Barred rock chicken...hen or rooster??

[realsis]

Ok so let's say we have two roosters (and no eggs to at least appease our neighbors!)... How strict do cities tend to be? We definitely have a no crowing rooster policy in the city.. Any input on this from anyone?

You can try the no crow rooster collar. I did this myself and it worked perfectly. Once in awhile it will need adjusting. The rooster isnt able to fill his diaphragm with a lot of air so if he crows at all its a low volume that you cant hear inside the house. Its no louder than a hen.you can make sure you have it adjusted correctly for maximum results. The collars arent curel the birds are fine. However with a rooster you will need about 10 hens to prevent over mating. Otherwise the roo will over mate the female and this is very bad for her.it can even kill her. With about 10 females he can change off who he mates with so its distributed throughout the 10. I have Barred rocks myself and their combs will get large and red when they start to lay. If yours is a female with a comb like that if its not laying it should at least have started squatting for you. They do this just before they lay and continue to squat when you walk up. If your not seeing those signs with that red of a comb than you likely have a rooster.

 

[robinef]

If we have a hen and a rooster, would you all be expecting him to start trying to mount her? And today, when they were walking back in towards their coop, they faced each other and puffed up their neck feathers. It just lasted for a few seconds, and nothing more has happened. Does that mean anything to anyone?

 

[robinef]

I was looking at the second one today (the one that doesn't crow) and it's starting to get these really pretty hunter green tail feathers in.. Does that help the cockerel case??

 

[0wen]

It's not uncommon for hens/pullets to puff out neck feathers at other birds - male or female. The green showing up in tail feathers likely means both a mixed breed bird and a second cockerel. It could not be crowing because the other bird won't allow it to. It's common enough for a dominant cock to be the only one to crow in a multi-rooster flock.

I have 2 cockerels in my flock and both crow, though frequency is by far in favor of the dominant bird. I've had flocks in the past where submissive roosters never crowed.

 

[donrae]

Those are both cockerels.

If you're not allowed to have roosters in your area, you need to start finding someone to take them now. Once crowing starts, you're going to need to move quickly. I know it's hard to think your birds might go to someone's table, but having a great life and one bad day.....not the worst thing in the world.

 

[Shezadandy]

Yes we got some more crowing this morning, I think it's a done deal. Just throwing this question out there.... We know the two are siblings. If the other one is a hen, is there any chance they won't partner up with each other? I'm not sure if incest works the same way in the animal world as the people world, but we just love them and hate to get rid of either one!!! Also, anyone have any experience with the no crow collar? Is it terribly awful?

I live somewhere I can have roosters, but my coop is pretty close to the house. We value sleep and not ticking off the neighbors (though our boys are lawful) but still enjoy our roos. I've got 2 with the no crow collars on right now- it takes some effort but we got it to a manageable level where they both sound like cartoon roosters and volume wise the hens are louder when they lay eggs, but they still look pretty proud of themselves when they crow.

As another poster wrote, it could spell trouble if the city clamps down on either you or chicken owners as a group because of a complaint. Our experience with the collars has been pretty good- can barely hear them in the house- but we don't have the added pressure of a no-rooster policy to worry about.

We've had to adjust ours a few times because they are still growing boys- so a couple times a week I put my pinkie between their neck and the collar to make sure it hasn't tightened during a growth spurt.

Here's one of ours wearing one:

 

[robinef]

Thank you!! I have heard a horror story about the collar during the summer time in south Florida as the roosters can't pant safely. A lady I met had two roosters die because of this... Any advice? Ultimately, I think we're going To rehome anyway. They would probably enjoy a nice farm in central Florida more than with us, where they're free to crow all they want.

 

[BaileyMChicks]

I honestly don't like the no crow collars. I have heard way to many stories about people having them on their boys, and the collar wasn't tight or anything, and then the rooster tried to crow and choked/suffocated to death when they weren't around. If i couldn't keep roosters where I lived I would much rather re-home them than to do that. Plus i feel like suppressing their natural instincts is not very nice, and could possibly be stressful. But that is just my opinion. Plus wouldn't having that collar on all the time 24/7 start to rub off the feathers and eventually cause wounds frm the friction of the collar? Like if a horse has a halter on 24/7 it'll rub off the fur and create wounds, the same with a dog... i just don't really think it's right...
.

 

[robinef]

Thanks for everyone's input... I found a home for our chickens! We will drop them off together... The one that doesn't crow is starting to squat so I'm thinking it might be a hen. I'm hoping it's not just sick? It's super hot out here, and she sits down under the shade. She'll jump up and start running when she hears the meal worm bag, so I'm assuming she's ok? Anyway, thanks again! Our chicken raising days are not over, but hoping for better luck with the gender this time. Thanks!!

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

Thanks for everyone's input... I found a home for our chickens! We will drop them off together... The one that doesn't crow is starting to squat so I'm thinking it might be a hen. I'm hoping it's not just sick? It's super hot out here, and she sits down under the shade. She'll jump up and start running when she hears the meal worm bag, so I'm assuming she's ok? Anyway, thanks again! Our chicken raising days are not over, but hoping for better luck with the gender this time. Thanks!!

Wonderful! The second is definitely male. You can see the saddle/hackle/sickle feathers coming in, and the huge red comb and wattles. Hope you get pullets this time.