A couple of questions about my chickens

[Just a kid]

Hello!
As the title says I have a couple of questions about my chickens. First my rooster is starting to try to mate the girls and my dad said that if he continue to do this then we would sell him. So is there any way to sterilize a rooster?

My second question is when do hens stop laying? My girls just started but I'm just wondering when they stop that way I am prepared.

Okay my last question is what color are the eggs of Americana's, Amber Whites, Cochin's, and New Jersey Giants?

 

[SueT]

Tell us what kinds and how many chickens you have-- are they the breeds you listed? The egg colors should stay the same as they are....some people say theirs lay for 4 or 5 years or even more, but there are less eggs each year.
Roosters are hard to sell, but sterilizing them is tricky and can be dangerous for the bird.

 

[KoopOnTruckin]

I have a couple answers for you, hope they help.

Yes, you can sterilize a rooster, but it's not easy. It's a minor surgery, but I wouldn't try it myself until I've done a few on roosters I'm ready to eat.

Hens usually lay for a few years. The simple answer is they stop laying when they run out of eggs, but the amount of eggs they have in them depends upon their breeds.

For egg colors, I usually check a hatchery's website like this one: https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/black_cochins.html

I'm excited for you, chickens are a great hobby!

 

[bobbi-j]

Is there a reason your dad doesn't want the rooster breeding the hens? You can sterilize a rooster (it's called "caponizing") but as stated, it's tricky and has to be done at a certain age. If he's already breeding your hens, it may be too late. The procedure to caponize a rooster is to cut into the bird, find the testes, and cut them off. This is done while the bird is fully awake and aware of what's going on.

If your dad is worried about chicks as a result of the rooster breeding your hens, you can respectfully tell him that chicks won't start developing until they have been incubated - either under a broody hen or in an incubator - for at lest 24 hours. Until they're incubated, they are just in a state of suspension. Unlike humans that start to develop immediately upon fertilization. If you collect your eggs daily, there should be no problem.

 

[Just a kid]

Thank you for all the help I really appreciate it! Yes my hens are the breeds that I listed. I just wanted to know what colors they are so that I can Identify which hens they are from. So sterilizing my rooster is not a good idea, I will definitely explain to my dad what you told me bout the fertilized eggs, Thank you very much for that information by the way. He told me right after i posted this thread that if we cant sterilize my rooster than we could just separate him in a different coop where he can see the hen but he cant get too close. Is this a good idea?

My dad doesn't want anymore chickens because 1. We don't have a very big coop and hen house and 2. we don't have a lot of money to be taking care of a lot of chickens.

By the way thank you for all the help! My family isn't really into chickens so I cant get much advice from them, so it is very nice to have lovely people like you three that are willing to give me advice!

 

[bobbi-j]

Thank you for all the help I really appreciate it! Yes my hens are the breeds that I listed. I just wanted to know what colors they are so that I can Identify which hens they are from. So sterilizing my rooster is not a good idea, I will definitely explain to my dad what you told me bout the fertilized eggs, Thank you very much for that information by the way. He told me right after i posted this thread that if we cant sterilize my rooster than we could just separate him in a different coop where he can see the hen but he cant get too close. Is this a good idea?

My dad doesn't want anymore chickens because 1. We don't have a very big coop and hen house and 2. we don't have a lot of money to be taking care of a lot of chickens.

By the way thank you for all the help! My family isn't really into chickens so I cant get much advice from them, so it is very nice to have lovely people like you three that are willing to give me advice!

You could separate him, but that wouldn't be very kind to the rooster. Chickens are flock animals and prefer to be with other chickens. Again, you will not have more chickens if you collect the eggs daily. Of course, you do have to go with whatever your dad decides, but I hope this will help you to be able to keep your rooster with his hens.

 

[SueT]

It is really wonderful to see kids into chicken keeping. The benefits are far reaching. My granddaughter has 3 hens, and I am so amazed at how much they are enriching her life. She's only 4.
( BTW, with a little detective work over time, noticing when hens leave the nest, you can figure out who laid which eggs. )

 

[aldarita]

Just a kid, I have 2 roosters in my flock and I don't hatch eggs, so I don't have chicks unless I want to add some more chickens to my flock. Your rooster can live with your hens and you don't have to have chicks, just pick up your eggs everyday dutifully and everybody (including your dad) will be happy.
Any of your hens might get broody some times. Look up in the search area in the forum about broodys and how to "break them" so you will know what to do when it happens. Good luck and keep on caring for your flock you are doing a good job.

 

[aart]

My dad doesn't want anymore chickens because 1. We don't have a very big coop and hen house and 2. we don't have a lot of money to be taking care of a lot of chickens.

These are two good reasons to eat that cockerel.......let him feed you instead of you feeding him with nothing given in return.