Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Shadrach]

Fabio and I agree!! Nothing like a good pair of Carhartts.
View attachment 3048651

Speaking about a fast learner in dealing with stroppy roosters.^^

 

[Shadrach]

Yes the sheep are a real pain. The goats love to make a show out of getting pushy. Run backwards, rear up, dance around, hop after you on their back legs. Much easier to catch before they get you.

I think you wrote about it somewhere, but what other creatures do you keep?

 

[Sortacountrychicken]

I think you wrote about it somewhere, but what other creatures do you keep?

Goats and rabbits. I work on my mother's farm right now but have worked with ducks, cattle, horses, and sheep as well on my uncle's farm. Of them all the rabbits have drawn the most blood by far.

 

[pennyJo1960]

I started learning about Roosters with Grandma I was 3 at the time set to collect eggs .. Grandma got me a walking stick for snakes and rooster, Mine stick was not real big at first. She had two roosters two coops. Many bought eggs from us 1$ for the dozen

 

[Perris]

What do other people with roosters think? What factors grow a rooster's calmness?

After reading others' overnight answers (I have to rise and fall with the sun or I'm no good to anyone), I think genetics has to be part of the answer, because I've never been attacked by any of my current roos. It doesn't enter my head that one will go for me. There were two who were raised by my first and now most senior broody, who were purchased as hatching eggs (so different genetics), and both caused a lot of tension in the flock. They threatened me, and when they each in turn didn't respond to my efforts to tame them, I culled them, and the stress in the flock lifted immediately each time. I might try harder with them had I known then what I know now, but we learn a lot about chicken-keeping by doing, and those were early days. And I still think the advice I was following then - if there are problems, solve for the flock not the problematic individual - is good, and I still follow that principle.

It may be epigenetics too, because only one (Sven) was not hatched and raised here, so the rest had calm examples to follow; that includes the two that I culled, but none since have had issues, including the most recent clutch, which are also new genetics and a 'flighty' breed. The two jerk-age cocks among them are currently being trained by the senior hens

It may be environment too, because no-one is confined here so no-one is liable to feel trapped.

I do wear jeans and shoes all the time, so it's nice to know that helps I have occasionally been pecked on the leg or foot by a cockerel (more often by a pullet), and I have always assumed that's because they thought they saw something tasty sitting there. I say 'oy! that's me!', they stop, and no more is said or thought about it

I am sometimes shadowed by one of them when poop picking the coops in the morning (especially Sven, but I think he just wants company). I do check first that no-one is laying before I take the back off to get to the poop boards, so I'm not disturbing a laying hen or causing a potential dad to feel defensive. The roo will just watch me from nearby, or (in Chirk's case) at about 2 o'clock as fighter pilots used to say in the movies (when the coops are near a wall which offers that perching place, as currently), or indeed right in front of me and inspecting my work closely as I do it (Sven, Phoenix), but I have never felt threatened by any of them.

I don't make a point of walking through the roos, to make them make way for me (as some roo keepers advise), but I don't go round them either. I just swing my leg round to step over them, or say 'excuse me' and wait for them to move aside. So we all keep calm and carry on - we Welsh are also British, after all

 

[ManueB]

Thank you, that's quite a bit of helpful information on how to behave properly with a rooster! It's interesting that you emphasize on giving the rooster a respectful distance when many chicken keepers only think about it the other way round.
I admit I never gave a thought about what I wear with the chickens. But like most people here, our everyday clothes are work clothes and we keep only one or two good outfit that we can put on when going somewhere. I never wear open shoes anymore, and I have gloves on most of the time.

About clothes and sheeps : friday I went at the old farmer's (that gave us the bantams) place to help vaccinate his lambs. I did this with the 20 something young shepherd who's working there for the season. Before we began, he changed into full overalls and boots, and he proceeded to changing back to plain clothes when we stopped for lunch. He said this was his specific outfit for the lambs because they smelled bad and they were greasy . I thought it sort of strange for someone who was going to live with the sheep's all summer and our old timer farmer made fun of him, but it does make sense if you think of your clothes as tools to work with your animals.

 

[Perris]

he changed into full overalls and boots, and he proceeded to changing back to plain clothes when we stopped for lunch

it does make sense if you think of your clothes as tools to work with your animals

it also makes sense from a biosecurity perspective, especially with confined animals.

 

[RoyalChick]

After reading others' overnight answers (I have to rise and fall with the sun or I'm no good to anyone), I think genetics has to be part of the answer, because I've never been attacked by any of my current roos. It doesn't enter my head that one will go for me. There were two who were raised by my first and now most senior broody, who were purchased as hatching eggs (so different genetics), and both caused a lot of tension in the flock. They threatened me, and when they each in turn didn't respond to my efforts to tame them, I culled them, and the stress in the flock lifted immediately each time. I might try harder with them had I known then what I know now, but we learn a lot about chicken-keeping by doing, and those were early days. And I still think the advice I was following then - if there are problems, solve for the flock not the problematic individual - is good, and I still follow that principle.

It may be epigenetics too, because only one (Sven) was not hatched and raised here, so the rest had calm examples to follow; that includes the two that I culled, but none since have had issues, including the most recent clutch, which are also new genetics and a 'flighty' breed. The two jerk-age cocks among them are currently being trained by the senior hens

It may be environment too, because no-one is confined here so no-one is liable to feel trapped.

I do wear jeans and shoes all the time, so it's nice to know that helps I have occasionally been pecked on the leg or foot by a cockerel (more often by a pullet), and I have always assumed that's because they thought they saw something tasty sitting there. I say 'oy! that's me!', they stop, and no more is said or thought about it

I am sometimes shadowed by one of them when poop picking the coops in the morning (especially Sven, but I think he just wants company). I do check first that no-one is laying before I take the back off to get to the poop boards, so I'm not disturbing a laying hen or causing a potential dad to feel defensive. The roo will just watch me from nearby, or (in Chirk's case) at about 2 o'clock as fighter pilots used to say in the movies (when the coops are near a wall which offers that perching place, as currently), or indeed right in front of me and inspecting my work closely as I do it (Sven, Phoenix), but I have never felt threatened by any of them.

I don't make a point of walking through the roos, to make them make way for me (as some roo keepers advise), but I don't go round them either. I just swing my leg round to step over them, or say 'excuse me' and wait for them to move aside. So we all keep calm and carry on - we Welsh are also British, after all

I dont have any roosters but I do have a pint-sized hen that attacks my legs pretty seriously.
After months of careful observation and a couple of attempts at following advice to stand up to her, I have decided that she thinks I am one of the flock and is simply enforcing her position above me in the pecking order.
Stout shoes and thick jeans make it bearable.

 

[Marie2020]

To me, both of those things suggest time/age as a proxy for calm sureness.

On reading all I have that's the conclusion I have come. I would love a Male here to look after my girls

We have had a lot of gulls here this week and notice they trouble the smaller birds plus my littles are very nervous of them

 

[Ladies-Eight]

Ex Batts good morning one and all!

The temperature is 54 and sunny.

Have a great day!