Hormonal caponizing?

[perellodaniela]

Hey guys, hope everyone’s doing great!

So… apparently I’ve hatched three cockerels and one pullet. They’re pets and I don’t eat meat.
I’m really sad about having to give them away and I don’t want them to fight or hurt my hens when they grow up. I already have one roo and five hens, so if the sex predictions turn out to be right I’d end up with four roos and six hens.

Question is… since I’ll never be eating them, is it a bad idea to caponize them hormonally? Here’s some pictures of the chicks!

 

[Mrs. K]

This is an awkward fact of chickens, and they do not have any moral beliefs. You will need to separate the rooster chicks out, probably about 3-4 months or they will make your pullets life hell.

I have never heard of a chemical capon. It would be for life, in that you would need to medicate it everyday. And if you do not start it early enough, they will still crow, I think.

I think the sooner you move them on, the happier you will be. It is hard work to go against mother nature.

Mrs K

 

[NatJ]

You could try a bachelor flock-- a group of just males that live in a pen of their own, with no females in the group. I've never tried it, but I've read that it works for some people. With no hens, the males cannot overmate the hens, and they also have less reason to fight. Then you could have the current rooster with the hens and the pullet (after she grows up.)

I don't know enough about hormonal caponizing to give advice there, but you would probably need to talk to a vet about it anyway. (If you can find a vet who is willing to deal with chickens. Many vets won't.)

 

[aart]

caponize them hormonally

Do you mean chemical castrating?
Not sure there is such a thing...
....tho there's a hormonal implant for females that I've seen posted a few times.

Caponizing(surgically removing the testicles) is tricky business and has to be done by 6-8 weeks. Probably won't find a vet that would do it, but there are several threads about it if you do a search.

 

[NatJ]

Do you mean chemical castrating?
Not sure there is such a thing...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capon
"Caponisation can be done by surgically removing the bird's testes, or may also be accomplished through the use of estrogen implants."

 

[Mrs. K]

wow - I did look this up, it was more on keeping a hen from laying, but at $150-400 for 10 months, it is hard to believe people will do this.

Also it did say it had to be done to roosters early, and that they will probably not look like roosters, a more hen like appearance.

Goodness we have gone to gender confusion in chickens!Just kidding

Mrs K

 

[romea]

Do you mean chemical castrating?
Not sure there is such a thing...
....tho there's a hormonal implant for females that I've seen posted a few times.

Caponizing(surgically removing the testicles) is tricky business and has to be done by 6-8 weeks. Probably won't find a vet that would do it, but there are several threads about it if you do a search.

Can you please enlighten me why it has to be done by 6-8 weeks? What happens if the bird is closer to maturity at, say, 3 months of age?

 

[Mrs. K]

If you do it too late, the rooster will keep the male characteristics that most people are trying to get rid of such as crowing, and mounting hens, and aggression.

 

[romea]

If you do it too late, the rooster will keep the male characteristics that most people are trying to get rid of such as crowing, and mounting hens, and aggression.

Yes, I understand that but at 3 months of age, most roosters (at least afaIk) are not yet crowing & mounting.
I am actually currently talking to a vet that is willing to caponize a rooster for me but in order to not blotch the surgery, the testes need to be developed further so they are more easily identifiable/removable. I should also mention that I am talking about a bantam breed in my case...

 

[Mrs. K]

The thing is, because the testosterone has been present all along, the mischief is done. That is how it is in other farm animals.

From what I have read on here is that many still crow if you do it too late, and many still have aggression if they were before. Just a warning that it might not work.

Do come back here and report. Few people do it, originally it was done to keep the meat more tender, not about crowing.