Venting about Roosters

[sewchick]

People do some strange things. I would eat the rooster. No problem here. Wouldn't that be a capon? I would not have one fixed just to be a pet. Personally I do not make chickens pets. They are food both ways eggs and meat. I am glad I don't have close neighbors. Fortcluck that made me laugh 3am with roos. Yep.

 

[tn_artist]

Squatch and Sid...

View attachment 1960584

Squatch! Awesome name!

 

[tn_artist]

My girls are dust bathing in the holes they made in the woods.

9 bird bath (our youngest group)

Had to rake the pinestraw back under the dogwood tree when they were done.

 

[JoeInPA]

I have one I wouldn't mind pissing off, but the rest of mine are good. (We are constantly returning footballs, tennis balls, baseballs, soccer balls, volley balls, etc-over the fence), but the kids can't be bothered to say thank you and the whole family is rude to my kids when they try to speak to them.

I used to have a lot of good neighbors. They were polite and social but not intrusive. Now I've got a lot of really lousy neighbors.

I have one household that can only described as white trash, they drive noisy junk cars, their yard is filled with garbage, you've got the broken trampoline, the rusty inoperable trailers, miscellaneous tires laying around, the broken swing set, an old boat, Christmas lights up in July, yard and street filled with cigarette butts, etc, etc. They have a mangy, junkyard dog of a pit bull that would probably eat you if you got close enough, several of them have lengthy criminal records, they communicate with each other loud enough so that the people in the next county can hear them, and they are always using very 'colorful' language.

I have several other neighbors that I don't particularly like and a few that I get along just fine with but those ones are pretty much the worst neighbors I have to deal with.

 

[FortCluck]

Squatch! Awesome name!

He's massive so I called him Squatch short for Sasquatch. He's a beast. I don't think I've ever seen a chicken so big. He looks funny when he stands next to my bantam polish pullet.

 

[tn_artist]

I used to have a lot of good neighbors. They were polite and social but not intrusive. Now I've got a lot of really lousy neighbors.

I have one household that can only described as white trash, they drive noisy junk cars, their yard is filled with garbage, you've got the broken trampoline, the rusty inoperable trailers, miscellaneous tires laying around, the broken swing set, an old boat, Christmas lights up in July, yard and street filled with cigarette butts, etc, etc. They have a mangy, junkyard dog of a pit bull that would probably eat you if you got close enough, several of them have lengthy criminal records, they communicate with each other loud enough so that the people in the next county can hear them, and they are always using very 'colorful' language.

I have several other neighbors that I don't particularly like and a few that I get along just fine with but those ones are pretty much the worst neighbors I have to deal with.

We are on a culdesac. I'm the only one with kids that aren't grown, so we are probably the noisy ones. One retired Marine/fireman, one single guy who is only outside when mowing, one lady and her two teenagers who we only ever see in passing or if the son is playing basketball and my friend and her 20 something daughter on the other side of me.
The kids with the sports stuff are over the back fence.

 

[tn_artist]

He's massive so I called him Squatch short for Sasquatch. He's a beast. I don't think I've ever seen a chicken so big. He looks funny when he stands next to my bantam polish pullet.

Our only big boy was supposed to be an EE pullet. He had a group of spots on his head in the shape of a heart. Valentine, the goofy EE

He's a good boy. He chased off a cat that was after some chicks. He also lets our girl, Tiny (OEGB) act like she's going to beat him up.

 

[CindyinSD]

So, I get where everyone is coming from, but there's another side of the coin..surprise ! ... In the town nearest to me there's a "Market House" where a couple times a week the areas farmers can take their produce/livestock to sell. Years ago there was always this one guy that had fresh unfrozen Capons for sale. Once in a while, (we must have ran out of our own in the freezer) Mom or Grandma would buy one for Sunday diner. I remember them to be the plumpest, juiciest, best eating chickens I ever ate. Not only that, but the meat was of a fine texture that seemed to actually melt in your mouth. So fast forward several decades. Both of my young sons were in 4H poultry and had to figure out a project to do with their poultry that they could enter in the county fair. Now, I know a lot of you are about to think I'm some kind of a monster in a minute here. But, my youngest son (they had heard me mention how great Capons were a few times) asked me if I could help him (which was allowed) and we could do Capons. So we researched it some and decided it didn't sound like that big of a task so we sent to Murray McMurray hatchery and bought the kit that has the tools you need to do the job. It's a very simple operation to do that only takes a few minutes. It needs to be done when the cockerels are young and once they're settled down from being caught and picked up, they don't fuss of even peep when the tiny incision is made to do the job. If it's done properly it doesn't even require any stitches. Once it's done, just set em down n they run off n join the rest of their buddies. Anyways, we did 5 Barred Rock cockerels that spring day and come fair time, the last week of August they all were right around 11 to 12 pound birds that never crowed or chased other birds, or each other. Had no interest in hens or breeding. All they wanted to do is eat..lol.. and follow ya around everywhere you went. We had to be sure to get the door shut real quick or they'd follow us right on into the house. Oh.. btw.. the judge that day at the fair commented on what a nice looking flock of Capons that was. When raised for their exceptional meat I really wish they were more available like they were back in the day.

That’s very encouraging. I’d be happier producing my own broilers from normal breeds than ordering CX or even red broilers (though they’re both delicious!) Did you find the instructions that came with the kit easy to follow, or did you have to find out more online? I’m impressed you had the confidence to do this and that it worked out well!

 

[Eggscaping]

I shake my head if people talk about 're-homing' a rooster because they can't or don't want to butcher and eat it.
You have given the bird a kind, caring home with a well thought-out diet and good conditions. Now you're going to give it to someone who says they won't eat it, and will give it a good home. How can you know that they will treat the bird the way you'd want it to be treated? If they DO kill it to eat, will they do it humanely? In my opinion, and this is only my opinion - if you care for and respect the now-unwanted rooster, you kill it yourself...quickly and humanely so that it has a fast, merciful death in surroundings it knows...and then you thank it as you eat your fried chicken, chicken and dumplings, etc...for its life and the gift of its flesh.

 

[CindyinSD]

OT question. Can you raise turkeys in a chicken bachelor run? The run is about 42 x 150 feet = 6300 sq ft. I have 4 cockerels and thinking about three turkeys.

I put a rough-ridin’ cockerel in with my 15 poults... Had to get him away from the pullets. I guess the poults were about a month old. He didn’t bother them nor they him. There are seven cockerels in there with them now and everyone gets along fine. It’s nowhere near the size you’re talking about.

I’ll be moving the poults out soon, though. They get to spend the winter with the pullets, hens & jennies in the new greenhouse. When the little jakes start causing trouble, I’ll put them in with the big jakes & the cockerels in the current henhouse which I’ll open up to the current bachelor yard. Since the turkeys free range all day and prefer sleeping on the coop roof once they’re bigger, and there are two coops (one of which is only suitable for the cockerels), I don’t think they’ll be too tight in there. If the cockerels need to run, they’ll have their own little fortress.

I’ve heard of cases where a Tom or toms will kill a rooster, but it’s always been a situation where the rooster wouldn’t stop fighting with them. Not saying it couldn’t happen unprovoked, but I haven’t had any trouble between my jakes and my cockerels so far.