Restart?

[Farmgal101]

I have 30 easter egg chickens that all came from my broody hens.The chicks which are now chickens are about 12 months old.I got 12 roosters and the rest turned out to be hens and yes the roosters are separated from the hens i would never put that many together.It is extremely stressful taking care of this many chickens.it was fun raising them and learning so much...But now i feel like restarting,its to much and i would like a regular flock.By a regular flock i mean maybe 20 hens and one rooster.My neighbor gave me a chick a while back when all the rest were chicks and it turned out to be a Australope hen it out grew all my easter eggers but has been fine with them.Ive been thinking about doing that breed but would consider mixing other breeds in with the flock.Any breed suggestions?I also would like to do ducklings we have a male cauga duck that is a year old in a pen by himself and i would like to get two female cauga ducks so he is not lonely but we haven't been able to find any cauga ducks where we live,so i was thinking of getting some mixed breed ducklings at TSC and when they get older put the females with him and sale the males.Which leads me to question can you have male ducks together? All this started from winning eight chicks at the auction and its lead to all thisWe mainly have chickens for eggs and a duck for a pet..but i would like to get in to breeding and selling. Any suggestions and help is appreciated!

 

[lazy gardener]

You have a bunch of EE hens who are now in their prime. Why don't you get rid of all of your roos, except for one. You already have a nice laying flock. I would wait till next year, then remove 1/2 of the EE, and replace them with BA. As for the ducks... if you have the space for them, you could certainly add a couple of hen ducks. I would not want to keep more than 1 drake, and would keep him separated from the chickens.

 

[Farmgal101]

You have a bunch of EE hens who are now in their prime. Why don't you get rid of all of your roos, except for one. You already have a nice laying flock. I would wait till next year, then remove 1/2 of the EE, and replace them with BA. As for the ducks... if you have the space for them, you could certainly add a couple of hen ducks. I would not want to keep more than 1 drake, and would keep him separated from the chickens.

Thx for the suggestion!and my male duck is separated from the chickens he is in a pen by himself which is why I would like to add some more hen ducks!I have not been able to get rid of the roos bc noone wants them but i would like them to go to a good home...guess it might have to lead to me culling some, but they
dont have any meat on there bodys so it would be pointless.We culled one a while back for meat and didn't eat it bc there was no meat on the chicken!

 

[Folly's place]

Try craigslist, signs at the feed stores, or a local auction. Most roosters are going to be dinner, and feed a family. That's not a bad thing, really. When you raise chicks or hatch eggs, many cockerels will appear, and just need to move on. They aren't going to look like the Cornishx birds at the store, but will be tasty, as soup or stew.
Mary

 

[Farmgal101]

Try craigslist, signs at the feed stores, or a local auction. Most roosters are going to be dinner, and feed a family. That's not a bad thing, really. When you raise chicks or hatch eggs, many cockerels will appear, and just need to move on. They aren't going to look like the Cornishx birds at the store, but will be tasty, as soup or stew.
Mary

Yes,we have culled one to figure out that there is not enough meat on there body's so ended up throwing away the one we culled.We don't mind culling our birds for meat...easter eggers just don't have any on their body's.

 

[Folly's place]

I also raise bantams, and it's so true; like woodcock, there's nothing much to eat with them either.
Mary

 

[Farmgal101]

I also raise bantams, and it's so true; like woodcock, there's nothing much to eat with them either.
Mary

Ig I will try to continue to give the roosters home.Too many roosters, I have learned leads to a lot of problems.They have been starting to fight.I have to keep separating all of them!

 

[aart]

If you are hatching chicks you have to deal with the males,
best to make a plan and stick to it.
'Restarting' isn't going to change that.
It's not easy, kept my first extra cockerel(bought with the flock) in a pen all winter while I got up the courage and equipment to slaughter them.
It's still not 'easy', but sure feels good to have the job done, peace in the flock yard, and food in my freezer.

I slaughter cockerels at 13-16 weeks, before they start causing chaos and while still tender enough to grill for that crispy skinned deliciousness. Not much meat but the grilled bones make for some excellent stock. Anything older than that I pressure cook until meat is done and is saved aside, then a couple more hours to get that bone broth.

Resting the cleaned carcass in fridge for 48-72 hours for rigor to pass is essential for chewable meat from any bird(except maybe CX?). Tho no homegrown bird I've eaten, layer or meat breed, is as soft as a grocery bird, they are more 'toothsome'.

 

[Erin80]

We no longer get “straight run” birds because of ending up with too many roo’s. We dislike culling. I ordered all pullets this year, which limited which breeds I could get, but at least we will (hopefully) not have to deal with roo’s.

 

[Farmgal101]

We no longer get “straight run” birds because of ending up with too many roo’s. We dislike culling. I ordered all pullets this year, which limited which breeds I could get, but at least we will (hopefully) not have to deal with roo’s.

Thanks for the input!Yes i have been overrun with a lot of roos