Roo or no roo? Pros and cons requested

[gaillardia]

I am deciding whether to keep my little roo. What are the pros and cons of a mixed flock. I have 5 pullets and one randy little guy.

 

[tammyd57]

I only know of 2 cons for keeping a rooster.
1. He MAY get aggressive with people.
2. He will probably wear the feathers off the backs of that few hens.

But if he is a sweetie and you put hen saddles on the girls, then there are NO cons to roosters. But I'm biased cuz I love my roos.

Pro's
They are beautiful.
They are usually the most interesting.
They are protective of the girls.
They can be very nice to the girls, giving them treats.
They make the babies.
If they get mean, you can eat em.

 

[imthedude]

the first con for me was the alarm clock i couldn't turn off......second, roosters are illegal in my town, so that ruled them out immediately. i don't need any tickets or fines. third, the first guy was mean to me every time i would stick my hand in the coop. that sealed his fate right away. the second one was nice to me but really mean to the ladies. he would grab them by the back of the neck, run them around, then pull out a beak full of feathers. my wife said one day when i came home from work that it sounded like a couple of the hens were being raped out back. i have no desire to brood my own chicks anytime soon, and my dog is a pretty good protector of the backyard, so both of my roosters went into the frying pan.

 

[alicefelldown]

Quote:
I'm in the other boat, I can't wait till my next batch of boys get loud enough to wake me up. I sleep through just about every other alarm on the planet, but a rooster? I'm up, showered, and actually get to have breakfast before going to work. I'd keep a whole flock of roosters just for that reason alone!

 

[patandchickens]

Whether noise is an issue depends on your situation.

Whether aggression is an issue is kind of roll-of-the-dice (some roosters are sweeties, others are pretty attack-y, and I do not think there is a lot you can do to convert the latter into the former although you may at best be able to decrease the amount they attack you)

As Tammy says, you can expect that at least one or two hens (possibly all of them) will get kinda threadbare, especially while the roo is still young.

But a good roo is an interesting and useful ornament to the flock, IMO

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[gaillardia]

I want my hens (still pullets) to be as happy as possible, so I worry about disrupting their lives if I rehome my rooster. He is pretty sweet, but I am still 6 or 7 weeks from my first egg and one of my pullets is already missing feathers. As far as I can tell, he just started mating with them yesterday because that was when the protesting began.

I am also an insomniac and don't fall asleep until after 1 or 2 AM. So far, I have been able to sleep with the windows closed, but another week and I will have to open them and then it is 5 AM wake-up call.

I just hate to make a selfish decision. He is an EE, and probably not in great demand, so how do I find a good home (or a good dinner table)? Since I don't know anyone with chickens, how will I be sure that he won't go to some cock fighting psycho? I love his poochy cheeks and have gotten attached to him

 

[michickenwrangler]

If they are close to laying age, your pullets may be molting anyway.

You CAN learn to sleep through a rooster. We do it all the time. In a 1/3 mile stretch, there are 3 roosters and a flock of peacocks and we manage to sleep through ALL of it. We even know who's crowing based on different crows!

 

[Wanda]

To solve the noise issue: I bring my rooster in the house at night, put him in a crate and cover it. He usually won't crow til about 6:30 unless there is a way some light gets to him. I also don't put him back out til about 10 to keep peace with the neighbors.

 

[FF]

Pros.
Let you know when danger happens
Protects his hens
Can make a very good pet
Have little ones
Wakes you up in the morning at 4:19
cons
Can get mean if you don't work with him
Will attach little ones and back your hens back bare

Overall a rooster is a good one to have.I would keep him