FREAKING OUT- gift I didn't want!

[blossom hen]

My current flock consists of: hens - 3 Buff Orpingtons, 2 EEs, 2 Dominiques, 3 BLRW bantams, 2 self-blue Dutch bantams and 1 OEGB rooster. They've been raised together; everything's great. And by Halloween we'll know whether the eggs are fertile - one dominique is sitting on two EE eggs and one of her own. Stay tuned....

 

[Akane]

Is there a reason you don't want to eat fertilized eggs? I know there are some people who are just morally against it but there are also alot of myths out there that people fall for and decide they shouldn't have fertilized eggs. Yes he is likely to mate with at least some of your standards.

A banty roo probably won't give you any trouble. They are too small even if they do get aggressive and they seem to be less likely to be aggressive than their standard counterparts. Roosters can be useful to protect the flock. They will alert the flock to danger so they can get to shelter and if you have a good roo will put themselves in danger to slow down a predator so the hens can escape. Dameru has turned out to be my brave little japanese bantam roo who faces down anything including the 80lb dog to protect his hens. Someday something will try to eat my chickens and Dameru will be lunch. That's his role in life. Make little damerus and get eaten in place of the hens. That's why Shi exists. He's my backup roo. Incidentally both names can be translated as "be quiet" or "shutup" in japanese.

 

[al6517]

Don't sweat the small stuff you and the chickens will be just fine. Nice neighbor though.

 

[dancingbear]

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When your hens start laying, they'll probably share nest boxes anyway. One more hen and a roo, especially bantams, won't make much difference at all. They won't all lay at once, anyway. The ones that do lay at the same time, will probably all try to climb into the same nest at the same time. Mine do that all the time.

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If this little roo has been handled a lot, I doubt he'll be a problem. I'd continue to handle him. Pick him up and pet him. Encourage other family members to do likewise.

In over 15 years of keeping chickens, with many, many roos that have come and gone, I've only had ONE that was human-aggressive. A buff Orpington, that everybody else says is a gentle breed. (and most are)

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He'll feed the hens treats, and help keep them entertained. If they free range at all, he'll warn them of danger. If you want to hatch any eggs, you'll need a roo.

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Why? I've heard people say this before, but I can't understand what the concern is. I've asked, but I never seem to get an answer to this one. So, please, what's your concern?

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Absolutely. A lot of people keep both.

 

[whatsup chickenbutt]

i also have a bantam rooster with my 11 standard hens, and he is so cute. He really is so small with all those big women, that I dont think he will ever be really agressive. He does look after them, not very well, but as good as he can. He has never attacked me, and like the other poster said, he is so small he wouldnt do any damage any way. I would just enjoy them. Actually, i didnt set out to get him either. I went to get hens, and they sort of pawned him off on me as a freebie. I only got him because he was so cute. Im really glad I did, he is so cute and funny. We all enjoy watching him. And his crow isnt bad at all. MUCH quieter than the standard roos across the street. Kind of like a half cockadoodledoo.

 

[snowydiamonds]

I'm warning you, banties and roo's will fast become your favorites! They steal your heart! They will entertain you, they will make you only want banties...and I'm not kidding

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

shakecc - Everyone has given you good advice about how nice your neighbor was and how much you will love your new chickens. i'm sure your neighbor was doing you a kindness. But any animal is an extra burden. Adding chickens to an existing flock is time consuming and energy draining. They will have to be quarantined for up to 30 days or more, to make sure they don't have something that could infect or kill your existing flock.

If you are happy with what you already have, then take the chickens back to your neighbor and thank him but tell him you don't have room for the extra birds. Any extra animal is extra work for the owner. He should not have thrust that on you, no matter how good his intentions were.

 

[skand]

Think of it this way, if he was the one who brought you the roo, then he is the one you don't have to worry about complaining of the crowing. A rooster is a wonderful addition. And if you decide you don't want him, you are only depriving yourself of a protector of your flock. You cannot possibly spend every minute with your flock, yet he can. In fact, he would give his life to protect your birds.

 

[shakecc]

Thank you for all the thoughts and answers! I especially appreciate the advice about rooster behavior and will make sure to assert myself if needed.
I am feeling luckier this morning than I was last night!

The little hen is much sweeter than any of my hens. To be honest my husband and I laid in bed this morning before the sun came up waiting to hear his crow. He crowed last night was nothing this morning, but probably just warming up to the place.

My neighbor said he bought 6 SLW bantys as day old chicks this summer which were supposed to be 1 roo and 5 hens, but ended up with 3 hens and 3 roos. I thought it was kind of him to not to try to pawn off a roo on me, but gifting the pair of them. I do indeed feel lucky to have such neighbors!

About those fertalized eggs...I am feeling better now that I have researched it. I am petrified of cracking a egg and finding a partially formed chick inside. If that happened I am sure I would never eat another egg again! But I plan on collecting eggs a couple times a day and sticking them in the fridge so hopefully no chance of that happening.

Thanks again...I'll keep everyone updated!

 

[Chickenaddict]

Wyandottes are sweet birds altho i have never had the bantam size, i did have a standard golden laced roo. I would still have him today if i didn't get overrun with standard size roos and pretty much nothing but bantam hens. I still miss my nelson

. Bantam roos will mate with standard size hens at least mine did. They do make excellent protectors and if food was scarce my little white cochin roo would feed the girls before he even thought about eating. Sometimes you get "unexpected gifts" that turn out to be something wonderful, and if things dont work out for you and the slw send em to me, i'd be happy to take them

. I would like others have said, quarantine them for 30 days just to be on the safe side, then slowly introduce them to the rest of your girls. Best of luck with your new additions