Culling... what really goes on?

[lovemychickies]

I have adopted many chicks that are straight run, with probably 80% roos. Because of my little chicken habit, I haven't eaten chicken since december.

How do you all cull your little babies? I have a broody on a few eggs right now, and I don't know what I'll do if I get any boys. Please help. I've exhausted all of my resources for extra roos.

I've never culled and don't know how to do it. --I don't know if I can! It just seems like the elephant in the room on this chicken forum.

HELP!!

 

[Bedste]

I am new to this also but I can tell you that I am not afraid of culling my chickens anymore. I have a friend who is a first timer and she did it all by herself. I am not sure how young you are suppossed to do this. I do not want to give you wrong information. Do you know how to sex them? Are you going to wait untill they get older or crow? What are your plans? I will send you the link that I found that spells out the ugly truth. But you want to make sure that you know which ones are roosters.

 

[lovemychickies]

I'm the type that will wait until they crow to make sure they are roos.

I hate it. I just fall in love with the little boogers. But, I know that I've used up all potential homes. --All my friends have at least one roo because of me.

I just need to cowboy up and take care of the little fellows myself I guess.

Ugh. Help!

 

[Bedste]

Recently one of my favorite chickens named "Megan" crowed. Even though she was growing a comb and had that crease in the middle of her chest, I kept hoping that she was possilby a more mature hen who was getting her comb too early or something. Some breeds do get combs on their heads that are pretty big. So I kept hoping. I remember when I heard the crow coming out of her.... I lost my breath.. I was so shocked and OMG that was it. So.... I am cowboying up too.. I understand.

BUT..... we raise them for eggs and emergency food. So.... I will be better prepared from now on. My grandchildren have named everyone of the 20 chickens.. but from now on.... I test them as soon as I can and we do NOT name anyone who tests Roo...

What I have decided to do is this. I have 3 too many roos. One is a bantam, so I am taking her to the chicken man that sold her HIM to me and GIVING him back to him. He was on the side of the road near my home so I am watching for him. HOPEFULLY this weekend. I do not want to kill any Roo but I will when I have to..

The other two Roosters are Cochins and I have one Cochin hen, so I am going to keep them and separate pairs and breed them and keep them but not all in the same cage 24/7. I am going to have a "honeymoon suit" and let a couple live separate from the flock for 2 weeks at a time. However long it takes to get the correct amount of a sperm sack in the hen for a batch of eggs. I will learn more when the time comes.

And from now on I am NOT allowing grandchildren to name any that test Roo....

We just hatched 3 Rhode Island Reds and one of them tested Roo so we call him "no name mr man"

This is a work in progress and I am doing the best I can not to break any grandbaby's hearts.

 

[saddina]

As I understand it, generally only deformed chicks are culled at hatch. Here we wait untill there are clear rooster signs (crowing, sickle feathers, etc) and then the males are seperated. Now since you've become a vegitarian, I would suggest offering them on freecycle or craigslist or even the feed store as free roosters, and don't ask too much. Yes most will be eaten, but the alternative is wasting food that someone else may need/want. Even with ordering all pullets you'll still get some roosters, there's a reason they say 90% accurate.

 

[Eggs4Sale]

We have a polish hen, my 5yo daughters favorite. The hen crowed. Now we're stuck with this oddball roo of a breed we never would have picked. And DD wants her "Hattie" to have a wife. Ugh.

 

[Cetawin]

When it crows and you cannot have any more roos...try craigslist if you do not think you can do it yourself. I use a sharp axe and a tree stump...if it was one of my girls whom I love and I had to put her down I would do ether or something of that sort....last resort would be the sharp axe.

 

[saddina]

Add:

On culling a deformed chick, Mr Saddi used cervical snapping (broken neck), you'll need less pressure than breaking a pencil, I suggest wrapping it in a papertowel first. But that was a chick who was hatched deformed and slowly passing, not because of gender.

 

[Camelot Farms]

One of our young members....emzyy maybe?...has a small cooler that she has fixed up into a euthanizing 'system'.

Apparently when you mix baking soda and vinegar it creates carbondioxide or monoxide (I get them mixed up) and they just go to sleep.

Maybe do a search on here and see if you can find her description of how she does it.

Good luck....its never easy.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Since it was mentioned I'll give the link to the baking soda/vinegar method. I'd agree with the other posters. Craigslist is probably your best option.

Small animal euthanasia
http://www.alysion.org/euthanasia/