Murray's Big Red Broiler is an updated version of our old favorite, the Red Ranger. A new cross produces a table bird in just 12 weeks. Just like its predecessor, Murray's Big Red Broiler is a great pasture bird and excellent forager. If you want a broiler without any of the fuss of fast growing CXR's, this is the bird for your table. Everyone who raises their own meat birds know that they have a better taste than anything you can buy in the store. Take our VP's advice and spatchcock these, a little salt and pepper and bake for the best roasted chicken ever.
This breed may be available for future dates.
The table below shows availability for the next several weeks.Click here to show all hatch dates for this season.
Please note you will select a ship date during the checkout process.
Q&A
Can I keep these Big Red Broiler with Heritage Layer chicks in same brooder and coop?
Yes, you could raise the Murray's Big Reds with heritage layer breeds. However, we suggest providing a higher protein feed, such as 22% Broiler Starter/Grower, if you anticipate butchering the Murray's Big Reds. Otherwise, if provided the same feed as the layers, such as 18% Chick Starter/Grower, it may delay their growth a little bit.
Will these Big Red Broiler lay eggs if choose not to harvested at 12 weeks old?
Our Murray's Big Reds can be raised and kept as a dual-purpose breed, for both meat and eggs. Hens generally begin laying around 6 months of age.
How many eggs do they lay on average?
We estimate the Murray's Big Red broiler will lay approximately 220-280 eggs per year.
Is it possible to raise Big Red Broilers and Cornish Cross together in the same pen / run?
Yes, it is okay to raise Jumbo Cornish X Rocks and Murray's Big Red Broiler chicks together. Both breeds should be given the broiler feed and we also suggest Broiler Booster vitamins/electrolytes in the drinking water.
The Jumbo Cornish X Rocks will reach butcher weight around 6-8 weeks of age. The Murray's Big Red Broiler will reach butcher weight around 12-15 weeks of age.
Are these meat birds high altitude birds?
Yes, these birds are safe to raise in higher altitudes.
What is the expected weight at 12 weeks for males ??
They will approximately 6lbs live weight at 12 weeks.
Do rooster get bigger than the hens. Could I butcher rooster at 11 weeks and get a nice meat production?
Yes, males do get larger in size compared to females. Depending on the breed, most heritage breeds are good size for butchering after 16 weeks of age.
I got 10 reds from you for meat production. What is the recommended feeding schedule? Are these 12 on 12 off like the CXR's. Thank you I couldn't find anything on it.
You do not need to pull the feed at night when raising Murray's Big Red Broilers. However, we do recommend keeping the Broiler Booster in the drinking water until butcher day.
how heavy do they get??
A medium growth broiler, I believe, the males get 6 lbs around 56 days.
Something said on your website was confusing am I buying eggs or live baby meat chickens
This is the newly hatched chicks. We do not sell hatching eggs for the meat birds.
Can you breed these?
They are not recommended for reproduction.
Do redrangers hens set on their eggs?
No, they are not known for setting on their eggs.
how old do chic's need to be to go outside in a tractor in florida
The red rangers can be moved out between 4-6 weeks depending on weather and how feathered they are.
How many eggs a day will they lay once the birds start laying.
The most any breed of chicken can lay per day is 1 egg.
Included in my order of 15 red ranger cockerels were 3 smaller white male chicks. Each bore a red mark on top of their heads. At 7 weeks they are half the size of the red ranger. Can you tell me what extra breed you sent me. thank you, pat jacobs
The large cone works best for heavy meat breeds. But you may be able to use a medium if they are 8-9 weeks old.
Sorry to be repetitive, but I ordered the Red Rangers last year, and have already stuck some eggs in our incubator, not realizing they were hybrids. Now I see you mention that they are not recommended for reproduction. Will any even hatch?
Thank you for your time and response!
They should still hatch. They are just not recommended for reproduction since they are hybrid.
can I mix turkeys and baby chicks in the same shipment to reach the minimum order? thank you.
Sorry, we are unable to ship turkeys and chickens in the same order. They are hatched at different facilities for disease control.
will the red rangers reproduce would they make good heritage chickens?
The are not recommended for reproduction because they are a hybrid.
DeliciousJust awesome! I did 25 unsexed. No leg issues like the CornishX I tried. NICE heavy birds in 12 weeks. Not one of them died prematurely. Yup, doin this again next year! Tried to figure out which breeds to cross to just hatch my own... Bwahaha! Nope! At least 4 unknown parent breeds to get to the Big Red. Too complicated for my backyard! Well done McMurray, keep up the good work. I will be ordering more!
DAN
Not a good broilerThe big red broilers are the worst broiler we’ve raised thus far. The roosters are very aggressive which inhibits the other broilers to gain any weight. It’s constant beating up of your all other broilers including the pullets. We processed them at 12 weeks; feeding them the usual Meatbird crumbles with corn added at finishing, but they finished very scrawny and seemingly tough. The largest one we had weighed 7.0lbs. The red broilers are terrible meat birds and will never purchase again. We will stay with our tried and true Jumbo Cornish which have great size, quick growth, and terrific temperament.
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