sad story

[pinecone33]

content warning: mentions of cockerels being beheaded (idk if this is even the right word english is not my first language) and them screaming.

we had to behead all 3 cockerels yesterday because we live in the suburbs and it is against the law to have them here and they are so freaking loud at 5am..it was sad especially when one of the two cockerels whom had grown up together (and seemed to have a bond) reacted strongly when one was taken away and he reacted to the screams as the first one was getting beheaded (sorry if this is graphic also idk if beheaded is the right word for this)..they were so calm they never fought ever and were super calm contrary to what i had seen from other cockerels it was sad to see them go but my dad said they are only calm cus they are young so maybe they would have gone more rouge after a while who knows. they were a bit above 15/16 weeks old (two of them) and the third and last one was a bit older so he would do 85% of the crowing. anyways i just kind of feel bad that they seemed to be scared in their last moments but when i held them while waiting for my dad to prepare everything i did my best to keep them calm but they were just frozen and staring at me and clucking a bit idk what that means but i hope they were alright. on the bright side i got to see chicken hearts (so cute and adorable) and taste chickens that were not store bought ( i give that a 10/10 by the way).

the rest of the flock seemed stressed from it cus the cockerels made so much noise and one of them was a bit hard to catch so i have been spending extra time with the flock singing for them and sitting with them while writing on my computer and they seem normal so far the only thing i have noticed is that one of the pullets kept chasing the others today trying to square up with other pullets minding their own business idk if she is trying to be the boss or is just needing to release energy but i guess time will tell.

well cheers to a new chapter for the flock, if anyone has any experience in these things do you know any signs to look out for in your flock to see if they are all okay after these type of events or if they have been stressed? answers would be appreciated thank you for reading

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

The screams probably made the rest of the flock think a predator was about hunting them. The rest of the flock will be a bit off for a bit, but should resume normal activities after a few days.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Just a helpful word here, I have found that chicken is more tender and tastes better if I let it cool off and "rest" in the refrigerator for 3 or 4 days before cooking it. This gives it a chance for rigor mortis to set in and then pass off, letting the meat relax completely, so the meat fibers have a chance to soften. Good luck!

 

[PopoMyers]

content warning: mentions of cockerels being beheaded (idk if this is even the right word english is not my first language) and them screaming.

we had to behead all 3 cockerels yesterday because we live in the suburbs and it is against the law to have them here and they are so freaking loud at 5am..it was sad especially when one of the two cockerels whom had grown up together (and seemed to have a bond) reacted strongly when one was taken away and he reacted to the screams as the first one was getting beheaded (sorry if this is graphic also idk if beheaded is the right word for this)..they were so calm they never fought ever and were super calm contrary to what i had seen from other cockerels it was sad to see them go but my dad said they are only calm cus they are young so maybe they would have gone more rouge after a while who knows. they were a bit above 15/16 weeks old (two of them) and the third and last one was a bit older so he would do 85% of the crowing. anyways i just kind of feel bad that they seemed to be scared in their last moments but when i held them while waiting for my dad to prepare everything i did my best to keep them calm but they were just frozen and staring at me and clucking a bit idk what that means but i hope they were alright. on the bright side i got to see chicken hearts (so cute and adorable) and taste chickens that were not store bought ( i give that a 10/10 by the way).

the rest of the flock seemed stressed from it cus the cockerels made so much noise and one of them was a bit hard to catch so i have been spending extra time with the flock singing for them and sitting with them while writing on my computer and they seem normal so far the only thing i have noticed is that one of the pullets kept chasing the others today trying to square up with other pullets minding their own business idk if she is trying to be the boss or is just needing to release energy but i guess time will tell.

well cheers to a new chapter for the flock, if anyone has any experience in these things do you know any signs to look out for in your flock to see if they are all okay after these type of events or if they have been stressed? answers would be appreciated thank you for reading

Thankfully, I didn't have to cull the mean cockerel (to humans). He suddenly died. My hens seemed less stressed afterwards, except his favorite. She may have missed him, not sure. Top hen started mounting others. In my flock, I have 2 year olds, and new chicks this past March. He died during the weeks his 4 kids were being raised/ brooded. Signs to look for, perhaps less eggs than normal. Reordering of pecking order if he was top dog i.e. squabbles, bullying. I have a notion that chickens are not connected emotionally, as humans are. I say this because when I have found dead hens, from predation or otherwise, they just go about their normal business, with maybe a day or two of flock stress, nothing major. Hey, they were even cleaning off a dangling, dead sister that a raccoon had dragged up in a tree branch above their run, ate, and dropped her so her body was suspended by the netting, just in the hens' reach. When I got her, the bones were about clean, and empty cavity. Yeah, sorry, kind of gross.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Hens should lay eggs as before unless he died in a way that was stressful to them, for example if a dog got in and terrified them, or a hawk attatcked.

 

[The Chick Addict]

content warning: mentions of cockerels being beheaded (idk if this is even the right word english is not my first language) and them screaming.

we had to behead all 3 cockerels yesterday because we live in the suburbs and it is against the law to have them here and they are so freaking loud at 5am..it was sad especially when one of the two cockerels whom had grown up together (and seemed to have a bond) reacted strongly when one was taken away and he reacted to the screams as the first one was getting beheaded (sorry if this is graphic also idk if beheaded is the right word for this)..they were so calm they never fought ever and were super calm contrary to what i had seen from other cockerels it was sad to see them go but my dad said they are only calm cus they are young so maybe they would have gone more rouge after a while who knows. they were a bit above 15/16 weeks old (two of them) and the third and last one was a bit older so he would do 85% of the crowing. anyways i just kind of feel bad that they seemed to be scared in their last moments but when i held them while waiting for my dad to prepare everything i did my best to keep them calm but they were just frozen and staring at me and clucking a bit idk what that means but i hope they were alright. on the bright side i got to see chicken hearts (so cute and adorable) and taste chickens that were not store bought ( i give that a 10/10 by the way).

the rest of the flock seemed stressed from it cus the cockerels made so much noise and one of them was a bit hard to catch so i have been spending extra time with the flock singing for them and sitting with them while writing on my computer and they seem normal so far the only thing i have noticed is that one of the pullets kept chasing the others today trying to square up with other pullets minding their own business idk if she is trying to be the boss or is just needing to release energy but i guess time will tell.

well cheers to a new chapter for the flock, if anyone has any experience in these things do you know any signs to look out for in your flock to see if they are all okay after these type of events or if they have been stressed? answers would be appreciated thank you for reading

That is one of the saddest things I've ever heard.

 

[Galaxy_rules]

That is one of the saddest things I've ever heard.

X2