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MotorcycleChick said:
Stake, would say a good rooster is nature or nurture?
It is just at this moment occurring to me that I can't be sure that my Rock will be as awesome as my mutt. When my lucky roo (escaped on processing day) tries to mate, Steven always comes out of nowhere to save her.

I do believe the mean gene is passed down. I am wondering about the good husband gene
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I've had a number of boys...and only one really stood out, a CCL Line "B" from Jordan Farms....he was very laid back around people, (ate out of my hand and would allow a small pet), he had all the girls in tow...if he barked, they all responded ASAP....he stripped all my blue berries off the plants for the girls...and left the pen to defend one of his girls from a fox...(she wouldn't stay in the pen)...

I'm thinking its a 'karma thing'.....some birds like to be around people some don't ...some roos are pretty rough on the girls...he wasn't but covered all....he had a certain gravitas, his flock wanted to be around him...he had a calming affect on the girls...well, my two cents.....let the rock/mutt play itself out....
 
stake said:
I've had a number of boys...and only one really stood out, a CCL Line "B" from Jordan Farms....he was very laid back around people, (ate out of my hand and would allow a small pet), he had all the girls in tow...if he barked, they all responded ASAP....he stripped all my blue berries off the plants for the girls...and left the pen to defend one of his girls from a fox...(she wouldn't stay in the pen)...

I'm thinking its a 'karma thing'.....some birds like to be around people some don't ...some roos are pretty rough on the girls...he wasn't but covered all....he had a certain gravitas, his flock wanted to be around him...he had a calming affect on the girls...well, my two cents.....let the rock/mutt play itself out....
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This is my first rooster since I was a small kid. The plan was for a little extra protection. He is 4 months old. He is figuring out the breeding thing. The laying hens are excepting as far as I have seen. The EE (who are the new kids on the block) don't appreciate his attention yet. His broodmates sleep on the roost with him.

The other night I went to close the coop door and a leghorn flew out of the tree "like hey I'm not in there!!" I opened the door. He was talking..came out, made sure things were a-ok and went back inside.

I have heard that Ameracaunas can be kind of aggressive. So I'm a little leery. I don't really need 2 roosters. Coop maxes out at 15 and I'd like them all to winter in the big coop and have zero roosting in the smaller intro pen. A part of me has thought about splitting the pen and leaving a rooster a three hens in the smaller coop.
 
Chaos18 said:
@dheltzel How prone to broodiness are your non-Reese line of CCLs?
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I don't think any CCLs are that prone to broodiness. I had a few broodies this year (or 1, broody multiple times), but with 24 hens, not as much as the Ameraucanas (sometimes 3 broodies out of 10 hens), or even the Welsummers. Oddly, my Barred hollands never went broody, but the Black and Blue Sexlinks I bred from them are broody a lot. The most broody prone LF hens (ignoring the silkie and cochin bantams) on the whole farm are some "super blue egg layers" I bred from commercial white leghorns and a Lavender Ameraucana roo. I would not have expected it, with Leghorns in their heritage, but they are constantly showing up with chicks, even in the dead of winter. They are "mean broodies" too, like to draw blood whenever I tried to give them feed and water. I don't do that cross anymore, they laid a lot of eggs until they went broody, but not worth it at all.

When I did get a broody CCL, they were the most mellow, laid-back broodies ever. Taking eggs from under them was as easy as working with the bantams. They were easy to break too. I really like all the CCL's. I had not expected them to be so naturally tame and calm. I expect they would make decent mothers if your allowed them to hatch chicks.
 
dheltzel said:
I don't think any CCLs are that prone to broodiness. I had a few broodies this year (or 1, broody multiple times), but with 24 hens, not as much as the Ameraucanas (sometimes 3 broodies out of 10 hens), or even the Welsummers. Oddly, my Barred hollands never went broody, but the Black and Blue Sexlinks I bred from them are broody a lot. The most broody prone LF hens (ignoring the silkie and cochin bantams) on the whole farm are some "super blue egg layers" I bred from commercial white leghorns and a Lavender Ameraucana roo. I would not have expected it, with Leghorns in their heritage, but they are constantly showing up with chicks, even in the dead of winter. They are "mean broodies" too, like to draw blood whenever I tried to give them feed and water. I don't do that cross anymore, they laid a lot of eggs until they went broody, but not worth it at all.

When I did get a broody CCL, they were the most mellow, laid-back broodies ever. Taking eggs from under them was as easy as working with the bantams. They were easy to break too. I really like all the CCL's. I had not expected them to be so naturally tame and calm. I expect they would make decent mothers if your allowed them to hatch chicks.
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Thanks. I think one of the CCLs I got off you end of last year is trying to go broody.
 
celebrate.gif
I still have both hands!
wee.gif
The broodies are not blase about it, but I am allowed to reach in for the food and water now! I even held a chick!
 
MotorcycleChick said:
:celebrate I still have both hands! :weee The broodies are not blase about it, but I am allowed to reach in for the food and water now! I even held a chick!
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:ya

Mix some meal worms with finch seed, sprinkle a small handful of them for the broodies each time you go out, they will soon be running to greet you and telling you to feed their chicks! (A low sided dish or piepan with chopped scrambled eggs, watermelon or cantalope is another favorite)
 

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