I am a believer that the flock is more important than an individual bird. I keep a flock, I do not keep a group of pet chickens, there is a difference, in that one is more romantic, but as Aart is fond of saying romance often meets reality with chickens and one cannot wish a bird to be nice.
I think that the rooster is not working out, and you and the hens will be happier with him gone. I think you would be happier with just a hen flock, but there are good roosters out there, it is not a good plan to put up with one that isn't. They most generally do not get better, and personally, I would bet this rooster will become human aggressive given time.
The problem for you of hatching out eggs, is that at least half (and often times more) will be roosters. Flocks are limited to a number of roosters, too many roosters in a small set up will cause a lot of problems. I see that you did not have great luck with ordering just pullets, but you will have worse luck with straight run hatched chicks. With your vegetarian beliefs, these roosters will be an ongoing problem.
Put him on craigslist, don't ask any questions, know that you gave him a good life.
Mrs K
I think that the rooster is not working out, and you and the hens will be happier with him gone. I think you would be happier with just a hen flock, but there are good roosters out there, it is not a good plan to put up with one that isn't. They most generally do not get better, and personally, I would bet this rooster will become human aggressive given time.
The problem for you of hatching out eggs, is that at least half (and often times more) will be roosters. Flocks are limited to a number of roosters, too many roosters in a small set up will cause a lot of problems. I see that you did not have great luck with ordering just pullets, but you will have worse luck with straight run hatched chicks. With your vegetarian beliefs, these roosters will be an ongoing problem.
Put him on craigslist, don't ask any questions, know that you gave him a good life.
Mrs K