Thank you for asking, I am highly flattered.
My current rooster - I have never touched. He was raised up under Mrs. Feathers - who raised up my all time top rooster 'Bye'. Bye was ugly as sin, but had truly great traits.
Traits I like to see:
- Calmness when I am around, he should just casually move away from me, generally has his girls behind him. But if you were not looking for that, you might not even notice.
- His girls hang on his every cluck.
- He is the first to see me, when I approach the coup. When they are out free ranging - his head is often up looking around
- Of course he tidbits to his girls and has a crow I like.
- He keeps his girls together. Last week, when Sargent was promoted to Lieutenant - I had 3 hens go out of sight over a small hill. I was cleaning things - and all of a sudden, I saw his head go up, he ran up the hill, and in moments he and the girls came back to the rest of the flock
- He can tolerate a crying grandchild, who got left when he was sure he was old enough to go work cattle. Again, the rooster should remain calm and move away.
- A rooster is interested in the nests and will show nests to hens (they seldom agree with him, but it is fun to watch).
- Fertilized eggs - but feathers are not ruffled - accept at the end.
- Hens do not object to being bred
- Predator awareness- now a lot of people on here poo poo the idea of a rooster helping with flock protection. And without a doubt, there are limits. However, I truly free range as in many many acres - we are a ranch, we have predators. With an adult rooster close to a year old, I have almost no day time predator loss. I have never had a senior hen come close to this. (However, I don't free range all of the time)
- I notice that at night right now, the pullets coming into lay, with bright red combs are sitting right next him, the other birds still out of lay are farther away.
- He did not bother pullets until they reddened up
Traits I do not tolerate:
* the evil eye, the flapping of wings at me, the excess crowing at me, and charging or attacking me. I don't like it if there is strife in the flock.
I keep a dozen hens - I like a single rooster with them. Last summer, I had two youngish roosters - when I got rid of one, I could not believe the difference it made in the flock. The tension that I was not even aware of, was gone. Later on, that rooster took to picking on a mature BA hen, he was gone. I am not interested in fixing roosters - don't really believe in it.
The current fellow I got, came out of the above rooster. He will be a year old in July. He is working out well. I of course am hoping for another "Bye", but I know that you don't get many of them.
Mrs K
