Too many cockerels.....

[CPT]

Hi there!

Somehow, we got 6 hatched cockerels and 4 pullet hens.....trying to give away these sweet little guys locally. Has anybody had any luck trying to re-home cockerel chicks?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Yes, but very few.

You can try craigslist farm and garden section. I have seen many people able to rehome cockerels. Don't forget face book groups. And even most feed stores have a posting board and some health food type stores...

You can always expect 50% boys... but it's usually more than that for me.

Also... no shame in letting them go to feed someone's family even if you aren't able to do the deed yourself. Lot's of good folks like myself will process quickly and humanely as possible. We don't enjoy doing it, but do appreciate knowing where our food comes from and also have a healthy respect for life, even the cockerel while NOT supporting "big chicken" and all the atrocities that go along with it. I have seen some people post to please not tell them if you plan to eat the birds.

Using the word sweet to describe a cockerel, is a misnomer IMHO. If they have been hand raised like sweet little boys... those are the ones that become monsters... most the time. Verse boys that have a healthy respect of the human space. But I'm sure each are an individual.

Good luck!

 

[CPT]

Thanks so much! Yes, we have a craigslist ad up, but no bites so far. We mentioned in the ad that they are not big enough for meat birds yet, so it's not an issue if someone wants to feed their family at some point. I saw 3 of them challenging each other this morning, lol. Probably should stop handling them now.

 

[Dr.GarryTTucker]

You can always create a small bachelor pad. Raise them up to 16 weeks and process them. Cockerels will be fine as long as there is no pullet in the run with them. But they can stay in the same tractor as the hens till the are about 14-16 weeks old. With no harm!

 

[sawilliams]

I understand your pain I have like 13 cockerels, not counting 2 babies that are 2 young to sex. Ice green trying to home just the cuckoo maran becuase we purchased him (as a pullet). The rest unfortunately will become dog food and dinners. As much as I would rather not have to butcher anyone we had decided before getting a rooster that the only way i was allowed to hatch chicks was if I was ok with killing cockerels. And that was my rule not his. I've only found a home for 1 cockerel previously. It's just unfortunately once of those things those that can have roosters usually already have 1 or 2 and the rest can't have roosters or don't want them. So if your looking for a long term home for them you might be disappointed, but if you understand and respect the fact that someone could use them for food its just a matter of finding that person.

Otherwise if you are against killing them or having them killed you will needed to build yourself a rooster coop and understand there are risks there as well.

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

Just tell your husband to kill them if you can't do it yourself! 6 birds worth of food can save you good money.... wait til' they get older and more plump though.

 

[Mosey2003]

Very few will take males unless it's something special (whatever is popular in your area, like lavender or blue laced red Wyandotte, etc) and even then, there still aren't a lot of takers. I butcher my excess, and I'm not opposed to culling super young either. It's up to you, but unless you find someone that wants them, you'll have to do something with them.

 

[CPT]

True...only thing is that my husband will NOT eat chicken, so I'll have to find someone else to process them at some point. I may have to post a flyer down at the farm supply store.

 

[BreanneRN]

I really think younger is better... They eat a lot of feed and the feed to meat conversion just isn't that great on most roosters. It seems to take a lot of calories to crow and be obnoxious! And they take up a lot of space, harrass and chase the hens, and all the bad behaviors just seem to escalate day by day.

 

[Morrigan]

We butcher our extra roosters. I've thought, at times, about trying to give them away because I hate butchering day. But, the chances of a rooster going to a good home, where they get to lead a quality life, are pretty slim. I decided that I would hate to subject my rooster to all the trauma of leaving his home, going to a strange place, only to get killed and eaten there. Worse, he could go to someplace horrible, like someone using him to train cock fighters. Since we eat chicken, we'd rather kill them quickly and humanly here, where they only know a couple of bad minutes.

If I knew someone starting out, who was actively looking for a rooster for their flock, I would re-home a rooster in a heart-beat. But otherwise, I figure it's my hatch, so it's my responsibility to ensure extra roosters lead a high quality life, until the point where they meet a swift and humane end.

It's not easy to do, but it's helpful to change your mind-set from thinking of yourself as the "mean" person who's killing them, to the responsible and humane person who is actually doing the best they can by the rooster.