Choosing which roos to keep....

[CowgirlMama]

Ok- here is my dilemma. I have 39 total chickens. I'm planning on keeping all the pullets (15-20) and a couple roos. The rest will go to freezer camp! I have 3 breeds to choose from: Black Australorp, Barred Rock and New Hampshire Red. I am definitely keeping a Barred Rock roo, but I'm not sure which of the other to keep. Which breed (of the ones I have!) in your opinion are the best to keep. I have a 13 month old daughter and need a pretty docile one! Also, how do I select the best roo from the bunch, outside of temperament? Thank for your help!

 

[ChickyLoo]

Double post sorry

 

[ChickyLoo]

Hi, this is my first post

I have a similar dilemma would like to see some responses. We have a barred rock but he is aggressive protecting his girls. It is my understanding barred rocks are aggressive by nature.

 

[dsqard]

With such a small child around I would make temperment the #1 reason to keep any of them. I don't know how old your chickens are but I hatched out a few cockerels in January. When they were about five months old and starting to get "hormonal" that is when I started seeing the aggression. I wound up keeping only one of them because he is a very nice boy. The others were very tastey. I have a four year old roo who gets to stay also because he is a very well behaved boy. Just because they protect their girls, doesn't mean that they should go at you IMO. Neither one of them have ever gone at me and both are very good with the girls.

 

[ChickyLoo]

Hi ds of the 3 ROOS in the original post which have the best temperament?

 

[Arielle]

I have young birds and young children so I have done HOURS of reading the back posts. Here is what i found and is reasonable IMO.

Roosters can be taught good manners--you need to know how to handle them and teach them you are the boss. Become a chicken whisperer. I handled my most agressive roo a lot and my boys do too. I treat the rooster with care: do not hurt him, hold him till he stops fighting, gently push his head down until no struggling. I read this on another post--you need the details to be most effective.

Keep one more rooster than you need as a back up. Occasionally a rooster is not able to do his duties due to injury, illness, etc. Consider one of each breed and then you might want to rotate roosters.

Enjoy!

 

[CowgirlMama]

Quote:
MY chicks are 10 weeks old today(ish). So far, none of the roos are showing signs of aggression towards me or DH or DD. I take my little girl out with me to see the chickens, and even take her into the coop and outdoor pen with the chicks and they are curious, but don't seem aggressive.

I don't think I stated in my OP that I want to raise chicks for laying hens and meat.

 

[CowgirlMama]

Quote:
I have 18 roos total.... so far the Australorps are REALLY docile... and they are pretty!!!

But, they are only 10 weeks old, so we'll see how/if their temperament changes in the coming months... I plan to butcher chickens in Aug/Sept. so I have till then to make the final decision!

 

[loot4louie]

I have a small flock of 8. Last year I had 10 that I hatched and kept. My daughter was 15 months. I ended up with 2 roos that I liked and kept them until one decided he could fly at my daughter. It was not an overly aggressive move: unlike my childhood terror rooster- all 3 pounds of terrifying flapping fury So that is how I decided who stayed. I also rehomed a few flighty hens, as I like big calm birds. I hatched more this year and am keeping pullets only. My rooster is a HUGE orpington, but so laid back. I think Australorps are Australian Orpingtons? So maybe they will be as docile. I think all your breeds have a good potential to be kind- it really just depends on the individual. Keep a few favorites and let them mauture. I think 5-6 months is when they will start to get cheeky if they are prone to it. My friend had to rehome her handraised roo about then. He began chasing her daughter. Good Luck!!

 

[loot4louie]

I have a small flock of 8. Last year I had 10 that I hatched and kept. My daughter was 15 months. I ended up with 2 roos that I liked and kept them until one decided he could fly at my daughter. It was not an overly aggressive move: unlike my childhood terror rooster- all 3 pounds of terrifying flapping fury So that is how I decided who stayed. I also rehomed a few flighty hens, as I like big calm birds. I hatched more this year and am keeping pullets only. My rooster is a HUGE orpington, but so laid back. I think Australorps are Australian Orpingtons? So maybe they will be as docile. I think all your breeds have a good potential to be kind- it really just depends on the individual. Keep a few favorites and let them mauture. I think 5-6 months is when they will start to get cheeky if they are prone to it. My friend had to rehome her handraised roo about then. He began chasing her daughter. Good Luck!!