Hi! It's nice you are exploring options and advocating for the males in the poultry industry! Unfortunately cost and labor usually take precedence on a commercial scale, but it would be nice if this wasn't always the case.
Do they do this?! I've only heard of ducks getting things dirtier...
Welcome to BYC.
The fundamental problem with caponizing or raising layer breed cockerels for meat is that they have a much lower feed to meat conversion and the end result table product is very small compared to the Frankenchicken Cornish crosses.
Caponization would only add additional cost to...
Maybe I got the introduction and posting mixed up. I found the site while I actually searching for info about capons. A huge concern among vegan activists, is the indiscriminate killing of male chicks, in the egg industry. The reason is because egg layer breeds take longer to reach dispatch...
Technically they wouldn't be cut OFF, but OUT, as they are internal. Actually it could benefit by becoming quite the hen's rooster, aka capon(ladies man[if not fast]). As roosters can really tear a hen up when mating.
...is the term for a female before first hatchday. Similar to "heifer" vs "cow" in the cattlemen's business. ("Steer" is the cattle equivalent of "capon" in chickens: the guy got castrated). Chick is the term for "I haven't figured out what it is and the voice hasn't gone from peep to honk yet".
I am coming across mixed info on the 'severity' of the crowing in late caponizations.
If it doesn't reverse the behaviour, making it less frequent and less loud is still a benefit. The question (for me) is how much lesser in frequency - both time- and noise-wise - can be expected.
I am fishing...
...goes for the spaying of female companion animals which is (thankfully) pretty standard.
With that said, after reading through the article on caponizing adult birds, a mature, fully grown rooster appears to potentially make this surgery more complicated - but I am referring to young roosters...
...with the removal of the hormones you would see changes like less crowing, and feathers not being as showy.
Here's some other threads on it,
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/caponizing-adults.428265/...
I would love to hear back from people who had male chickens successfully caponized (castrated - with no 'slips') after they had started crowing. Has the surgery made an impact on their vocalizations over time? Did it impact their overall look, reversing some of their dimorphism (namely their...
I appreciate the offer and would take you up on it in a heartbeat - - - if I were located on the west coast... 😔 Unfortunately we have 3800 miles between us (or 6200 km ;))...
...would work for both of us. Yeah they love to eat and then lay down in the shade/sun :) . Haven't tried the surrogate fathering yet, my oldest capons are around 4-5 months of age. I want to give them about a year like a lot of hens are when they go broody for the first time. Plus I have no...
Might I ask: where are you located? 😅
Seriously... if you were a day's drive away....
So all pictures show capons, eh? They are amazing birds and look - as it has been said many times - like large/oversized hens. (Love the picture of them all huddled together!)
With regards to the 1 time you...
It wasn't easy, this is my first year in on trying to caponize birds. During my first caponizing surgery I was so anxious and my adopted grandma made me finish she said "You got this bird opened up, if he dies during the procedure then he dies as a capon or die as a rooster if you chicken out!"...
...videos?
And lastly, do you use special lights (headgear?) to see inside the cavity?
On a more general note, do you have any thoughts re: a caponization at 4 months of age on roosters that have started to practise first crows? Any chance this behaviour could eventually subside again?
I am...
I caponize my birds at 6-8 weeks of age.
In preparation to caponize I fast my birds for 24 hours in a wire rabbit cage with only water accessible and I try to remove any feathers over their ribs that'll be in the way.
I use a large board with four screws drilled in, I restrain their wings and...
In case this reaches you, do you have any knowledge if a crowing rooster. caponized at around 4 months of age and crowing already for a few weeks, will eventually cease or at least lessen his crowing again?