My Question Is This: Do you have regrets keeping your rooster?

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Kathy L said:
I just found a home for my Americana Rooster today! (Eden/Jacob). He is 21 weeks old. He was in a house attached to a 15' by 20' run. I ordered 5 hen! Wound up with 1 rooster. If I were you I would keep earnestly trying to find a home. I lost 1 hen. The whole side of her face was gone and her eye. So heartbreaking. Some people say "There just chickens!" Not to me!!
We go out there daily more than once. Surprising how fast it had to happen. She was a Salmon Favorelle. The smallest of all of them. Since we weren't sure it was the rooster we kept him and tried to keep an eye on them. Sure enough, another hen was bloody and all the feathers gone on one side of her neck. Still have her isolated. She's a Buff Opington. That was it!! I knew what I had to do.....I never wanted a rooster. I called several places and was told take him to an auction or put him on Market Place (FB). I didn't want him ending up in a cock fight somewhere. I finally called the place I got them and was given a number of a Pet Store that takes them to live there. That's where we took hime today. I'm not sure of his destiny. He was very pretty! But I can't have my baby girls killed either. I witnessed him attacking my Bardrock's neck. Seen it with my own 2 eyes!!
Hope this helps......keep looking for someplace you feel comfortable to take him!
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Well in this thread I stated my cockerel was really good with the barred rocks but a jerk to the 2 easter eggers. Friday morning I see him chasing the EE that did not want to be mated, caught her in the corner and started pecking her head really hard ( saw this twice Friday morning and a few times in the past). When I went to check her out I found her head swollen and dried blood around her beak. Friday afternoon I put him in the freezer, that was tough to do since he was our favorite since 3 day's old. The easter egger that got beat up is still not back to normal.
 
I absolutely love my boys. They run a good flock and are worth 100x the small amount of feed they eat. They keep a good eye out and keep my girls calm. I love the way my girls swoon over them.
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Your older gals may be of great help in training your young cockerel. When do you integrate? If you keep him with the pullets he grew up with he may be a hormonal pain, and that won't be fair to him, you and especially the pullets. The old gals should help wonderfully, giving him the whallops he needs and teaching him some respect. They will also be helpful in choosing or rejecting.
Push the decision off on them 😂
He will only improve with age IMO. They grow into their own, become stunning from 7 months on. Easier to find a home for also. All you can do is try, one way or the other. Rehoming is tricky. I do a lot of vetting and still new owners don't get it right. Everything wants to eat chickens. I keep posting and eventually get the best possible outcome. Sometimes it takes months. Take your time, don't be desperate.
I'm hoping you try and keep him if you can. Nothing like a beautifully functioning flock. I hope to never go without a roo.
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Terrificly dorky and perfectly imperfect but also fearless and priceless.
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I can't imagine why someone with the means for it wouldn't want their chickens free-ranging and breeding. Imagining my flock without males would be boring, sterile and dead

My Fayoumi rooster is constantly running all over the place all day trying to look out for around 50 hens. Protecting them, making nests, finding food. His work never stops

It'll be very nice when some of the other cockerels around here mature finally so he has more backup
 
BeeJayBird said:
Among the 7 chicks ordered from Murray McMurray Hatchery ($$$), one chick did not survive the journey which was super sad for us. Then, a few weeks ago we realized our female Louise (Buff Orpington) is very much a male Larry. I'm a born trouble-shooter, but I dropped the ball on the possibility that I might get a male instead of all females like I ordered. I feel very responsible for Louise/Larry.

Since we do not want to be hatching chicks, and do not free-range, it seems prudent we find a good home for Louise/Larry. So far, asking various people and doing word of mouth isn’t working. Roosters do not seem to be in high demand. I’ve been stalking some local FB groups, and everyone seems to be trying to find new homes for their roosters, many are stunningly beautiful. It makes me doubt my success going that route.

Louise/Larry and the other five pullets are 11 weeks old. They join our existing flock of three 4-year-old hens (that’s another story). We have a coop connected to an enclosed run that opens up to a large fenced in pen area amongst trees with string criss-crossing above. I’ve read a lot on the pros and cons for keeping a rooster, but the cons seem to outweigh the pros when you don’t want chicks, do not have the predator issue, and do not free-range. Thing is, we are all very attached to Louise/Larry and don’t want to give him to just anyone and wind up in a stew pot!☹️ If I can find a new home with caring humans that want him to do what he is meant to do, I would go that route. However…I'm seeing that may not be possible.

My question is this…have any of you kept a surprise rooster even though you are not hatching chicks or free ranging? And, if so, do you regret it? Why? What am I not considering? If we kept him, is that future misery for the hens and the five pullets? Any advice is appreciated. (Old flock 1 Barred Rock, 2 Rhode Island Reds; New flock 2 Buff Orpington, 1 Black Ochin, 2 Delaware, 1 Red Star/ISA Brown) Picture of Louise/Larry and our Chick-Inn.View attachment 3662506View attachment 3662508
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Yes, Clementine was supposed to be a hen. He is my pride and joy. He actually listens to me. Unless I'm the one he's trying to spur. Lol Every time he comes after me, the kids want to have him for Sunday dinner. It's not going to happen. Lol
 
aldarita said:
I agree with Asya. Your cockerel is too young right now to determine if he would be a good rooster. Hopefully he will. Bear in mind that when he turns into a "teen ager" which will be soon, you will have to put up with his antics. Your hens will help teaching him good manners and hopefully your pullets won't get harassed too much.
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Thank you for your reply! My concern was more about whether keeping a rooster, when not needing one, would cause misery to the laying hens I did have. I had read roosters 'do it' a lot and hens can get hurt. But, that's the extent of my knowledge and since I didn't expect a rooster, I obviously need to educate myself further (thus, this post). I can't just swap him off at Tractor Supply (as a friend suggested) because that's just not something I could do. This is interesting that the other hens will help teach him good manners. Other posters are saying that as well.
 
Trin9 said:
I have a silkie rooster and he's not a problem. I don't do free range and if I don't want my eggs hatching I take them out asap. I did have two others but got rid of them as they were irritating the new hens.
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Thank you. Yes, we definitely don't want hatching of any kind and get eggs out every day with the hens we have now.
 

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