Oh no...my silkie chick grew up to be a rooster!! What do I do now?!?

[csaikley]

Newbie here (first time chicken owner)...This is a newbie mistake for sure. So, this is what happened. I bought six chicks, two Silkies and four Ameraucanas and all were guaranteed to be female. So, as my small flock grew I wanted a rooster and I bought a Copper Maran Rooster. All was going great, but then I noticed my white Silkie was getting a crest. I thought that was odd, but didn't think anything of it. Then her cheeks receded and flesh appeared...I still didn't get it. Then I heard a second crowing that was weaker than my Rooster and I thought one of my pullets was imitating my rooster...still didn't get it.

AND then I saw my Silkie on the back of the Ameraucana pulling at her neck and then I finally got it!!!

My big aggressive Silkie is a Roo!!! It is okay to laugh. Believe my I am feeling pretty silly, but honestly I was told they were all girls and they come from a reputable breeder in our area.

So, now my question. Can I keep two Rosters??? My 14 year old daughter loves the Silkies. Could you, more experienced chicken owners, help me know what to expect and how to proceed? All of my chickens are free range now and only in the hen house at night.

 

[cnicho05]

Hello,

To answer you question you would have to consider the environment where you keep your chickens. You mentioned it was free-range, which is great when dealing with roasters. As long as you have enough room for them to live together you should be fine. People oftentimes have problems which they attempt to place several roasters together into a small run or coop. It is at this time they become aggressive with one another.

Of course, even with enough free-range space you can still run into problems with aggression.

To help minimize any problems I would maintain one feeding/watering station per roaster and plenty of room within a coop. I would also keep a close eye on them for the next couple of weeks. Since they've been together for some time I would not imagine any problems. Typically, one will become the dominate roaster and the others know their limits. It can be funny...sometimes the smallest roaster can become the most dominate.

If any problems do arise I would separate them until you can find a new home for one of them. When I need to lower my roaster count I simply contact some local farms...and have always found someone who would take them. BYC is another great resource if you need to find someone near you to take one...

Best of luck...

 

[csaikley]

Thank you cnicho05! You have given me hope. I know they get along right now and hopefully this will continue into the future. It is so easy to get attached to these little girls and guys. Would really hate to have to get rid of one.