Was I Duped? Barred Rock Roos

[PREPPYGURL46]

In October, I purchased 3 "pullets" from a woman who swore up and down they were females born in April. This would make them 9 months old. Last week, one of them began to crow and has attacked my husband's leg twice. I also spotted 2 raised dots on the back of her legs (whiter neck, last photo). Today the roofer doing work asked me about my 3 "roosters". He said he has raised chickens for 35 years and there is no doubt in his mind that they are male and also younger than I was told. Aside from the one attacking crowing one... The other two are extremely friendly, will be pet, come when called and will take food from us. What do you guys think?

I feel awful thinking of eating the friendly ones and even giving them away. Had this been the intention, I would have prepped for it but as we thought they would be long time pets, we are obviously attached. But the roofer also said once their spurs come in, they will become mean and I can't add any hens as the roosters will fight to the death for them So at the very least I would need to get rid of the meaner one and one of the nice ones. But will the nice one STAY nice?

 

[Yard Farmer]

Yes they are males.

As for them staying nice, it ready depends on the bird..
In my experience, if I'm kind and loving to them, they'll be living to me.

 

[fluffycrow]

Yes, those are unfortunately roosters. That does not necessarily mean that they will become meaner with age. Obviously, as they mature their personality will change, but the degree really depends on the bird itself and its genes. As for the fact that you can't put any hens as they will fight to the death, that is largely untrue. Fights will take place to establish pecking order, but in my experience, roosters that are not of a fighting breed will quit way before anything serious happens to them. Now of course, every situation and every bird is different, so caution is highly advised, but I don't think it's as serious as your neighbour made it out to be. The only case where there might be a considerable probability of the roosters fighting to the death is if you have incorrect rooster-hen ratio

 

[Artichoke Lover]

Unfortunately those are both Roos and not Barred Rocks. Likely some sort of BR cross.

 

[PREPPYGURL46]

Yes, those are unfortunately roosters. That does not necessarily mean that they will become meaner with age. Obviously, as they mature their personality will change, but the degree really depends on the bird itself and its genes. As for the fact that you can't put any hens as they will fight to the death, that is largely untrue. Fights will take place to establish pecking order, but in my experience, roosters that are not of a fighting breed will quit way before anything serious happens to them. Now of course, every situation and every bird is different, so caution is highly advised, but I don't think it's as serious as your neighbour made it out to be. The only case where there might be a considerable probability of the roosters fighting to the death is if you have incorrect rooster-hen ratio

As we only purchased the small Omlet coop, I don't think we will have the space to give them each or even the two nice ones the right amount of hens Are there any pros to keeping one of them (aside from guilt!)? I had no intention of breeding and I have dogs to protect our animals.

 

[PREPPYGURL46]

Unfortunately those are both Roos and not Barred Rocks. Likely some sort of BR cross.

I also thought they were looking rather un-BR-ish... Was hoping it was my imagination.

 

[Painted Calls]

They're definitely cockerels, and that was definitely evident when they were sold to you as pullets.

Spurs don't equal mean. All roosters get spurs. Not all roosters are mean.

They're old enough now that the one showing aggression likely won't improve much if at all. Your best bet is to sell/give away all three and get hens. Unless you don't mind dealing with hormonal males for pets.

Welcome to BYC!

 

[fluffycrow]

Unfortunately those are both Roos and not Barred Rocks. Likely some sort of BR cross.

I agree, they look like mixes, but they do have BR blood.

As we only purchased the small Omlet coop, I don't think we will have the space to give them each or even the two nice ones the right amount of hens Are there any pros to keeping one of them (aside from guilt!)? I had no intention of breeding and I have dogs to protect our animals.

I personally love my roosters, they wake me up with the rooster melody, they look amazing, they take care of my chickens by protecting them while they are free ranging, by standing ground between them and a potential threat, by finding food and calling them to eat it, and by encouraging them to lay in safe places! Having roosters doesn't automatically mean your chickens will produce offspring, in order for that to happen a chicken must go broody, in which case you remove the eggs from under her. In addition, broodyness is nowadays mostly breed specific, meaning some breeds just won't normally do it, if having broodies is not something you want, get a breed that doesn't typically go broody, like for example Rhode Island Reds, Legbars, Leghorns, etc

 

[FunClucks]

In October, I purchased 3 "pullets" from a woman who swore up and down they were females born in April. This would make them 9 months old. Last week, one of them began to crow and has attacked my husband's leg twice. I also spotted 2 raised dots on the back of her legs (whiter neck, last photo). Today the roofer doing work asked me about my 3 "roosters". He said he has raised chickens for 35 years and there is no doubt in his mind that they are male and also younger than I was told. Aside from the one attacking crowing one... The other two are extremely friendly, will be pet, come when called and will take food from us. What do you guys think?

I feel awful thinking of eating the friendly ones and even giving them away. Had this been the intention, I would have prepped for it but as we thought they would be long time pets, we are obviously attached. But the roofer also said once their spurs come in, they will become mean and I can't add any hens as the roosters will fight to the death for them So at the very least I would need to get rid of the meaner one and one of the nice ones. But will the nice one STAY nice?View attachment 3374797View attachment 3374798View attachment 3374799View attachment 3374800

I am so sorry. You were scammed. x3 they are all roosters. They have obvious hackle feathers (the narrow pointy neck feathers from their ears to their shoulders that only roosters have) and saddle feathers (pointy feathers that stick over the side at the base of their tails. Also their tails are starting to develop. At around 6 weeks is when one can usually easily tell a cockerel (juvenile rooster) from a pullet (juvenile hen). The combs on cockerels are dark pink and larger than those of pullets, and sometimes hackle feathers are starting to develop.

If you look around in the Articles section of this site, and search "hackle feathers" and "saddle feathers" and "how to tell roosters from hens", you will come up with a lot of useful information. Also if you search the Forum "What Breed or Gender is This?" you can start to develop an eye for spotting a rooster so you don't get taken advantage of again.

If any of your roosters are human aggressive (attacking people), best to find them a new home or give them to someone for dinner. There are differing opinions on whether it's possible to modify a rooster's behavior, but since you're new to chickens, I'd suggest rehoming all but one, and keeping the nicest one. Or alternatively, rehoming them all and starting over with female day old chicks. It's the perfect time of year to place your chick order. In a year or so, when you've gotten used to hens, maybe then raise a rooster from a chick, or see if you can find a nice rooster someone is rehoming.

If you keep a rooster, will he stay nice? No one can say. There are articles on here about what constitutes a good rooster - it may be different than you think. Your cockerel won't be mature until 1-1.5 yrs old, and they go through puberty and hormones until at least that time, and it can change their demeanor at the drop of a hat. Especially if you have young children, roosters can pose a significant risk that you don't see coming. Always keep an eye on your rooster. Don't allow him to mess up the chickening experience for you.

I'm so sorry this happened to you guys. So glad your roofer told you what was up. Not all roosters become mean when their spurs come in, but other than that it sounds like he totally knew what he was talking about.

 

[Poultrybonkers]

All are males and they prolly knew they where males but sold them as hens just to make money.