really rough roo, thinking of culling!!

[trunkman]

I bought what I thought was pullets this past march and three of them ended up being Roos, so now I have 3 roos and 14 pullets. Well the roos obviously compete for services and sometime get really rough with the pullets, I've witnessed two of them tugging at the same hen. Last night I came home from work and one of the pullets heads was totally covered with blood, she had blood spatters all over her body also, she is a totally white pullet so it looked worse than it really was but still I'm thinking of culling the two roos that attack the hens. What do you think??

What really got me upset was when I let them out of the run to free range one of the roos jumped on her to do his thing right in front of me, the poor girl was all bloody but that didn't seem to bother him, so I quickly helped him off her!

 

[pinkchick]

I think culling 2 of them is the right decision, 3 roos to 14 hens is a little much and can cause competition resulting in poor dating skills for the boys. It is the right thing to do and the girls will appreciate it too

Good luck!

 

[teach1rusl]

Oh yes...give two the boot! Competition can get ugly with roosters and as you've seen, the hens pay the price. I've read some posts kind of joking about their roosters "gang banging" hens, and it just

me!! You'd probably have seen me running around like a crazy lady waving a hatchet, yelling "we're having chicken tonight!!" if I'd come home and found a bloody hen like that...lol. I don't like rough roosters.
I would find the one that treats the girls the best and keep him. Surprisingly, it actually could be one of the guys who is tag teaming right now, as they behave differently when they are competing. So I think I'd pen two of the guys up at a time for a day or two and watch each solo rooster's behavior with the girls... The one that is non-confrontational with your family and is good with the girls is the one I would keep. I only want a rooster around if he's good with the girls...

Edited for clarity...hopefully.

 

[AHappychick]

yes cull the 2 nasty ones. there is no reason to allow that sort of agression and you certainly dont want it in the gene pool.

 

[mychookschick]

Yes, I agree.... I had a nasty rooster! Let's just say "He is no longer"! But, I got two new roosters for my hens and they had been picked on by a bigger rooster and they are as sweet to each other and to the hens! I am so happy it worked out!

With the number of hens you have, I would say that 1 rooster would be enough for you!

Good Luck,
luvmygoldencomets

 

[Happy Chooks]

Yup, get rid of them. I have 1 that tried to mate girls that are not close to POL. He tore her up right on the side of her comb trying to mate with her. He's getting his all expense paid trip to freezer camp today.

 

[Tiss]

Two words:

Freezer Camp.

 

[rachiegirl]

I agree, get rid of 2. Teach has the best idea, pen 2 at a time and give them each a chance to earn their place. Then choose the best for the job! I had to do the same thing. Hubby bought comets last year and assumed the yellow were the girls....he learned he was wrong, 5 roos to late.

 

[trunkman]

Thanks for the advice all, it's off to freezer camp for them.

 

[HennyJenny]

I culled my bad boys two weeks ago - it was the best thing I could have done for my flock. The boy in charge now is gentle and behaves as a rooster should but he wasn't aggressive enough to take over from the others. Not an easy decision, but you will be glad you did it.