QUICK!!! What to tell the kids.

[Brunty_Farms]

Quote:
I don't see a problem in what your doing. They are young and very impressionable. I would let her think they are bad until she is old enough to understand. She is 4 years old and honestly I think your doing the right thing. When she gets to be about 8 or so than yes, I would explain a little better where meat comes from. We have farm tours at our farm and we teach 5-6 th graders about life on the farm. You would be surprised how many of them don't know that an egg comes from a chicken or that meat comes from animals... So I would definatley explain to her later down the road what the whole thing is about but in the meantime.... bad chicken and good chicken seems a good way to go. Your not lying to her as the rooster is bad.... because if he was nice.... you wouldn't be asking this question.

 

[tdgill]

Tell her you are giving him a new home.

 

[jjparke]

Complete honesty. Let them watch. Have them help. This will teach them valuable lessons and skills. Circle of life.

 

[FrenchHen]

Our three year old will tell you that the meat birds went to freezer camp. When he's 12 he'll figure it out.

 

[kingmt]

If you want your kid to trust you then tell them the truth. When I first started doing chickens my 4 year old didn't like it & had nightmares the first night but now it doesn't bother him. Just the other day they were in the driveway naming the meat birds. One was Sunday Dinner, then Monday Lunch, Tuesday Lunch. This turned into a fun game for them.

 

[Sunny the Hippie Chick]

When I was 3 and 4 I used to watch my family butcher deer. And during the whole thing they explained why it was hunted and ect.

And my family has even named animals destined to be dinner from the begining.. Like my aunt had two pigs.. Ones name was Bacon and the other ones name was Ham.. But Ham had another name. Willie.. (short for Willie B Big).. We pet them and cared for them.. But always remembered where they were going to end up.. Its just a fact of life you need to learn soon or later.. Better to be sooner..

I would just do what others have suggested.. Make him disapear into the freezer to eat at a later date..

 

[cybercat]

Ok if the rooster is NOT aggessive towads people and just a bit rough on the hens you do NOT need to kill him. Just cage him and let him out to breed the flock a couple time a month. I would never kill a non aggressive roo they are so rare to find. Since the kids love him caging him away from the flock and only letting him with them a few times is your best bet. Build him his on little coop and run. It is a win win situation.

 

[dancingbear]

Quote:
First of all, this was originally posted back in February. They more than likely have already dealt with issue one way or another.

Second, non-human-aggressive roos are NOT RARE, not at all. I've kept chickens for about 15 years, and had ONE human aggressive roo. And I've had dozens of full grown roos.

Third, "just being a bit rough on the hens" isn't quite what they were dealing with. He was very rough on the hens. I've had hens traumatized, and some injured, by roos who were mean to them. I eat those. There are way too many perfectly nice, protective, kind-to-the-hens roos, who are also not human aggressive, to put up with a bad one. Those bad behaviors can also be genetic, so breeding them can pass the problem along to resurface later.

 

[chickenbottom]

my friend well shes now in her late 20s had a pet chicken who she loved and one day she came home and he was on the table. the end result she hasnt eaten chicken since. hey more for me lol

 

[dancingbear]

deleted, accidental duplicate post.