What to do with roosters

[JacinLarkwell]

my birds cant keep warm in tall large coops. That’s a reflection of my climate. humidity is not the issue in winter, and is easily remedied in summer. they said Iowa winters were brutal, if that means they are like my winters then thats how we deal with them. warm coops keep them alive. and during summer when heat is the issue we open the coops up so their is ventilation and the coops can cool off. i don’t know what your winters are like, I don’t know how you keep your birds warm, this is how we do it. And it’s worked for at least 10 years so I’m sticking to it.

Montana winters are multiple feet of snow and negative 20s and worse most nights and many days

 

[Geena]

I understand not wanting to butcher them, it's not something everyone is prepared to do. But when we choose to keep animals there are also other things to consider besides our own feelings. Seven cockerels/roosters stuck together in a tractor for a prolonged amount of time, in all kinds of weather, most likely fighting amongst themselves, doesn't sound like much of a life for them to me. IMO they would be better off in the freezer.

 

[3KillerBs]

Seven cockerels/roosters stuck together in a tractor for a prolonged amount of time, in all kinds of weather, most likely fighting amongst themselves, doesn't sound like much of a life for them to me. IMO they would be better off in the freezer.

I agree.

I have 7 in a 10x10 pen right now, growing up to a reasonable weight while I wait for either them to sell or for me to have time to butcher them, but it would never do as a permanent solution.

When we choose to hatch we have to take responsibility for the cull cockerels.

I'm not sure how many I'll hatch this year total, but only one will have the honor of growing up to be junior flockmaster. The others will either be sold, quite likely for food, or join our family at dinner.

 

[bobbi-j]

my birds cant keep warm in tall large coops. That’s a reflection of my climate. humidity is not the issue in winter, and is easily remedied in summer. they said Iowa winters were brutal, if that means they are like my winters then thats how we deal with them. warm coops keep them alive. and during summer when heat is the issue we open the coops up so their is ventilation and the coops can cool off. i don’t know what your winters are like, I don’t know how you keep your birds warm, this is how we do it. And it’s worked for at least 10 years so I’m sticking to it.

Maybe you don’t have cold hardy breeds. Minnesota chicken keeper here. When I first started keeping chickens, I’d close the coop up tight in the winter and put a heat lamp in there. Every spring I’d have unhealthy, frostbit birds. Once I stopped doing that and keeping them in an unheated, well-ventilated coop in the winter, they have been so much healthier. They acclimate to the cold by growing more down as the weather gets colder. We get down to the -30s here, sometimes for days and nights on end. There is way less frostbite in a well ventilated coop than one in which the chickens are locked up tight. You go ahead and raise your chickens in a way that works for you, but calling people stupid because they don’t do it the same way is uncalled for. (PS - I’ve been raising chickens for almost 40 years, so I’ve had a bit of time to figure this winter housing thing out.)

 

[neo71665]

Chicken soup

 

[veene]

Maybe you don’t have cold hardy breeds. Minnesota chicken keeper here. When I first started keeping chickens, I’d close the coop up tight in the winter and put a heat lamp in there. Every spring I’d have unhealthy, frostbit birds. Once I stopped doing that and keeping them in an unheated, well-ventilated coop in the winter, they have been so much healthier. They acclimate to the cold by growing more down as the weather gets colder. We get down to the -30s here, sometimes for days and nights on end. There is way less frostbite in a well ventilated coop than one in which the chickens are locked up tight. You go ahead and raise your chickens in a way that works for you, but calling people stupid because they don’t do it the same way is uncalled for. (PS - I’ve been raising chickens for almost 40 years, so I’ve had a bit of time to figure this winter housing thing out.)

That's what I've been concluding recently too. All over the internet its heat lamp this, heat lamp that. But it seems that you mess up with their acclimatization by heating during winter. However, i keep hearing that with heated coops you get more eggs?

 

[bobbi-j]

That's what I've been concluding recently too. All over the internet its heat lamp this, heat lamp that. But it seems that you mess up with their acclimatization by heating during winter. However, i keep hearing that with heated coops you get more eggs?

Could be because of the lights used in heating the coop. Egg production naturally decreases in the fall and winter because of diminishing light. The chickens will molt, and then regrow their feathers. Artificial light prevents that natural cycle from happening. Sometimes I will have a light on a timer in the winter to keep them laying, sometimes I don’t. This year I plan on putting a light in the older hens’ coop to keep them laying until the pullets start to lay. First year pullets will often lay throughout the winter even without the artificial light.

 

[3KillerBs]

However, i keep hearing that with heated coops you get more eggs?

It's not heat, it's light.

IIRC, the average hen needs 14 hours of light in order to lay eggs. If you choose to add hours of light it's better to extend the day in the morning rather than the evening so that they don't get caught by sudden darkness and unable to go naturally to roost.