Okay, so I've tried two methods of trimming the spurs......twisting them off with a pair of pliers and cutting them off with a rotary tool. In my now-experienced opinion, cutting them off with a rotary tool is muuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuch less stressful on both me and the bird! Twisting them off resulted in a lot of blood and, surprisingly, there were soft baby spurs still in place after removal of the hardened spurs. Yuck. Using the rotary tool, we cut off all except for about an inch of the spur and the cutting cauterized the spur so there was no blood. Mr. Rooster did not seem to mind at all. Afterwards, I gave him a big handful of wild bird seed as a reward for being a good boy, and he happily pecked away, so I figured he couldn't have been all that traumatized. I got my rotary tool at Harbor Freight for less than $10, if I remember correctly, and it came with cutting disks. Took a little while to cut all the way through but still it was not as horrible an experience as twisting them off. Hope that helps someone!
