Happy Flock - and removing the rooster. Will it affect the morale?

[Henry&Friends]

Good to know. As there is a lot of room, they tend to lay where there is no poop (and have started to use the nesting boxes). I'm currently not worried about "poopy eggs", but you make a very good point.

i have a nest box that is uncovered and beside a favorite roosting spot. It’s also, coincidentally, the best nest in town. I love my blue Americana eggs, but since they’re the lightest they stain the easiest. Not really a problem for me, but when I give away eggs I always explain that they’re washed, just stained.

One of the eggs which she collected and used for breakfast turned out to be partially developed, and she just freaked out (as you can imagine).

Awe poor girl, my mom once pressure cooked a bunch of eggs. We opened the pot and it smelt awful, and going through the eggs we found some almost fully developed chicks. If the rooster is nice, I would totally sit down with her and explain how these things work— the rooster fertilizes the eggs, but the hens will sit on the eggs to develop the chicks. Who knows, later on you guys might want some chicks after all.

 

[Morrigan]

I had a rooster for many years, that I had to remove when he became too old and temperamental to be a good flock leader. I noticed a few changes when he was gone.

--The hens no longer ranged as far from the coop. Before, the rooster would lead them out to various parts of the yard in a regular rotation. After he was gone, the hens almost never went to the far reaches of the yard, and tended to cluster around the coop.

--There was some skirmishing in the pecking order, which included hens mounting and bullying other hens.

--Some hens now squatted when I approached them, something they never did before.

After a few months, I raised up a little Naked Neck cockerel as a replacement, who at 8 months is showing great potential. Right now, he is separated from my main flock by a see-through wire fence. Even though he is not "with" the flock, the mounting and squatting-for-me behavior have stopped, and the hens typically cluster around the fence where the cockerel is.

My general view from watching all this play out is that a good rooster can improve flock dynamics and that -- depending on the rooster involved -- many hens seem to enjoy (or at least are drawn to) a rooster. That being said, I think a flock can be healthy and happy without a rooster as well, particularly if the rooster is over-zealous when it comes to mating.

As far as the eggs go, if you collect them every day, you should never have a problem with fertile eggs starting to develop.

The best part about having a rooster is that you have ready access to hatching eggs if you have a hen go broody. Plus I like the crowing.

 

[rosemarythyme]

One of the eggs which she collected and used for breakfast turned out to be partially developed, and she just freaked out (as you can imagine). She doesn't want any chance of this.

I'm also looking for discussion points to have with my daughter (the chicks as much hers as mine)... plus, the kids have taken to them as you can see in the photo.

Yeah I can't blame her for finding that upsetting, but the reality is, if your family is diligent about picking up eggs, you will never get a developed egg. I check for eggs in the morning while doing feeding and clean up around the coop, and then again in the afternoon when I let them out on the grass for a little bit. If she's really paranoid make sure to stick all eggs in the fridge, so you're guaranteed that the eggs are stored way too cold for development.

(whispers) Also I hate to break it to your daughter, but there's a good chance she's eaten other fertilized eggs before without ever knowing. Some grocers carry them (marked on carton) but eggs from a farmer's market, other backyard chicken keepers and even places like Trader Joes can be fertilized. Yes, folks on here have hatched Trader Joes eggs.

As far as broodiness, presence of eggs isn't the cause, it's a hormonal thing. A truly dedicated broody can try and brood nothing but the nest itself, no eggs required.

 

[Geena]

The best part about having a rooster is that you have ready access to hatching eggs if you have a hen go broody. Plus I like the crowing.

For sure and they are so handsome to boot. I love my boys.

I think there are so many variables - breed, age, housing, management, it's maybe hard to predict how hens might act when a rooster is removed. I got to thinking, I raise my cockerels up with older hens and that likely makes for slightly different dynamic in my flocks.

 

[Geena]

My inner self would think the chickens say to themselves... "hey, what happened to snowball"... and cause un-necessary distraction, distress.?? But... they are just little dinosours. My daughter hears this logic and says I need to get a dog (ROFL). I dunno.

I think they probably will wonder what happened to him, but not for long. In my experience chickens don't spend all that much time worrying about such things. Were he taken by a predator, they might be shook up for weeks, but if you just go in one night and pull him off the roost they'll get over it in no time.

 

[aart]

Personally, it is not an ethical issue for us. My daughter was traumatized a few years back when she was "chicken sitting" a neighbor's flock. She would go every few days to make sure they had food/water and collect the eggs. One of the eggs which she collected and used for breakfast turned out to be partially developed, and she just freaked out (as you can imagine). She doesn't want any chance of this. I personally believe the advantages of having a roo more than out weigh the disadvantages... I'm Looking for experiences with egg layers and those who have roo's as part of their flock.

How old is your daughter?
I have a customer that was concerned about this(an adult) once I explained how that can happen and that I would never let it, she was fine with it. Same with blood and meat spots.

@rosemarythyme sums it up nicely here:

Yeah I can't blame her for finding that upsetting, but the reality is, if your family is diligent about picking up eggs, you will never get a developed egg.

This^^^

It could have been a large blood spot or uterine lining shedding. That would scare me as well if I saw it.

Chicken don't she uterine lining like humans do.
Blood spots and meat spots do happen tho.
I think it's explained in this excellent video, which is worth watching regardless:

 

[higgy62]

For sure and they are so handsome to boot. I love my boys.

I think there are so many variables - breed, age, housing, management, it's maybe hard to predict how hens might act when a rooster is removed. I got to thinking, I raise my cockerels up with older hens and that likely makes for slightly different dynamic in my flocks.

I think snowball is really good looking also - as of now, he's not crowing much, but is acting like a real protector.

All good suggestions. Thanks!

 

[higgy62]

How old is your daughter?
I have a customer that was concerned about this(an adult) once I explained how that can happen and that I would never let it, she was fine with it. Same with blood and meat spots.

@rosemarythyme sums it up nicely here:
This^^^


Chicken don't she uterine lining like humans do.
Blood spots and meat spots do happen tho.
I think it's explained in this excellent video, which is worth watching regardless:

My daughter is close to 30 and is an RN. She understands about the dinosaur's reproductive system. This happened a few years ago. As of now, after our discussions, she is OK with me fetching the eggs every morning/evening (it is my habit already to make sure everything is clean and dry, and that they are well fed and watered). Even though I have automated watering and feeding systems, I still visit daily, give them scraps and scratch, and clean things out.

As for storage, I have a refrigerator in the garage, so when I collect the eggs, I put them in new containers, label them with dates and put in fridge. This is a good way for me to keep track of them, and make sure the eggs are protected after removing them from the nesting boxes. I don't wash them.

 

[rosemarythyme]

My daughter is close to 30 and is an RN. She understands about the dinosaur's reproductive system.

LOL sorry I assumed your daughter was a child, so didn't mean to talk down to her. Still must be traumatizing to crack and egg and have something more than white and yolk pop out!

 

[higgy62]

I think they probably will wonder what happened to him, but not for long. In my experience chickens don't spend all that much time worrying about such things. Were he taken by a predator, they might be shook up for weeks, but if you just go in one night and pull him off the roost they'll get over it in no time.

Good to know.
As of now, I think we are going to keep him with the flock. He seems to help with the pecking order (albeit a bit bossy sometimes)... plus he really is a good looking dude.

This is not the BEST photo, but this is him this am - They are all about 5 months old now and the girls are just starting to lay -this past week.