Backyard Broilers -- Round 2: Week 6

I say it every week.  These guys grow fast!  It's hard to believe that they're going to start going in the freezer in another two weeks. 

This batch of birds has been a lot less work to raise than last year's batch.  Keeping the chicken tractor stationary is a lot easier than moving it each day.

Cornish Cross at 6 weeks.

They still spend most of their time hanging out around the coop.  I have seen them venture into the yard a few times, but they don't stay there long.

They still eat like crazy.  I bought 100 lbs. of soy-free organic feed two weeks ago.  I'm going to need more real soon.  It took them one week to finish the first 50 lb. bag and they're getting close to the bottom of the second bag.

They go through a lot of water as well.  I have a 5-gallon bucket feeding poultry nipples in the tractor along with another poultry nipple waterer on the coop.  In addition to those I keep a 1-quart waterer in the tractor and a 1-gallon waterer next to it.  Believe it or not, I have to fill the 5-gallon bucket and the two stand alone waterers every day (the waterer on the coop is attached to a 60-gallon rain barrel so I don't bother with it).  I don't know if they're drinking that much water or spilling it, or if it's evaporating, but it's going somewhere. 

Well, like I said above, in another two weeks these guys will be graduating to the freezer!  I'm not looking forward to that, but it's part of the process.