What do you do with Day old roosters?

[cchardwick]

Use dynamite, they won't feel a thing!

I've heard rumors that you can actually sex an egg before it hatches and that the round eggs turn into hens and the pointy eggs turn into roosters. If you could perfect this then you wouldn't have to make a decision either way.

If your birds are a true breed your roosters would be more valuable. If I ever lost my Rhode Island Red rooster all of my hens would become infertile and my hatching business would come to a screaming halt. Being able to buy a rooster then would be invaluable.

I bet you could sell your chickens on the internet no matter what age or what sex. I used to butcher all my chickens and then one day in the middle of butchering I had a yard sale and put some old hens out for sale. I made about six bucks a hen, then moved to some younger hens and got ten bucks a hen. And I sold all that I wanted to sell (about 20 in a day). Now I know I can sell my chickens for ten bucks each and go to the supermarket and get whole chickens ready to go for five bucks each LOLOLOL.Personally I'd raise them up to about 20 weeks and have a yard sale and sell them. You'd be amazed at how many people will want them! And at ten bucks a rooster you are sure to make a profit.

 

[bobbi-j]

if he can sell them next week, then how is he better off killing them at day old?

He has a week's worth of feed into them. I know - little chicks don't eat that much, individually, but depending on how many he has, it could add up. He has to figure out if he's getting his feed costs out of them if he wants to make money off of them. I'm not saying he should kill the day-olds. I'm saying he has to figure out business-wise what's best for him. I'm also saying that it's not "cruel" to kill them if that's what he needs to do.

 

[ChickenGirl22]

I still don't agree. In my opinion killing any baby animal is cruel. Not because of pain or suffering, but because you are taking a life for convenience and personal gain. I'm just saying they've only lived for a day and I don't think it's right to just take life away from them that quickly. Anyway, that's just my opinion. Ultimately it is the owners decision and if he decides to kill them then he decides to kill them. I just don't agree with it.

 

[Appylover]

I will eat any extra roos's I get. I of course have 4 roos thats 3 too many but two are cohin one is frizzle and then I have my pretty roo and then we have Big Bird my RIR roo.

 

[Stephanie739]

I haven't had any problem finding homes for roosters via Craigslist and one classified here. I give them away.

 

[Otisspunkmeyer]

In my opinion, when you choose to incubate or hatch eggs, you understand that there will be around half roosters. So if you hatch out those roosters, they should at least go to food for other animals for their effort of developing. They should not just be killed and thrown away, roosters are a part of hatching eggs, I understand that not every rooster can crow for 10 years, but even for other animals food at a day old, at least it fills some belly's!

 

[Stephanie739]

I think some people buy day old chicks for pet snake food. I wouldn't sell my babies for that, but its all part of the cycle of life and food chain. I was horrified when a snake recently ate one of my young chicks, felt like I let it down by not doing better to keep the snake out. I wasn't angry at the snake.

 

[Otisspunkmeyer]

To add a different point, you might think about what you will do with the roosters that hatch out before you put a bunch of eggs in the incubator. I'm sure someone in the area would want a flock of meat birds.

 

[DMRippy]

I am lucky, I have a ROO GUY. He takes all my roos, day olds on up! He grows them out, lets them free range, eat his bugs....... then he takes them to Markets and sells the roos. That lets me hatch ALL I want, if I didn't have him, I could not make my feed bill.... they eat a TON! I tried growing them out to sell, $5 each if I was lucky. They eat more than that.... and I don't make enough yet off the hens/pullets to pay for the roos. This was really my first year of hatching.... it got out of control QUICK until I put the ad up on CL for FREE ROOS, chicks mostly. I had 3 people reply in an HOUR! Now I actually have 2 roo guys. The other guy grows them out for some friends, the kids can't eat the chickens from the store. I am OK with anything. I don't want them to go to waste. Feeding pets is OK too, something had to die to feed my chickens their feed.

I read a post where a lady took all hers to the zoo, to feed the animals, they take ALL sizes.

I waste is killing them.......without a purpose.... that is a SIN!

 

[Gomes Bantams]

I often buy baby boys from a hatchery(any random one) for a discount in bulks. I often get packing peanut babies(that is how my EE bantam got his name) and sometimes a few are girls!! But seriously, keep the boys.