No Crow Collar and emasculated rooster

[ruriksson]

Hi. I just got a No Crow Collar for my Legbar rooster. Ever since it's been on, he has not mounted any of the hens. The alpha hen actually pecked him and drew blood the first day. Then I found him sleeping in one of the nest boxes. He lost his roost!

Has anyone else had this experience with the collar? Is it just him getting used to it?

Thanks.

 

[lazy gardener]

I know my comment will not be liked by many, but I can't say as I blame him. The physiology behind the workings of those collars is not pretty imo.

 

[Teila]

How long has he had the collar?

We are not allowed to have roosters where I am and so that I do not risk the unwanted attention of having the authorities on my doorstep, I have not attempted to keep one so I have no personal experience with the no-crow collar but I have a friend who has.

Her first BCM rooster she tried it on was not happy with it initially but got used to it. She was not that happy with the ones she bought and ended up making her own.

I have heard of a few roosters choking to death while wearing the collar. Even with the correct setting, sometimes there is the risk of them eating something a bit bigger than normal and it not being able to move past the collar.

My friend nearly lost her boy when she was tweaking the collar and it was a little too tight. It took her probably two weeks of early morning tweakings to find the right setting. He still mounted his hens and went on to become a father.

May be the setting is not quite right on your guy and these are the symptoms.

There are many threads about the pros and cons of the no crow collar and you may find someone on one of those who has had a similar experience.

 

[ruriksson]

I got him a couple of weeks ago. While I was waiting for the collar, he mounted every hen and asserted himself as "king" in the first couple of days. The collar has been on a few days. He's eating and drinking fine; he struts and flaps his wings as usual. There's just no mounting and the hens don't seem to squat for him.

 

[aart]

I got him a couple of weeks ago. While I was waiting for the collar, he mounted every hen and asserted himself as "king" in the first couple of days. The collar has been on a few days. He's eating and drinking fine; he struts and flaps his wings as usual. There's just no mounting and the hens don't seem to squat for him.

The heightened activity when he first came was him asserting his dominance, mounting is not just a sexual/reproductive activity.
Now that he has established himself, mounting less often is normal and actually good as you dont' want 'over-bred' girls.
Mounting can happen so quick that you may miss it unless you are watching them every second they are awake.

The lack of mounting along with the installation of collar may just be a coincidence ...or the collar may be bothering him more than you think.
Are you seeing the hens not squatting when he tries to mount...or are you just not seeing any mounting.
They can 'turn him down' normally too...one mating can suffice for weeks... a good cockbird will not pursue an unwilling hen.

 

[ruriksson]

I took him aside and gave him a pep talk last night and today he mounted two hens while I was there! (Interestingly, he only mounted the two that are currently laying.)

 

[aart]

I took him aside and gave him a pep talk last night and today he mounted two hens while I was there! (Interestingly, he only mounted the two that are currently laying.)

Perfectly normal and a good sign of a smart and discriminate boy.
His first mountings were more dominance mounting than procreation mountings, why bother inseminating a bird that is not laying?

 

[ruriksson]

Perfectly normal and a good sign of a smart and discriminate boy.
His first mountings were more dominance mounting than procreation mountings, why bother inseminating a bird that is not laying?

"Smart and descriminate" but certainly no gentleman. He's been hogging all the food and treats and pecking at the hens.

 

[aart]

Quote: Yeah, well, boys.......how old is he?

 

[ruriksson]

The person I bought him from said he was about 1 year old. He still has just 1/2" nubs for spurs. He grew up in a bachelor flock, so I suppose fighting for food is what he's used to. Hopefully courting instincts will emerge as he ages.