How to Breed Broilers

A broiler is a type of chicken that is raised for its meat. They grow quickly and can weigh up to 5 lbs. in as little as five weeks. However, even though the broilers are bred to be large, the breeding stock needs to be relatively small. If you were to try to use large birds to breed from, you would find they are too large and cumbersome to mate successfully.

Things You'll Need

  • Day-old chicks
  • Poultry feed
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Instructions

    • 1

      Choose your breeding stock when they are day-old chicks. There is nothing specific that you should look for, as it is how the bird is fed that will make it good for breeding.

    • 2

      Keep the breeding stock separate from the rest of the stock. You will need to keep the rooster away from the hens until you are ready for them to mate.

    • 3

      Start the chicks on a limited diet. They will be fed the same food, just less of it. The breeding birds will be fed around 1/3 to 1/2 less than the regular birds that are being reared for their meat. Broilers are designed to grow large very quickly, so it is important that you restrict the diet of the breeding birds to avoid them becoming too large. If you did not do it, the hens would develop excess fat around their reproductive organs and may suffer a prolapse when trying to lay their first egg. If the rooster is too large, it could injure the hen.

    • 4

      Put the rooster in with the hens when they are around 24 weeks old and allow nature to take its course. One rooster can service around 10 to 12 hens, which will provide up to 1,000 chicks a year.