My Question Is This: Do you have regrets keeping your rooster?

[triciayoung]

As long as your neighbors don't complain about the noise I would say keep him. You can still eat fertilized eggs and they taste no different from normal eggs. I always have at least one rooster in each flock, and some extras that I hatched that just get to free range

Right. Every flock needs a rooster.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I've had roosters that turned out to be jerks to the girls, and had to get rid of them. I've had a rooster or two that was a jerk to me and/ or my kid... and got rid of them. I've also had, and currently have, rooster(s) that are absolutely amazing, that take good care of the flock, respect me and other humans and are worth their weight in diamonds. As another poster said, the only way to know is to try them out and see how they do. I love having a GOOD rooster for my flock although in general we're not in it for breeding. It's just that the hens are calmer and happier with a good rooster around. My Rojo has about 7 or 8 that love him so much they are like groupies around a rock star, and one little Dom hen that is practically joined to him at the hip. He's a great flockmaster; may he live forever!

 

[LizzzyJo]

This is a common question in here and it gets common answers. Someone who ends up with a cockerel finds out that they rarely get adopted. They want to hear that he’ll be a good boy. People with good experiences say he will be, those with bad experiences say he won’t be. Basically it comes down to this - some are good and some aren’t. If he’s really bad then he will do something horrific that makes you kill him out of protection of your family and flock ( even after we say we never would). Then there is peace restored.

You’ll be fine. If, one day, he goes berserk and does something irredeemable then you won’t mind killing him because your own protective instincts will take over.

I’ve had to go down this road before. It’ll be ok. I have an adopted rooster now who doesn’t crow or mate. He’s a little gentleman bantam. So I’m not anti roo.

Good luck!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Also ... others have said that if you gather eggs daily it won't make any difference if the eggs are fertilized or not. That's because it takes 21 or so days of dedicated incubation either under a nice warm hen or in an incubator to turn a fertilized egg into an adorable baby chick. If you gather eggs daily, you won't have any unpleasant surprises in your breakfast skillet.

 

[BeeJayBird]

I have never regretted keeping a rooster. I have, however, regretted rehoming a few, as they all ended up dying shortly after being rehomed. I also regret getting chickens without having a backup plan in place for the roosters, and I regret not learning about rooster-only flocks sooner.

I've had roosters that turned out to be jerks to the girls, and had to get rid of them. I've had a rooster or two that was a jerk to me and/ or my kid... and got rid of them. I've also had, and currently have, rooster(s) that are absolutely amazing, that take good care of the flock, respect me and other humans and are worth their weight in diamonds. As another poster said, the only way to know is to try them out and see how they do. I love having a GOOD rooster for my flock although in general we're not in it for breeding. It's just that the hens are calmer and happier with a good rooster around. My Rojo has about 7 or 8 that love him so much they are like groupies around a rock star, and one little Dom hen that is practically joined to him at the hip. He's a great flockmaster; may he live forever!

Thank you! Good info.

 

[BeeJayBird]

I have never regretted keeping a rooster. I have, however, regretted rehoming a few, as they all ended up dying shortly after being rehomed. I also regret getting chickens without having a backup plan in place for the roosters, and I regret not learning about rooster-only flocks sooner.

Thank you!

 

[SirPecksALot]

We've had quite a few roosters over the time we've had chickens. We've had a bunch we did have to get rid of- whether they were aggressive to people, or the chicks, or just had really poor genetics. But we've also had a couple great roosters- including our current Legbar X roo, Ketchup. Whether you should keep them or not is a matter of personal choice, and the bird in question. But we've found that keeping a calm rooster can help keep a calm flock. Sometimes they'll even break up squabbles between the hens. Also, you can still eat the eggs. As for them causing grief for the hens, again, it depends on the bird. When Ketchup was younger, he did have a 'favourite' hen who he'd harass a bit too often, but as he's grown up, he's calmed down even more. Most of our other roosters we've had, we never had a problem with. Once there was a bit of a problem where a young roo was harassing and attacking a particular pullet constantly, but that's not something we've had to deal with often. I would keep an eye on your cockerel, because most of the issues we've had with ours occurred when they were a little bit older, but you probably won't run into any issues. From what I've read, Orpingtons are usually pretty docile.

 

[BeeJayBird]

We've had quite a few roosters over the time we've had chickens. We've had a bunch we did have to get rid of- whether they were aggressive to people, or the chicks, or just had really poor genetics. But we've also had a couple great roosters- including our current Legbar X roo, Ketchup. Whether you should keep them or not is a matter of personal choice, and the bird in question. But we've found that keeping a calm rooster can help keep a calm flock. Sometimes they'll even break up squabbles between the hens. Also, you can still eat the eggs. As for them causing grief for the hens, again, it depends on the bird. When Ketchup was younger, he did have a 'favourite' hen who he'd harass a bit too often, but as he's grown up, he's calmed down even more. Most of our other roosters we've had, we never had a problem with. Once there was a bit of a problem where a young roo was harassing and attacking a particular pullet constantly, but that's not something we've had to deal with often. I would keep an eye on your cockerel, because most of the issues we've had with ours occurred when they were a little bit older, but you probably won't run into any issues. From what I've read, Orpingtons are usually pretty docile.

Thank you! Love the name Ketchup! I am no longer looking to re-home Louise/Larry. It was proving to be way too stressful because I wasn’t willing to just give him to anyone, or go to a swap meet. And, we really like him! Most replies gave more pros than cons, and pointing out that personality/potential aggressiveness is a toss…and we may end up with a polite/respectful rooster. I will just hope for that. It was fun to read how so many folks just love their roosters! The fact he is an Orpington seems to be in our favor. We are noticing lots of changes in L/L…little antics here and there that have us laughing. I hope he continues to make us laugh, and not cringe. He’s going to be BIG…at 3 months he is almost as big as our Rhode Island Red! *bjb

 

[wrathsfarm]

Thank you! Love the name Ketchup! I am no longer looking to re-home Louise/Larry. It was proving to be way too stressful because I wasn’t willing to just give him to anyone, or go to a swap meet. And, we really like him! Most replies gave more pros than cons, and pointing out that personality/potential aggressiveness is a toss…and we may end up with a polite/respectful rooster. I will just hope for that. It was fun to read how so many folks just love their roosters! The fact he is an Orpington seems to be in our favor. We are noticing lots of changes in L/L…little antics here and there that have us laughing. I hope he continues to make us laugh, and not cringe. He’s going to be BIG…at 3 months he is almost as big as our Rhode Island Red! *bjb

"Hey everybody !!! He's keeping his Roo!!"

 

[Chullicken]

Never regretted any of my boys, though I never had a bad one and there are bad ones out there. Two of the three where irritatingly loud and screechy but they where my boys regardless. One even hated my mother who'd meander to my coop sometimes and he knew I fully believe I didn't want her near it. So I'd often find him chasing her off, great fun for me to watch. XD