I feel awful for culling a rooster I recently got

[Thorn_shrike]

Today I made the decision to cull a rooster I got about a month before. I feel so bad because if I hadn’t gotten him he would still be at his old home managing hens. The woman I got him from did not want him back (way too many roos already). There were a few reasons I decided we couldn’t keep him. The main one being that he made it extremely difficult to handle the hens. Him freaking out when we came near made all them freak out. One of the last straws was a few days ago when my 7yr old daughter was trying to pick up a hen and he charged her from behind. He charged at her a few more times after that also. We just have a small backyard flock, so spending time with our birds and taming them is the #1 priority. He continued to bite me or attempt to bite every time I was doing anything in the coop. Every day my fingers got bit when I was closing the coop door, feeding, watering, grabbing a hen. He was a bantam so it’s not like he did any damage, but still very annoying. He also started crowing a lot more frequently. We live in a suburban neighborhood, and while there are no ordinances about chickens I don’t want to be a nuisance to my neighbors. He had also begun to overbreed one of my girls.

The culling went very smoothly, I used the broomstick method. I have never intentionally killed an animal before, so I’m extremely grateful it went well and that I didn’t make him suffer. He was very calm (which for him was saying a lot) as I positioned his head under the stick. He didn’t struggle or try to get loose as I lifted his legs up. I just gently lifted until I met the slightest bit of resistance and then quickly jerked back. I was gentle enough that his head did not rip off thank god. I knew to expect the flapping and muscle jerks but that didn’t make it any less horrible to feel his feet tensing and relaxing in my hands, knowing he was gone and it was because of me. I knew he was already gone when he was jerking, his little neck was immediately limp. I just can’t get the sound of his last breath out of my head. I keep picturing the drops of blood in the snow, and remembering how his eyes looked right after I was certain he was gone. I feel so bad. I almost think I went into shock, because looking back it doesn’t even seem like it actually happened.

Just needed a place to say everything.

 

[GirlsHuntToo]

Today I made the decision to cull a rooster I got about a month before. I feel so bad because if I hadn’t gotten him he would still be at his old home managing hens. The woman I got him from did not want him back (way too many roos already). There were a few reasons I decided we couldn’t keep him. The main one being that he made it extremely difficult to handle the hens. Him freaking out when we came near made all them freak out. One of the last straws was a few days ago when my 7yr old daughter was trying to pick up a hen and he charged her from behind. He charged at her a few more times after that also. We just have a small backyard flock, so spending time with our birds and taming them is the #1 priority. He continued to bite me or attempt to bite every time I was doing anything in the coop. Every day my fingers got bit when I was closing the coop door, feeding, watering, grabbing a hen. He was a bantam so it’s not like he did any damage, but still very annoying. He also started crowing a lot more frequently. We live in a suburban neighborhood, and while there are no ordinances about chickens I don’t want to be a nuisance to my neighbors. He had also begun to overbreed one of my girls.

The culling went very smoothly, I used the broomstick method. I have never intentionally killed an animal before, so I’m extremely grateful it went well and that I didn’t make him suffer. He was very calm (which for him was saying a lot) as I positioned his head under the stick. He didn’t struggle or try to get loose as I lifted his legs up. I just gently lifted until I met the slightest bit of resistance and then quickly jerked back. I was gentle enough that his head did not rip off thank god. I knew to expect the flapping and muscle jerks but that didn’t make it any less horrible to feel his feet tensing and relaxing in my hands, knowing he was gone and it was because of me. I knew he was already gone when he was jerking, his little neck was immediately limp. I just can’t get the sound of his last breath out of my head. I keep picturing the drops of blood in the snow, and remembering how his eyes looked right after I was certain he was gone. I feel so bad. I almost think I went into shock, because looking back it doesn’t even seem like it actually happened.

Just needed a place to say everything.

I'm sorry to hear about your rooster. Personally I only feel bad when I cause the animal to suffer. There was not suffering for your rooster. But if I felt like how you are feeling about every rooster and deer, I wouldn't be a hunter.
I am very sorry for your loss and I am sending hugs.
Please don't feel bad for your own good. There will probably be other roosters come along that will do the same thing. You wouldn't want him ending up hurting your daughter.

 

[Folly's place]

It's the tough part of chicken keeping and you did the right thing, absolutely. I'm sorry you had to do this, but your daughter is way more important than this obnoxious rooster.
And there might be a reason that he left his previous home, although that's not a sure thing. Being the only rooster at your house might have inspired him to be a jerk.
Mary

 

[GirlsHuntToo]

It's the tough part of chicken keeping and you did the right thing, absolutely. I'm sorry you had to do this, but your daughter is way more important than this obnoxious rooster.
And there might be a reason that he left his previous home, although that's not a sure thing. Being the only rooster at your house might have inspired him to be a jerk.
Mary

You did it for the safety of your daughter.

 

[Morrigan]

It's normal -- and healthy -- to feel strong emotions when you take a life. It's a serious business and you didn't do it lightly. However, you did the right thing and you did it well. Enjoy your peaceful flock. I'm sure the hens -- as well as your daughter -- are grateful not to deal with the rooster anymore.

 

[Red Mangrove]

Plenty of good roosters out there in need of homes. No need to tolerate dangerous ones

 

[CoopBoots]

If his previous home had too many roosters, his clock was ticking already! They weren't going to keep him forever. Nobody who has seen real rooster damage would fault you for a second for protecting your family, either. He simply couldn't stay and there was nowhere else for him to go, especially given his bad behavior.

I'm sorry you had to deal with an aggressive rooster. I would have done the same.

 

[Thorn_shrike]

If his previous home had too many roosters, his clock was ticking already! They weren't going to keep him forever. Nobody who has seen real rooster damage would fault you for a second for protecting your family, either. He simply couldn't stay and there was nowhere else for him to go, especially given his bad behavior.

I'm sorry you had to deal with an aggressive rooster. I would have done the same.

I was hoping he was just behaving that way because he wasn’t used to us yet and wasn’t sure the hens were safe with us but he was only getting worse. Thank you for the reassurance

 

[McChooky]

You deserve a huge hug and pat on the back for culling this rooster that attacked you and your child. You're not a killer you're a compassionate caretaker who gave him every chance

 

[bobbi-j]

You absolutely did the right thing. Your daughter’s safety is way more important than a chicken. I’m glad he didn’t suffer.