Should we keep a roo?

[juliemom25]

We have 30 "hens" that are suppose to be, well, hens. Anyways, we are pretty much expecting the sexing to not be 100% and we are trying to decide if we want to keep a rooster. Is there an advantage to having a rooster? Protection?

We aren't necessarily wanting to hatch our own chicks, but that might be just because this is all so new to us right now. Now, this is really going to show my ignorance, but will most of the eggs be fertilized if we have a roo or am I giving the guy too much credit? We are new to chickens/livestock in general and I get a little squirrelly about cracking an egg for breakfast and seeing something half formed. If we collect eggs every morning, should that be a problem?

Thanks in advance!!

Julie

 

[JupiterFarmer]

It wouldn't be a problem if you collected eggs daily but some one told my mom that they found out from the internet that fertilized eggs are better for you.

Wouldn't take that to heart though, but roosters do watch out for their ladies.

 

[FrontPorchIndiana]

If you live out where the roo won't bother any of your neighbors then by all means yes keep a roo. They will protect the flock. And frankly they have the most personality of all chickens. I doubt one roo could fertilize all thirty hens though and you really don't want more than one roo in a single flock. They don't always get along with other roos very well.

 

[sunnibunny99]

Well.... If i were you i would keep the roo(s) separated from the hens. Because if my dad saw a half formed chick on the skillet he would freak out... hes a vegetarian though...


Wellll.... Theres a chance one of the hens will have a baby if you keep her and the roo together and if you don't want baby's i would really keep them separated and maybe let the roo have a cage to himself and if you want to breed put a hen in there with him

Just my opinion

 

[Ridgerunner]

Is there an advantage to having a rooster? Protection?

I see others are addressing this so I won't.

We aren't necessarily wanting to hatch our own chicks, but that might be just because this is all so new to us right now. Now, this is really going to show my ignorance, but will most of the eggs be fertilized if we have a roo or am I giving the guy too much credit?

Probably too much credit. One full-sized roster can usually take care of 10 to 12 hens with certainty. A banty, 12 to 15. This is not a hard and fast rule and more could be fertile, but the uncertainty factor certainly goes up with more hens per rooster.

We are new to chickens/livestock in general and I get a little squirrelly about cracking an egg for breakfast and seeing something half formed. If we collect eggs every morning, should that be a problem?

No, it will not be a problem. There is a way to look at a cracked egg and tell if it is fertilized. You might be better off not knowing how. If you gather the eggs once a day, nothing will be partially formed. I personally prefer to collect the eggs every evening instead of morning. I don't like leaving eggs in the nest overnight as an added incentive to predators. I'm mainly thinking it could attract rats.

I don't necessarily agree that you cannot have more than one rooster in a flock since we normally had two or three in our flock when I was growing up. What normally happens is that both roosters will want to be the boss and will have some disputes, some fairly violent. One rooster will normally dominate the other, so you have a rooster that has his favorite hens. The other rooster actually becomes his assistant and they form a very good team on protecting the flock. The assistant still gts his share of the hens, just not the dominant roosters favorites. What will occasionally happen is that the roosters are very closely matched in spirit, so closely matched that one will never accept the assistant position. Then they will fight to the death. This is somewhat breed dependent, and it does not normally happen. I've never seen it but I've heard about it.

 

[gritsar]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I consider my rooster to be THE most valuabe member of the flock.
He protects the girls from harm while free ranging and keeps them rounded up too. He finds the best treats for my girls while foraging and will even beak feed his favorite hens. More than once he's broken up a fight between my most dominant hens. He's become my watch roo. Nobody comes on this farm that he doesn't let me know about it. Plus, as Indiana said, they have the most personalities.
I collect my eggs a couple times daily and no problem eating the fertilized eggs. Collect them at least once daily and you'll not have to worry about any little surprises in your skillet.
Not all hens go broody and they'd not only have to, but you would have to let them before you'd seen any grandchicks.

 

[RRT114]

Quote:
Maybe I'm understanding you wrong, but your saying a freshly laid egg would have a "Half" formed chick inside? No

This would only be possibly is the hen had been sitting on them for about 10-11 days. If the eggs are collected daily...this isn't remotely possibly, especially if they are put right into the refrigerator.

Just because an egg in fertilized, does not mean it will have a chick inside....it has the potential to create a chick under the right circumstances (Broody hen, incubator etc)

They are perfectly edible!

 

[sunnibunny99]

Eh, i dont know.... still i dont like the idea of eating something that would be a baby chick



also thats what juliemom wrote

 

[Brickman House]

We had an accidental rooster in our 25 chick McMurray order, and like gritsar, considered him to be the most valuable member of our flock.

He did a great job organizing the hens, showing them treats and food, warning them when he saw a threat, and giving us fertilized eggs.

We didn't originally plan on a rooster, and didn't think we wanted one, but now won't live without one! Our original roo got aggressive with us, so we rehomed him, but are now growing two of his replacements in our brooder coop!

 

[embkm]

If your neighbors don't object, absolutely keep a roo! I blame selling my huge old roo on losing my last flock. We have loose dogs running the neighborhood but they never seemed to bother my chicken pen. Less than 2 weeks after selling my roo and 2 hens, one of the dogs tore through the fencing and killed every single hen I had left.