Decision to butcher rooster?

[Livvydays]

Well it may have to come to butchering my rooster soon. He's about 24 weeks old. I've picked him up and tried to make sure he would be a nice rooster but over the past couple weeks he's becoming mean. I tried to understand the times he pecked me to see if I was somehow triggering him but it's all different times and situations even when being extra cautious of setting him off. This morning I had to defend myself by kicking him a few times each time he kept coming back to attack me. I didn't want do that but I had to defend myself. I'm sad he wasn't a nice rooster even though I tried my best. He was my favorite chicken as a little chick. Any feedback or just support welcomed.

Is it even worth butchering a 24 week rooster? It would be good practice if nothing else.

 

[DemeterAD9]

You are making the right choice, you should never have to fear being attacked by your roosters. I have one good boy who was always a gentleman right from the start but it did take 8 other cockerel before I settled on him. I can crawl around on the ground (when I check for eggs under the coop) feed him by hand, touch the hens when he is nearby (which I don’t do often) and walk right up to him without fear of being pecked or kicked. My roosters must be good because I have nieces and nephew who run around like heathens while the birds free range.

From the several cockerels I’m raised only a few made it to 20 some weeks as most were too rough with the girls for my liking. Of those few, one turned bad anyway and he was my first choice from my very first batch of chicks. I had already culled the other 4 and was left with him as he was always very “friendly”. I soon found out his friendly behavior was not as friendly as I thought. Since then I never baby any of the chicks while they grow up, unless I know they are pullets. I’d rather they have a good amount of fear or caution around me than think they can come right up and get in my space like I allowed that cockerel I coddled as a chick.

Watch some YouTube video on how to do it. Dispatching is the hardest part but once that is over everything else is not so bad IMO. I use a pellet gun, one holding their feet as they lay on the ground the other holding the gun to shoot them in the back of the head. It’s over in an instant.

24 week should give a decent amount of meat but it will be a bit tougher than a 15 week old cockerel. I suggest you roast/bake this one. Tossing it in the crockpot will work great too. It’s up to you if you want to skin or pluck. I tend to skin and part out the older ones and pluck the tender ones to either fry or put on the rotisserie. Good luck!

I butchered a 25 week old cockerel last week and the carcass was decent. He’s the larger one on the left. He ended up being quite tasty as compared to the older laying hen on the right.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Any feedback or just support welcomed.

If you read enough posts on this forum, you will that some cockerels cuddled and pampered as chicks, some that are basically ignored, and some anywhere in between turn out to be absolute brutes toward people. You will find others treated the same way that behave appropriately toward humans. The entire maturing process is very complicated, you can get a lot of different results even if two different cockerels are treated identically. As I often say, you do not get guarantees when you deal with behaviors of living animals.

Is it even worth butchering a 24 week rooster? It would be good practice if nothing else.

I think so. At that age I bake mine. Cut him in serving pieces and put him in a tightly sealed baking dish with a carrot, celery, onion, garlic, and some herbs, then bake on 250 F for 2-1/2 to 3 hours. Fall off the bone tender and moist. Don't forget to age him until rigor mortis has passed.

I typically skin mine but plucking isn't that bad. At that age some parts if the skin like the back and legs can be hard to get off. Connective tissue connecting the skin to the skin to the body has probably started to form. They are past their last juvenile molt so you should not see many pin feathers.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

bake mine. Cut him in serving pieces and put him in a tightly sealed baking dish with a carrot, celery, onion, garlic, and some herbs, then bake on 250 F for 2-1/2 to 3 hours. Fall off the bone tender and moist.

I used this method on a cockerel just last week, Ridgerunner and it was delicious, thank you.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

If you read enough posts on this forum, you will that some cockerels cuddled and pampered as chicks, some that are basically ignored, and some anywhere in between turn out to be absolute brutes toward people.

This is all true. I have had a lot of cockerels but kept very few. Several of them have gone to live with my mom and I am confident in saying that the ones raised by me and handled often as chicks turned into the biggest jerks as did the ones raised only with pullets their own age. I have also tried ignoring them and ended up with jerks. It’s a bit of a crap shoot but it really depends on what you want a rooster for. The rooster I have now has a job to do. I got him as an adult and he never showed any aggression toward his previous owners or me. He was raised in a multi-generational free range flock. He has a job to do because I free range. I do think handling them can set them up for failure to a certain extent but some people do have success with that method. With young kids I couldn’t risk it so went the opposite route.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I should say I think it’s time to introduce your rooster to a crock pot. My last jerk was much less aggressive than you’re describing and he got cooked. My mom hasn’t butchered the worst offender I raised for her and I’m not sure why she keeps him based on the injuries she’s sustained.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I should say I think it’s time to introduce your rooster to a crock pot. My last jerk was much less aggressive than you’re describing and he got cooked. My mom hasn’t butchered the worst offender I raised for her and I’m not sure why she keeps him based on the injuries she’s sustained.

Does she know how? Maube she could use a hand.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Does she know how? Maube she could use a hand.

That’s the crazy thing! She used to have a chopping stump all set up for exactly this purpose. I think she’s lost her stomach for it because she hasn’t bothered learning a less messy method and with their predator load she often loses birds to hawks, mountain lions etc. So maybe she is just hoping he will get picked off.

 

[Fluffy_Butt_Hutt]

Roosters, like humans, come out foul and cocky (pun intended), when not checked by someone above them. Raising a young roo in a flock with a top hen or rooster already established can make that roo understand that it sucks to be mean. This is not a guaranteed method, hormones obviously effects how the roo will come out in the end. Coddling and having that roo think it can go unchecked will end up solely being a gamble with their mood post-puberty.