It's been two weeks, and my spidey senses are tingling.
He's just not acting like I THINK he should be acting.
We rescued a rooster from people that lived in the city and cannot have roosters. We think they had him, and all the other chickens, living inside, in the mud room, in very small cages. This rooster refuses to go out of the quarantine coop and run I set up for him two weeks ago. He looks fine, his poop looks good, etc.
He won't eat unless you put the bowl inside the coop in front of him. He's hardly touched the pellet feed I've put in his run, I believe they only fed him table scraps. She said they only fed him organic soy feed. (He will eat scrambled eggs heartily)Ugh. He should have blown through his 4 cups of pellets by now. In the morning, he should be blowing out of the coop when I open the pop door, to get to food and water. Instead, he sits in his coop. I have to push him out the pop door and close it behind him to keep him outside. Then he just sits on the ramp or under the coop, waiting to go back in.
When I shoo him out, he will walk around outside in the yard long enough to circle the run twice, but he's looking for an open door to get back in. Not exploring, not pecking at the ground.
He's friendly. You can pick him up without a fight, he wiggles, but doesn't try to rip your head off. That's if you can corner him to grab him.
Crowing..... nope. He crowed once on day #2, and a couple of times on day #3. I haven't heard him since. They said he is 6 months old, By the size of his comb and wattles, I think he's closer to 9 maybe 10 months old. He knows there are hens nearby. When the hens free range, he can see them, but doesn't come out of the coop to strut from quarantine.
So my question is..... do you think I should just dispatch him? my mommy senses says that there is something just Not quite right, and my girls are top priority.
He's just not acting like I THINK he should be acting.
We rescued a rooster from people that lived in the city and cannot have roosters. We think they had him, and all the other chickens, living inside, in the mud room, in very small cages. This rooster refuses to go out of the quarantine coop and run I set up for him two weeks ago. He looks fine, his poop looks good, etc.
He won't eat unless you put the bowl inside the coop in front of him. He's hardly touched the pellet feed I've put in his run, I believe they only fed him table scraps. She said they only fed him organic soy feed. (He will eat scrambled eggs heartily)Ugh. He should have blown through his 4 cups of pellets by now. In the morning, he should be blowing out of the coop when I open the pop door, to get to food and water. Instead, he sits in his coop. I have to push him out the pop door and close it behind him to keep him outside. Then he just sits on the ramp or under the coop, waiting to go back in.
When I shoo him out, he will walk around outside in the yard long enough to circle the run twice, but he's looking for an open door to get back in. Not exploring, not pecking at the ground.
He's friendly. You can pick him up without a fight, he wiggles, but doesn't try to rip your head off. That's if you can corner him to grab him.
Crowing..... nope. He crowed once on day #2, and a couple of times on day #3. I haven't heard him since. They said he is 6 months old, By the size of his comb and wattles, I think he's closer to 9 maybe 10 months old. He knows there are hens nearby. When the hens free range, he can see them, but doesn't come out of the coop to strut from quarantine.
So my question is..... do you think I should just dispatch him? my mommy senses says that there is something just Not quite right, and my girls are top priority.
