Roosters - to keep or not to keep - that is the question!

[Equine_Angel]

Hi All!

My husband and I will be embarking on our chicken adventure soon with fertile scratch. We have done lots of research and find that hatching our own eggs may be the best route...we may eventually change our minds though

After the hatching of the eggs and once they have grown a bit, we are thinking about keeping a rooster or two for our flock. What are the thoughts of others in keeping roosters? I have a 4.5 acre farm and am surrounded by the like. I don't think noise will be an issue as we usually have flocks of geese EVERYwhere around us and they are as noisy as they come (especially when there are 100 or so).

Thoughts on roosters would be great!!!!

Thanks!

E_A

 

[matthewschickens]

I only have one roo but here are my thoughts:
Our roo is pretty well tempered but will try to attack you.
I think he is beautiful!
He does mate our ladys so if we ever need chicks we do not have to buy them.
He does not protect our hens by fighting but just alerts them so they can get under cover.

Hope this helps!

Matthew

 

[12GAGirl]

I love the fact I can have a rooster and to me it just isn't the same having chickens and no rooster! I love the crowing and to watch them strut their stuff! I only have with my 8 hens and I live on 2+ acres and so far no one has fussed about the crowing, not that it will do any good since dogs are the biggest noise makers in this neighborhood. If they say my rooster has got to go due to his noise then the dogs running loose will go too!

 

[patandchickens]

You might try just seeing how the temperaments work out of the roos you get. If one of them is nice, keep him. If not, then you can mull over whether you want to try getting some more straight-run chicks to "audition" more roos or not.

Personally I think a well-behaved roo is a great asset to a flock, but a poorly-behaved one is way too much of a PITA. Currently I have one of the former, who is my *hero*, and one of the latter who is going into the stewpot as soon as I confirm in a couple days that I've got live chicks hatched from his eggs in the 'bator.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[gryeyes]

I planned on having all pullets, no roosters, but got an "accidental" roo when one of those "pullets" turned out to be a cockerel. The feed store had told me they would take back any roosters they sold as pullets. I figured, I can do that.

Uhhhhhh. I'm keeping my rooster. He's gorgeous, I find I enjoy his crowing, but I especially love his antics. Right now he's pretty ummmmm.... interested in the ladies..... but they're not so interested in him. (Roosters apparently mature earlier than hens.) I added two laying pullets to my flock and WOW! Carl suddenly had ladies who succumbed to his advances. As the younger girls are maturing at different rates (all different breeds), he's trying to "tag" them.

It's not just this courting behavior (if one could call it that, at this adolescent, horny stage) that is interesting, but his strutting long the top of the coop, or his "gather all the girls in" at dusk antics, or the incredible variety of vocalizations he produces. Plus, he's darned good looking.

Yes, if one of my hens goes broody, I COULD have chicks if I wanted them. Or I could go the incubator route, if I wanted to hatch some eggs. But I've got all different breeds, so any offspring would be "mutts."

I just love watching Carl with his harem, especially when they're tumbled in a pile of chickens, closely packed next to each other, sunning themselves. Sometimes with a wing and a leg lazily stretched out.

I'm now glad one of my "pullet" chicks turned out to be a cockerel.

 

[Uzuri]

I like my Rooster. He's beautiful, and he's like a watchdog for his ladies. He also fights with buckets, but I never said he was smart.

He was an intentional purchase. He's generally good to me, and avoids me, but I work with him constantly and always make it clear that I'm the boss by moving in his direction or whopping him with the litter scoop or whatever I've got in my hand (LIGHTLY. I don't whale on him with a sledgehammer or anything. It doesn't take much).

 

[matthewschickens]

Quote:
Here is a pic of him:

Matthew

 

[smarsh]

pros
some protection for your flock
fertile eggs
pretty roo

cons
tame ones can be aggressive to humans
caged up, they can be aggressive to the hens (loss of feathers or life)
another mouth to feed

don't have too many roos for your hens

 

[Lil_Chickadee]

When I set my flock up I plan on having one Rooster but not sure that I would want more than one.

 

[matthewschickens]

Quote:
I cannot prove this but I heard that if you get more that one roo then they will both mate the same hen to show off so it is not good on the hen.