hesitant on the tractor because of predators. thanks for awesome vids!

[@farmmarketing]

I have fox, skunk, fischer cat, bobcat, bear, coyote, and neighborhood dogs. I'm holding strong with my defenses.

[@jadsreid9220]

Hey John, impressive vid as usual. Where do you purchase you transport crates? I saw them on amazon priced between $89-$100. Do you know of any cheaper sources?

[@farmmarketing]

I just searched around online at the time and got a good deal because I bought a bunch. I really like the crates from Premier. farmmarketingsolutions.com/premier They have two doors on them which would make this task way easier. They're also decently priced for what's out on the market now.

[@jadsreid9220]

Thanks much John, I appreciate your reply. Blessings.

[@ardnimoht]

Hey John, has anyone modified these for winter use? How do you store these coops?

[@ardnimoht]

Found your video: "Storing chicken tractors over winter"

[@seifmusabaha688]

Mr John can I visit your farm?

[@bailiemarrero1082]

Good Morning John, We have a very large family and have decided to build 3 of your chicken tractors. Our chicks will be arriving in mid June. I would really like to know the size of your shed used for your brooder?

[@lindaholobovich1888]

Bailie Marrero I think his brooder is an approx 8x8 shed, maybe a little bigger. I have seen a similar set up in person with the same # of chicks. It works!

[@YoungKingsYT]

I am Vietnamese . How can I buy your book?

[@brianphilbrook5262]

Great series. I laughed out loud at the dance hahahaha. Was the 450lbs the total amount of feed from chick to butcher?

[@farmmarketing]

That was just the total that I've fed them to date. I'll run through feed conversion in future videos.

[@peteruff5819]

do you find if you under feed them in the am that they are harder on the pasture. I have freedom rangers and they are much more agressive( bite and scrach at me when pulling empty feeders in the morning) and they will dig, I hay the pasture with a scythe and they are buggering up the ground.

[@farmmarketing]

If you are in a non-brittle area and plants grow back "easily" then some chicken scratching and impact is a good thing. That can get rid of thatch, add nutrients right into the ground, fluff up the soil a bit, and do other great stuff. I do try to keep the birds well fed as I'm growing them for meat and I want them to grow up and get out. The aggression around the feeder can also lead to scratches on your birds as they fight each other to get to feed which messes up the quality of their skin.

[@christophergillich7307]

Hey John, how many times can you run over the same patch of grass, either destroying it? In my case, I have a small backyard that i am going to move 5 broilers in a small tractor, until time to harvest. The specific part of my question is when can I run a second batch over the same area?

[@jgclarke0352]

If I remember right from a Joel salatin video he said something like you should let the grass rest 90 days before going over it again.

[@mishdon2200]

do you give them any form of medication when they are still young maybe in the first week...?also i did not seem you change the bedding in any of your videos, how long does one have to take before changing the bedding?

[@whiteyquartz7461]

He said he uses a shovel to scoop under their waterer because it gets extra messy, but other than that, he just adds more shavings on top when it starts getting bad

[@justinm9911]

how to you handle the dead stock? compost? bury?

[@farmmarketing]

I give them up to nature. I've buried them in the compost pile before and they just get dug out. I throw them into my hedge rows and the local wildlife eats them.

[@AzrealGaming]

I bought 4 chicks from a farm and didn't know if they were vaccinated.. But I grow them in a isolated big box.. And let them out 2 hrs on my back yard morning and if the weather is good I'll leave them out on the eve but if I'm at work they'll be inside my house... How do I know if they have that chicken disease u were talking bout?

[@techedfireman4981]

Growing up we never did electrolytes for the birds and we would have leg problems. I give them electrolytes with my batches that I have had in recent years and haven't had any leg issues.

[@farmmarketing]

That's good to hear. I'm doing more research on the leg issue thing. It's sad to see in the birds when it happens. Sometimes there's a fix and sometimes there isn't.

[@johnmmcalhany6091]

THUMBS UP AS ALWAYS! Hey, just one quick question, what hatchery do you use? I am expecting an order of 50 chicks to come in this week. I order through Murray McMurrary hatchery., But, Ive found them to be a little pricey.

[@farmmarketing]

I'm shopping around hatcheries. Not that there was anything wrong with my current, I just want to find one closer to home. Without a trusted source currently I hesitate to recommend anyone. That's a topic I'm sure I'll talk about this winter.

[@johnmmcalhany6091]

Awesomeness. I chuckled at the comment because I've been watching some political videos and the similarities are uncanny XD! Thanks John!

[@guillaumegire2793]

hi , i just wanted to know how do you calculate the selling price of your chickens per kilo ? thanks

[@farmmarketing]

Great question Guillaume. I'll cover that in a future video. But in short I calculate up all my costs including labor and then try to factor in a decent margin for me as the farmer. I then also research what chicken is selling for in my area to see what people are willing to pay. There's a balance to all of those factors.

[@yakovkirkwood5550]

So, when they're 3 weeks old (roughly due to their breed?), what time of the year/temperature range do you look to decide when to take them to the outside chicken tractor?

[@naniperson6276]

you can judge at what time to put your chickens out to pasture because it's in August when you made this video. I want to raise my Cornish cross during the early spring. At what temperature outside do you determine it safe enough to put your birds out to pasture?

[@farmmarketing]

I brood the chicks until about 21 days. By that time they have enough feathers and I've worked to mimmic the outside temp in my brooder so that when I put them out they are not shocked by the temperature change. It can really depend on what the average temps are in your area and how well you have done in the chicken brooder.

