Well, I'm
very upset with my Delaware hens now. Ike has been separate for about three days, not very scabby at all. Today, we put him in with them to keep them fertile and a couple hours later, I look over and see one of the girls just chowing down on his wattle and his entire chest covered in blood, again.
Remove Ike, stop the bleeding, clean up his feathers, put him back in the broody pen where he's been living, etc, etc. I'm so tired of this! He is an angel of a rooster and way too patient with those women of his! The boy has the softest, most calm, sweet expression in his eyes while we're cleaning him up at the sink and suddenly, he alarmed loudly. I look over and realize that he's watching that commercial where the pigeons fly through the city carrying computer parts, LOL.
I love that boy, but this is just not fair to him and they have gotten in such a terrible habit now, I'm not sure I want to keep those girls at all. Could be that they would do fine in a completely new environment since they'd be at the bottom of the pecking order in a new place. I am seriously considering sending him to live with Ladyhawk in KY. I would miss him terribly, but either he has to live away from the mean girls or I'll have to sell them all and start over with chicks and honestly, I really do not want to do that. Guess I could let the Delaware hens and a few others live over there in that coop without a man and add a few of the new hens in with them. I just don't know what to do! So frustrating!
This cycle has to be broken. We have enough on our plates without this type drama. And I'm going to need the broody pen this spring as well as the Firetower as a grow-out coop so can't keep putting Ike in either one of those.
