ELI5 Why do so many ppl treat chickens expendable??

[MysteryChicken]

Extra, or unwanted roosters/Cockerels here I try to sell, if no one buys, we eat them.
Same with pullets/hens.

 

[ChicNmom]

There are just too many roosters. Just like when an animal shelter has too many unadoptable pets they sadly get euthanized.

No one needs a nasty rooster either.

Also it depends on how someone is raised. I have a neighbor who will kill any chicken that becomes inconvenient or that she just doesn't like. And her preferred method of culling horrifies me.

And yet she would give you the shirt off her back if you were in need.

 

[z3lda3]

Unfortunately, what else are you supposed to do with older birds or extra/aggressive males? A lot of times you can't give them away, and not everyone can/will process each and every bird. At least as Bait or soil food they're still being used

If the older bird is suffering the humane thing would be to end it, like any living creature.
From what I’ve been reading it’s ppl buying straight run or hatching without a plan for the roosters. It’s a callous attitude of ‘eh I’ll just kill it’.

 

[Pampered chicken girl]

I’m not wanting an argument I’m genuinely trying to understand. Why are chickens, especially roosters treated so expendable? (Not talking about broilers). I’ve seen and read so many ppl culling their chickens/unwanted roosters and throwing out the body with the garbage. Unwanted rooster, kill it, burn it or bury it. And just recently I read about a person who killed his roosters and used the body for bait. Can someone explain to me why this is acceptable? If it was a cat or dog it’d be cruelty to animals and illegal.

Well they are poultry. What else can one do with an extra rooster? They can't be sold or given away in most instances and get attacked by your other rooster so you have to cull. I think you should at least eat it or use the meat, not throw it away but that's up to the person culling. It's just how it is. Poultry are not like dogs or cats, they just are not. Using it for bait isn't a bad idea imo, it got used that's all that matters

 

[z3lda3]

Extra, or unwanted roosters/Cockerels here I try to sell, if no one buys, we eat them.
Same with pullets/hens.

You EAT them. We serve them, they serve us. I’m talking about just literally throwing them out with no thought or caring.

There are just too many roosters. Just like when an animal shelter has too many unadoptable pets they sadly get euthanized.

No one needs a nasty rooster either.

Also it depends on how someone is raised. I have a neighbor who will kill any chicken that becomes inconvenient or that she just doesn't like. And her preferred method of culling horrifies me.

And yet she would give you the shirt off her back if you were in need.

Well they are poultry. What else can one do with an extra rooster? They can't be sold or given away in most instances and get attacked by your other rooster so you have to cull. I think you should at least eat it or use the meat, not throw it away but that's up to the person culling. It's just how it is. Poultry are not like dogs or cats, they just are not. Using it for bait isn't a bad idea imo, it got used that's all that matters

There are just too many roosters. Just like when an animal shelter has too many unadoptable pets they sadly get euthanized.

No one needs a nasty rooster either.

Also it depends on how someone is raised. I have a neighbor who will kill any chicken that becomes inconvenient or that she just doesn't like. And her preferred method of culling horrifies me.

And yet she would give you the shirt off her back if you were in need.

Idk maybe ppl become desensitized. All kinds of forums about chucking out a rooster with no thought, and yesterday I overheard a guy in a feed store talk about pulling out his roosters spurs with pliers.. and I’m just so confused why some cruel things are acceptable in chicken world.

 

[Azhtann]

There is a way to make the spurs smaller for roosters with problematic long spurs with pliers. I'm hoping he was talking about that.

 

[z3lda3]

There is a way to make the spurs smaller for roosters with problematic long spurs with pliers. I'm hoping he was talking about that.

I have no clue, but he was talking about packing them with flour to stop the bleeding. And the other guy was saying just hope the holes don’t get infected. I just took my lime and got out of there.

 

[CoopBoots]

I don't think one can find logical consistency between "pets" and "food". Some animals are easier, or healthier, to eat than others, sure. But each is uniquely special if you've had the chance to get to know it. This definition of some sacrosanct animals, but not others, doesn't hold up imo.

This said, I eat my excess. I can only care for so large of a naturally reproductive flock. As long as I eat any meat, better for it to be animals already given a good life and not some poor factory Cornish that thinks the sun is a light bulb and will never taste grass. Less support for factory raised is a very good thing, both for meat and eggs.

 

[NatJ]

I’m not wanting an argument I’m genuinely trying to understand. Why are chickens, especially roosters treated so expendable? (Not talking about broilers). I’ve seen and read so many ppl culling their chickens/unwanted roosters and throwing out the body with the garbage. Unwanted rooster, kill it, burn it or bury it. And just recently I read about a person who killed his roosters and used the body for bait. Can someone explain to me why this is acceptable? If it was a cat or dog it’d be cruelty to animals and illegal.

If the rooster is killed humanely, why would it care what happens to the body after it is dead?

And why would broilers get any exception? They are still chickens.

My personal view:
--any killing should be done in a humane fashion (preferably no pain and no fear for the bird, otherwise keep those as low as possible)
--what happens to the body afterward is personal preference. It can be eaten, used as dog food, buried, etc. Just don't put it somewhere that causes problems for you or anyone else (don't dig up someone's flower bed to bury it, don't put it in the garbage unless that is allowed in your area, don't leave it in plain sight to offend your neighbors, etc.)
--it usually does not make sense to have a person eat a chicken that is more than a certain amount small (example: day-old chicks that have health issues), or one that is sick (might not be safe for the person), or injured (meat quality may not be good, and depending on the injury it may not be safe for the person).

As you can see from the responses to this thread, people have many different views. So I am just adding mine to the collection

just recently I read about a person who killed his roosters and used the body for bait. Can someone explain to me why this is acceptable?

Would it be acceptable to buy chicken meat at the store and use that for bait? If it is acceptable to use chicken meat for that purpose, I don't see a reason to fuss about which way the person gets the meat.

And I'm curious: bait for what? A trap to catch a predator? Going fishing?

 

[z3lda3]

I don't think one can find logical consistency between "pets" and "food". Some animals are easier, or healthier, to eat than others, sure. But each is uniquely special if you've had the chance to get to know it. This definition of some sacrosanct animals, but not others, doesn't hold up imo.

This said, I eat my excess. I can only care for so large of a naturally reproductive flock. As long as I eat any meat, better for it to be animals already given a good life and not some poor factory Cornish that thinks the sun is a light bulb and will never taste grass. Less support for factory raised is a very good thing, both for meat and eggs.

Definitely agreed!