Tell me why you keep Roosters...

[dwgov]

It's funny when I got my 4 EE's and 1 turned out to be a rooster, I couldn't wait for him to crow. I was about to give up on him and then one day he started. Now I can't shut him up!

 

[gimmie birdies]

I put my roos to bed in a night box, it is a wood box with air holes but he has to lie down in it. and cannot stretch his neck to crow, and I have it between lay pens, so they block the sound and I keep him dark. I can sleep even in the summer.

 

[Bayrider16]

Well our first rooster we ever had was called Ominous. Lol he was a light grey brahama bantam which most are known to be nasty, personallity wise. He would attack every little kid who came on our farm. We thought about wringing his neck but we just couldn't bring ourselves to do that. Insted I warned every kid that came out about him, or lock him in the coop. We dealt with him for about 7 months until a cyote picked him off. Next year came around, and we order another batch of chicks... I ended up with five roosters... We got rid of one that was sick looking, so he HAD to go. I was lucky to only end up with one nasty rooster, my Grand champion cockeral Apollo a Mille Fleur. I just learned to live with mean roosters and put my foot down. I also learned to love them. Well to answer your question, I keep my roosters because they are hilarious and very beatiful actually. I also show ny chickens, and I use then for breeding as well if one hits a grand at fair.

 

[Bayrider16]

Here are some pics of Apollo...

Above are my roosters at fair

 

[Bayrider16]

This guy has character by the bucket load!

what breed is he or is he mixed? He's beautiful btw!!

 

[Chrystal Dawn]

I gave my EE roo to a friend and he told me that he never shuts up and that he's the loudest roo there. Oops...sorry buddy. I would have kept him if I could but I live in town and I already have a silkie rooster who is very quiet and my neighbors are ok with him but I don't want to push my luck. My EE roo I gave up was the snuggliest bird I've ever had. He would come up to me to pick him up or fly into my arms and he would lean his head against me and just want to have under his wings rubbed. I miss him but he's got it good at his new home and he's quite the ladies man.

 

[iamjohn]

Some of my sweetest chickens are roosters. I have one that I call Dude (The Big Lebowski) that will follow me wherever I go. If I check the mail, Dude will walk to the mailbox and back with me. I have others that will come up to me and brush against my legs like a cat. I have some massive roosters that are very protective of their hens and will defend them from everything except people, they won't interfere if someone is handling a hen.

They went through a phase where they tried to assert dominance over everyone but I spent time training them. When they were little I could walk in the coops with shorts on but had to stop while I was training them because they'd peck at my legs. Now they are calmed down and don't peck at me or anyone.

Roosters get a bad rap but they can be very nice birds. I know that I have roosters in the coops that will protect their flock against any intruder and frankly I've grown to really like them. I had planned on culling all but the best roos but after I trained them and spent time with them I decided I would rather keep them. I have way too many roosters for the number of hens I currently keep so I have a bunch of roos together and they get along great. Eventually I am going to grow the flock and let those roosters have hens of their own. What people forget is that roosters and chickens in general are still wild animals. We may keep them like we would keep other pets but there is a still a bit of wild in them and if you don't learn to work with their needs you will have some conflict. I am not saying that all bad roos can be trained but I think it is possible to minimize their bad traits if you are willing to work with them.

