Weirdo Rooster?

[BroosterSpringsteen]

I hatched this BLRW last January, so he's nearly a year old. He's so strange. He has no tail, and he's very small and sort of ball shaped. He always has a sort of stink-eye expression on his face. For a comparison, here he is next to my EE roo, who is actually a fairly small rooster himself. He's never crowed, and doesn't exhibit any roo behavior at all. In fact, he spends a large part of each day sitting in a nesting box, and pecks at my hand when I try to move him. It's almost like he's broody, but he does eat and drink like normal. He causes quite the traffic jam when my hens want to lay. He hangs out alone nearly 100% of the time. He's not really a problem, just weird. Could he just be a late bloomer? Could he be ill?

 

[Kelsie2290]

Odd looking little guy. Adding onto how tiny he is and the no-tail defect, would think he has various things internally that aren't quite normal. How is his weight/ body condition? What is his activity level compared to the others? What do the other roos think of him? Do they bother him at all? Was the egg normal, and hatch he came from go normally?

 

[donrae]

Birds can have genetic defects just like any other animal. Every species throws offspring that just aren't quite right from time to time. I'd say be sure not to breed him, those aren't genes that need to be passed on.

 

[BroosterSpringsteen]

Yes, I'm pretty sure he's not quite right. But health-wise he actually seems fine. He hatched normally from a normal egg. When he's not in the nesting box, he free ranges. He takes the funniest dust bathes. He'll completely bury himself up to his eyeballs. I wish I could get a picture. He often gets "lost" in the evening when it's time to roost, and I have to carry him to the coop. The other chickens mostly ignore him. My rooster doesn't mind him at all. I would never breed him...not even sure that I could anyway. Outside of having saddle and hackle feathers, he really shows no characteristics of being a roo, no interest in the hens, no crowing. It's like he has arrested development. I thought we would probably process him, but he's so little, there's really no point, and I like him. He's a funny little thing. Other than the nesting box issue, he's fine. So I'll probably just add another box, and let him live in peace with the rest of the flock.

 

[Kelsie2290]

He sounds like a funny little guy. Do you think his eye sight is impaired, why he doesn't find his way in at night light he should? Wonder if he eventually will develop more roo-like behavior, he does look like a roo, male feathering and all, some of the Wyandottes do seem a little slow in that department.