Norman the Rooster

[Wyatt0224]

 

[QueenMisha]

So, I sadly did NOT get a chance to take pictures. It was raining very heavily and we ended up closing early, and in all the ruckus of trying to do feeders and waterers in the rain, I didn't have time to take any photos... though with the way Norman is looking that may be for the best. He's down to two sickle feathers and looking absolutely RAGGED.

Secondly... I did candle the eggs. Out of the six, none were fertile. :/ I guess I just didn't give enough time prior to collection. Or Norman is just bad at being a rooster. I've left them in the incubator until Saturday just to be 100% sure I'm not wrong, but I've never been fooled by seven day-old bantam eggs before. I have another six collected, and I'll be pulling the infertile ones and starting the new eggs on Saturday.

 

[GingersHuman]

So, I sadly did NOT get a chance to take pictures. It was raining very heavily and we ended up closing early, and in all the ruckus of trying to do feeders and waterers in the rain, I didn't have time to take any photos... though with the way Norman is looking that may be for the best. He's down to two sickle feathers and looking absolutely RAGGED.

Secondly... I did candle the eggs. Out of the six, none were fertile. :/ I guess I just didn't give enough time prior to collection. Or Norman is just bad at being a rooster. I've left them in the incubator until Saturday just to be 100% sure I'm not wrong, but I've never been fooled by seven day-old bantam eggs before. I have another six collected, and I'll be pulling the infertile ones and starting the new eggs on Saturday.

 

[Teila]

Hey there QueenMisha

So sorry to hear about the eggs and fingers crossed for better news on Saturday or with the others you have collected

 

[drumstick diva]

 

[pattyhen]

Thanks for the update and I'm so sorry the eggs were not fertile. Poor Norman with only 2 feathers left I know he wants to keep his dignity. Give Norman my love.

 

[N F C]

Hey there QueenMisha

So sorry to hear about the eggs and fingers crossed for better news on Saturday or with the others you have collected

x2

Must have been disappointing to you but here's hoping for much better news with the new eggs!

 

[speckledhen]

Don't feel bad. My first rooster was 10 months old when I got him, the only chicken I ever bought. He had never been with any hens that I know of and was a complete gentleman. My hens I got him for were the same age as he was at the time. It was 5 months before I saw a fertile egg. So, some are just more suave and debonair than others and wait until the lady says "yes".

 

[QueenMisha]

Thanks for the well wishes everybody. Yes, I'm hopeful with this next batch. We'll see soon enough.

@speckledhen Wow, 14 months? Now I'm thinking that might be just be the issue! Norman hasn't been housed with a female at any point since he was separated from his mother, and although he ranges free with females during the day, he knows better than to mess with Napoleon's flock! Hopefully he gets a bit more confident around Norma soon...

And I will DEFINITELY be posting new photos Saturday! I swear I won't forget again. If I do, you guys have free permission to yell at me.

 

[QueenMisha]

Also... a semi-official announcement. The other day I was going through the front counter at the office, getting things in order. I just so happened upon an old copy of the local newspaper - dated to late November 2015. Well, I paged through it before tossing it out, and realize why it was still there - it was the newspaper in which we had a "Missing" ad placed for our rooster, Napoleon. Now, if you all remember Norman's backstory, you'll remember that we acquired him because he was in the same plastic bin Napoleon was returned in. Well, I talked about it with my boss, and he thinks the chicks were a wee bit younger than I recalled; three to four weeks, rather than four to five. The more I think about it, the more I think he's right. Anyhow - what all this means is that Norman is slightly younger than I've been thinking; not quite a year yet. Napoleon was stolen the night of November 18th, and returned about a week later - meaning that the chicks, being 3-4 weeks of age when they came into our care, had to have been hatched around the first week of November.

As such, I'm naming Norman and Norma's "official" (if not 100% accurate) birthday: November 1st. This actually works out great this year, as that is just coming up next Tuesday, and I'll be at work to celebrate it!