I could tell stories about some of my "bad" roos and how aggressive they were and how nice they are now. It just took training and learning what the rooster needs. One of my favorites is named Wy. Wy is a beautiful roo but he was mean for a while. He would grab any exposed flesh whenever he could, he'd sneak up from behind and grab your ankles. Wy was the reason I started wearing muck boots and jeans when I went in the coop. Most people would have culled him but genetically I think he is a great bird and I want him to breed. As soon as he started getting aggressive I started working with him on his attitude. It was a mix of handling him, never in an aggressive way, teaching him his name and using key words when he was being bad. It wasn't long and I could say "Wy!" and he would look at me. Then if he came at me I would say "No Wy" and brush him away. Eventually he would hear "No" and his name when he did something bad and he started to figure out he shouldn't do whatever he was doing. Now when I walk up to Wy he will just walk up to me and look me in the eyes but he doesn't try to assert any dominance. I also learned that Wy needed certain things and if you did them he would chill out. For example you must say hello to Wy in the morning and use his name or he will drop his wing and do the roo dance - no attack but he shows off - so every morning I open the coop and say "Hi Wy." Wy also like peanuts and gets very gentle if you hand feed them to him. It took a mix of little things but Wy went from a mean bird to one that I can pick up without wondering what he will do. The training may sound like a lot of work but it is just a few minutes at a time and I ended up with a great roo that is people friendly, protective of his hens and nice to have around. Any time I walk out to the coop Wy will run up and greet me.

BTW. Of my 63 birds, 30 are roosters. I walk into the coops with them at least 6 times a day and I can go all month without a single rooster trying to attack. Not every roo can be trained and may need rehomed or eaten but whenever possible I will try to save a roo. Economically it makes little sense because I feed these guys and tend to their needs without expecting them to be dinner but I accept them because they are really nice birds. It seems the hens are the ones that can be mean for no real reason. I have a few that are mean to each other and a few that'll get testy with me (broody) and while that happens my roos are just hanging out or coming to me for attention. I do have a couple hens that are very very sweet though. One of them is sitting by me right now as I write this.

 

[LibRat]

When I was growing up, my mom worked in a chicken de-beaking factory. It's where you take chicks and take the very tip of their beaks off so they don't peck the @@@t out of each other in close quarters. Well, she would occasionally sneak one of two home in her pocket for me and my brother. We had quite the flock. Some barred rocks, some RIR and a bunch of white ones. The ones I really remember was a huge white rooster named big bird who we ended up having to carry cuz he was so heavy and big he could barely walk (he was not in any pain and very spoiled) a hen named Pooker and a RIR couple Bonnie and Clyde. Well Clyde was mean and kept attacking all of us and made me scared of roosters so when I found out Pigpen was a rooster, I was worried. But since we only have two chickens him and Lucy I can spend a lot of time with both. I am amazed at how some peoples roos are so ornery. Its not funny but I still have to giggle at some of the stories I read on here. Pigpen went thru a toe pecking phase but has not done that in a long time. He will however pluck one hair at a time out of our head for attention when he's feeling jealous that we're giving Lucy attention. He walks us to the mailbox and greets us at the driveway (he knows the sound of each of our vehicles and can hear us when we are coming down the road) He will come running from wherever he is on the farm with Lucy right behind if we yell for him. His favorite food (treat) is cashews and he knows where we keep them and will walk right up to the cabinet and crow for them. He will also walk right up to someone and put his beak to the tip of their nose and just look at them for a few minutes then walk away. It's a little nerve wracking for some people cuz they assume he's wanting to peck their eyes out. It's his way of saying "hi" I think, but who knows what's actually going thru his head? Lol All in all he is a very laid back sweetheart and a big part of our family and I am happy to be the proud owner of a rooster!

 

[Gramma Chick]

I gave my EE roo to a friend and he told me that he never shuts up and that he's the loudest roo there. Oops...sorry buddy. I would have kept him if I could but I live in town and I already have a silkie rooster who is very quiet and my neighbors are ok with him but I don't want to push my luck. My EE roo I gave up was the snuggliest bird I've ever had. He would come up to me to pick him up or fly into my arms and he would lean his head against me and just want to have under his wings rubbed. I miss him but he's got it good at his new home and he's quite the ladies man.

Maybe he is crowing because he is calling you ..My Roos crow mostly when they are calling the flock ...As you were close he probably misses you . Can you visit him ?

 

[LibRat]

Maybe he is crowing because he is calling you ..My Roos crow mostly when they are calling the flock ...As you were close he probably misses you . Can you visit him ?

awwwww that's kind of a sad thought :'( poor guy-hope she can visit him...