[@naniperson6276]

John Suscovich thank you for answering my question. I live in western Washington State. Your advice sounds like you start to turn off their heat lamp at a certain times to start getting them acclimated to the outside temps before officially putting them out to pasture. I currently have a chicken tractor that I used for my brooder. It has a lockable door to the run that we open when they are little bigger so they have the option of going out to the grass or staying in the warm Coop area. It sounds like I have a pretty good start already and then when they get a little bigger I can put them in a bigger chicken tractor like pen. this will be my first time raising meat chickens and I will not be doing it on a scale like you do but I really appreciate you showing an example for the backyard Homesteader. I plan on purchasing your book here soon to get to work on the bigger tractor. I like your design better than the average design that a lot of other people tend to do. it seems like your design has more Mobility and it's easier to access in case you need to get into the pen for whatever reason. Thank you for sharing your ideas and experiences I really appreciate it and I feel more confident that I will be able to raise my first meat chicken successfully. 😊

[@dionnehawkins9063]

Even though you clean the coop it still smell why

[@southernhen]

I don't know if you're still answering questions, but I'll ask anyway. We are raising a home flock of 30 red rangers. What do you do for coccidiosis? I'm also feeding non-gmo, soy free, organic feed. I haven't moved mine to the tractor yet but just wondered what to if this happens? Thanks for the videos, and helping us all get better connected with our food.

[@farmmarketing]

You can give chicks medicated feed at the beginning should you choose to combat coccidiosis. What I do is management. I do use medicated feed. Coccidia thrive in warm moist environments. I make sure to keep my feeders and waterers clean, I use fresh shavings in the brooder and turn the shavings to keep them from getting wet and compacted, and I make sure that the birds always have full feed and water while they are growing so they are healthy and strong. Give you birds a clean dry well ventilated environment and you shouldn't have a problem.

[@farmmarketing]

healthy chicks = happy chickens = healthy people

[@IBRAHIM-gs6mb]

How can we identify female or male chicks

[@denpascua3018]

What kind or name of vaccine do you use??

[@elvinbalderasbukidlifemixv19]

i want to learn to

[@devingoulding3200]

Not sure If I've missed this info, but how many square feet per tractor is needed per rotation?

[@farmmarketing]

2100 square feet for a 60 square foot tractor to move 35 times.

[@devingoulding3200]

Thanks! Would it be too intensive to use the same grass twice in a season year over year?

[@jgclarke0352]

​@@devingoulding3200 I think I saw a Joel salatin video once where he said to let the land rest 90 days before going over it again

[@oluseunolayemi9669]

Please I I'm a newcomer here

[@tkjarrard]

Looks great! About how many are in each tractor?

[@HLHaidysh]

10:00 he talks about 1 crate of 30 birds per tractor

[@tkjarrard]

+HLHaidysh perfect thanks.

[@farmmarketing]

30 chickens per tractor, about 2 ft square per bird

[@tkjarrard]

+John Suscovich thanks

[@walidaslam1072]

11:43

[@rebelheart8446]

I will never vaccinate my birds again for Marek's mainly because when I did, all of the birds that I did vaccinate ended up dying for the most part I had about a hundred and fifteen Birds 30 of those were from a different Hatchery that did not get vaccinated I lost half of my flock from Marek's of the ones that I did vaccinate

[@sharmarkeqassim5816]

I always thought it was bad idea am into more organic free ranging. This is the comment I was looking for sorry for lost chicks.

[@sandracoble7065]

are the crates commercial or did you make them?

[@josephballato5902]

They are available here. www.premier1supplies.com/c/poultry_supplies/poultry_restraint_and_transport If you buy over $100 worth of stuff they ship free. No I don't work for them but meeting John and watching his videos I now buy almost all my supplies from them. Great company!

[@farmmarketing]

They are commercial. I like the link that Joseph put below. farmmarketingsolutions.com/premier They have decently priced crates on that site.

[@chichelakunda8150]

Hi 123

[@jonesofosu-baah1160]

Are they still scared when they hear your voice?

[@billyb9067]

At 4 weeks they are considered Cornish game hens!!! Eat em

[@faithpon9324]

Does the vaccine transfer into their meat? Does it stay in their bodies forever? If people consume it, what are the long term affects?

[@BigFamilySmallFarm]

A vaccine isn't like an antibiotic, etc. It actually causes an immune response that would naturally happen anyway in the birds once exposed to Mareks or any other virus. The difference being it's safer for the birds with the vaccine since it's an 'dead' strain of the virus. I'm running my first trial run on my small farm of chickens and made the mistake of not getting them vaccinated. I've had 10 birds out of 27 die so far from what I now firmly believe is Mareks. Sending birds out to be tested to be sure but I will forevermore have them vaccinated. As Ethan says in the beginning farmer podcast...that was my hard lesson learned.

[@faithpon9324]

Okay, thank you for that. So it is not present in their bodies when consumed by people? Are there studies out there regarding this? I have not heard of this before and was thinking of raising a flock of my own.

[@farmmarketing]

Naked Hog is right. It causes an immune response and it's not really "in" their bodies when people eat them. Completely safe for people.

[@kaihall3904]

it will be 100% mortality by the end c;

[@paradisereese2341]

I quit my job to start a chicken farm...I need help..anybody 🤦🏾‍♂️😩

[@madhavimadhavi8228]

Ui

[@MrCincopete]

Damm chicken herpes Not even the chicken are safe

[@carolinayu7540]

why u doing this?

[@carolinayu7540]

this is animal abuse!