Caponizing questions - not for meat bird

[Nicky S]

I have a cockerel, hatched March 21 - we DNA tested for gender, but we kind of knew from the moment we saw him . I don't have enough space or hens for two roos, and we tried hormonal caponization with our first rooster and it did not work at all (he's now a daddy ). I don't want to re-home, and nobody is going to eat him. We are aiming for the 6-8 week window for the procedure.

My husband is a veterinary specialist, very experienced surgeon - but just not for birds - and after watching the videos he says it should be super simple compared to kidneys . Meanwhile I called our local avian specialist and she said no, super dangerous and she would never do it. That said, they wanted to open up my hen to see what was going on inside because she was a bit distended, which seems odd to me. My husband would do the procedure at home - sterile conditions, but no anesthesia, and actually anesthesia would be the part that worried me most of all to be honest. I am just a bit freaked out about our little one being in pain, that kind of thing really worries me. He could bring local anesthesia...maybe some sedation, though that also worries me from what I've read.

So I guess my question is, with my husband's (non-chicken) experience do you think it should go well? Is it a traumatic experience for the birds? I'm thinking that if regular people without training seem to manage well enough after some learning, it shouldn't be an issue? I don't understand why avian vets are so reluctant to do this - is it as dangerous as they say? Infection doesn't worry me, bleeding out shouldn't happen because he's very good at what he does - though I guess a mistake can always happen. He'd be operating alone - or possibly with my son - as I couldn't stomach being present and would be more of a hinderance than anything else.

Seeing as the veterinary community seems in general to be so reluctant to carry out the procedure even in young birds, and this is becoming a more frequent issue for people keeping chickens as pets, I was also thinking it might help pave the way to making this a more widely available procedure.

Finally, do caponized birds live normal lives (other than the not being a rooster part)? How will my rooster react to him? I wouldn't want to do anything detrimental.

This is our little guy, Pudding

 

[bobbi-j]

There is no way to know for sure if it will go well or not. From what I have read, it can take a few tries to get it right. As in, a few birds are lost before perfecting the technique. I would guess vets shy away from it because it can be risky. Will it traumatize your little cockerel? Well, your DH will be cutting into him without any kind of anesthesia, cutting more parts inside of him and removing said parts, so my best guess would be yes.

 

[SheaLoner]

Anesthesia is very, very tricky in birds. And caponizing has been done for a long time without it. I believe it should go well ecspecially(sp?) With a vet in the house. This is a procedure that can be successfully done by a redneck farmer. Your husband should have no issues.
There was a how to article in the resources I believe with good pictures. And if it would make you feel better find some one local with a cull or recently dead rooster and do a test run.

 

[SheaLoner]

@PurpleCArTires has an article comparing the meat. I believe they do their own Caponizing.

 

[Poultrybonkers]

Is there a reason you want that done?

 

[Nicky S]

Anesthesia is very, very tricky in birds. And caponizing has been done for a long time without it. I believe it should go well ecspecially(sp?) With a vet in the house. This is a procedure that can be successfully done by a redneck farmer. Your husband should have no issues.
There was a how to article in the resources I believe with good pictures. And if it would make you feel better find some one local with a cull or recently dead rooster and do a test run.

Thanks - yes I'm sending the article to my husband, I don't do well with the pics . I'm not sure where we'd find a practice cadaver locally, but the truth is he's very skilled so I think he'll be fine. I wish the anesthesia weren't an issue, but it is what it is.

 

[Nicky S]

Is there a reason you want that done?

Yes. We can't have another roo, and these are our pets. I don't eat any meat, and re-homing would be hard as I would want to be completely sure he'd have a great life - our gang is pretty spoiled. I feel that as more and more people have pet chickens it would be great if there were a solution - I'd go to great lengths to take him to a specialist but I've come to the conclusion that avian vets rarely do this procedure...probably because they don't actually do that many chicken surgeries in the first place. I would never attempt anything like it myself, but as my husband is a top notch surgeon with very many years of surgical experience I'm hoping we can work this out. It's just the pain factor that worries me, but from what I've read chickens don't seem to experience pain in the same way we do.

 

[PurpleCArTires]

I'll be honest in saying it doesn't traumatize your bird at all, when it's over all they care about is eating. You HAVE to starve them first. I have had best success with taking food Thursday night, taking water Friday night, and caponize first thing Saturday morning.

The chick gets tied (make sure he is stretched all the way) and may struggle at first, then I like to cover there faces, it seems to calm them. They flinch with the first cut, but once you are in, they don't move much.

If you move quickly and carefully, it's really quick (under 5 minutes for me per bird, including tying them up), and it's over before they know what happened. I am sure your husband will have no problem at all! I have no medical experience and was able to pick it up no problem.

Just be sure you get the whole testie, otherwise he will still try to mate, harass the hens, and possibly fight with the roo.

Also, I have only ever done it to 5-6 week olds, never older.

Separate him when it's done and let him heal a few days (I don't use sutures, the thigh muscle holds it closed). Watch for Wind Puffs (air pockets under the skin). I pop them if they get really big to relieve the pressure.

Also, I learned the hard way that electrolytes are super important afterward to help with shock.

I am doing a few Saturday. If I can, I'll see if I can get some pics of my set up.

PS, I am to the point where I open almost every chick, just to confirm sex. If they are boys, they get the beans removed, girls just get released and go on living their lives. I don't have money for DNA testing every chick and it's helpful me to know as soon as possible what their sex is, expecially Silkies.

PPS, I think everyone uses different techniques and tools, what I do might not work for everyone. I'll see if I can tag a few other folks to see what they have to say.

 

[PurpleCArTires]

@Poco Pollo

 

[Everose]

I'll be honest in saying it doesn't traumatize your bird at all, when it's over all they care about is eating. You HAVE to starve them first. I have had best success with taking food Thursday night, taking water Friday night, and caponize first thing Saturday morning.

The chick gets tied (make sure he is stretched all the way) and may struggle at first, then I like to cover there faces, it seems to calm them. They flinch with the first cut, but once you are in, they don't move much.

If you move quickly and carefully, it's really quick (under 5 minutes for me per bird, including tying them up), and it's over before they know what happened. I am sure your husband will have no problem at all! I have no medical experience and was able to pick it up no problem.

Just be sure you get the whole testie, otherwise he will still try to mate, harass the hens, and possibly fight with the roo.

Also, I have only ever done it to 5-6 week olds, never older.

Separate him when it's done and let him heal a few days (I don't use sutures, the thigh muscle holds it closed). Watch for Wind Puffs (air pockets under the skin). I pop them if they get really big to relieve the pressure.

Also, I learned the hard way that electrolytes are super important afterward to help with shock.

I am doing a few Saturday. If I can, I'll see if I can get some pics of my set up.

PS, I am to the point where I open almost every chick, just to confirm sex. If they are boys, they get the beans removed, girls just get released and go on living their lives. I don't have money for DNA testing every chick and it's helpful me to know as soon as possible what their sex is, expecially Silkies.

PPS, I think everyone uses different techniques and tools, what I do might not work for everyone. I'll see if I can tag a few other folks to see what they have to say.

How often do you lose one? I have been interested in this subject for awhile now, and I have experience with castration, but never in the body cavity. Is it worth it?