When to separate out cockerels

[NatJ]

And yeah, I feel bad but my cockerels are starting to look delicious...like little Cornish game hens.

They are edible at any size.

If you are impatient, you could butcher one as soon as you like. Of course they are quite small now, but you could start learning butchering skills. And butchering them at different ages helps you learn what ratio of tenderness to size is best for you (younger is more tender but also smaller.)

(I've butchered banty cockerels before they were even 8 weeks old, if they were too noisy or getting crowded. There's not much meat on each bird, but they're probably just as big as the quail some people raise for meat.)

 

[HennyPenny44]

I like the Barred Hollands, I wish mine laid a larger egg, though. The Leghorns lay bigger eggs, but the Hollands are very sweet and mild mannered birds, a much nicer layer for a mixed flock in my opinion. The White Rocks I have are the dominant hens. They are good layers, nice big brown eggs, but some people do not like them due to their personality. They are from Ideal hatchery. The Hollands are from a private breeder, so that is what makes them nicer, the home breeder will not keep an aggressive bird, but the hatchery does not select on the basis of their personality, only how many eggs are laid!
Here is my rooster, Randy, and a couple of his Barred Holland girls.

Lovely birds. I guess being able to sex early on is good if you’re selling birds but if you’re like me, it’s fun just observing and trying to figure it out. Yes, personality is everything to me because my space is limited and they all need to get along. If my hens don’t lay a ton of eggs but have nice personalities, I figure they have better longevity and health in the long run which is better for me than the short term benefit of a laying machine with a bad attitude. But I may just think differently from others. I’m trying to move away from hatcheries for this reason plus hatching out chicks seems much more natural, sustainable and fun.

 

[HennyPenny44]

They are edible at any size.

If you are impatient, you could butcher one as soon as you like. Of course they are quite small now, but you could start learning butchering skills. And butchering them at different ages helps you learn what ratio of tenderness to size is best for you (younger is more tender but also smaller.)

(I've butchered banty cockerels before they were even 8 weeks old, if they were too noisy or getting crowded. There's not much meat on each bird, but they're probably just as big as the quail some people raise for meat.)

LOL, yes they are edible but I think I’ll wait until they start looking more like a chicken than a baby chick. I don’t think I have a heart for that age. It would be like disecting a frog for biology class in school. I laughed because I know that it’s a delicacy somewhere in Asia to eat eggs with developing chicks in them. That’s a line I’m never crossing.

But yeah, it is a good idea to try out butchering at different ages. I never thought of that.Seems like there‘s a window of time when they’re still tender after which the only other option is stewing, canning or braising.

 

[NatJ]

Seems like there‘s a window of time when they’re still tender after which the only other option is stewing, canning or braising.

Some people roast them at ages when some other people stew them or grind them for sausage. Resting the meat for a few days can help, cooking it "right" can help, and different people have different tolerances for chewy vs. tender meat. In my own household, one person says "it's too tough," while someone else is happily eating it, and a third person is cutting it into small pieces and then eating it So personal preferences and tolerances count for a lot.

 

[Parront]

Lovely birds. I guess being able to sex early on is good if you’re selling birds but if you’re like me, it’s fun just observing and trying to figure it out. Yes, personality is everything to me because my space is limited and they all need to get along. If my hens don’t lay a ton of eggs but have nice personalities, I figure they have better longevity and health in the long run which is better for me than the short term benefit of a laying machine with a bad attitude. But I may just think differently from others. I’m trying to move away from hatcheries for this reason plus hatching out chicks seems much more natural, sustainable and fun.

Most people do not want to eat their cockerels, they just want hens. I got the Barred Hollands from a breeder on here, he can't sex them at hatching either. I got a box of them, chicks ship best in a box of 25, so I shared them with another chicken keeper in my area. I raised them until I could sex them and it was not too long, so that is a positive for the breed. I like that they are an endangered breed and wanted to support their breeder, and we are hoping to breed some of our own here in AZ. It sounds like your place is too small for very many birds, so hatching a few eggs might be best. Next year maybe I can mail you some eggs! I had one go broody and she hatched out a single chick. So, they are a pretty all-purpose breed.

 

[HennyPenny44]

Some people roast them at ages when some other people stew them or grind them for sausage. Resting the meat for a few days can help, cooking it "right" can help, and different people have different tolerances for chewy vs. tender meat. In my own household, one person says "it's too tough," while someone else is happily eating it, and a third person is cutting it into small pieces and then eating it So personal preferences and tolerances count for a lot.

You just described my husband and I. For him, the meat is sinewy and he can’t eat it. For me, it just needs a bit more chewing action and I eat it all. I learned a while back before I ever raised chickens that hens are different from chickens and cooking them 2 hours isn’t enough to soften them. It was one of my more embarrassing cooking experiences since I was trying to make an impression with my cooking. Yes, I can definitely grind it up for chicken patties, sausage or any number of things.

 

[HennyPenny44]

Most people do not want to eat their cockerels, they just want hens. I got the Barred Hollands from a breeder on here, he can't sex them at hatching either. I got a box of them, chicks ship best in a box of 25, so I shared them with another chicken keeper in my area. I raised them until I could sex them and it was not too long, so that is a positive for the breed. I like that they are an endangered breed and wanted to support their breeder, and we are hoping to breed some of our own here in AZ. It sounds like your place is too small for very many birds, so hatching a few eggs might be best. Next year maybe I can mail you some eggs! I had one go broody and she hatched out a single chick. So, they are a pretty all-purpose breed.

I will keep you in mind for next year! It’s really addictive trying out different breeds. We are supposed to move to a bigger property next year but I have no idea if it’ll have a coop/run for more chickens so I just have to sit tight and wait until I we move and I have my infrastructure in place before I get more chickens.

 

[Parront]

I will keep you in mind for next year! It’s really addictive trying out different breeds. We are supposed to move to a bigger property next year but I have no idea if it’ll have a coop/run for more chickens so I just have to sit tight and wait until I we move and I have my infrastructure in place before I get more chickens.

Hatching out your own eggs is extreemly addicting. I have ducks, too, and hatched out a mixed batch of their eggs to get some more ducks for my drakes. What a blast! Since drakes do not crow, I can keep more of them. Between my partner and my neighbor, I have a choice of 3 Barred Holland cocks & their hens for eggs, I am hoping to have a variety for selecting the best egg-layers and largest roosters. Then next year I can hatch some of my own Barred Holland eggs! Meet some other chicken people in your area, and you will have places for those shipped eggs that hatched out so many unexpected chicks. (Barred Hollands really ought to be just as popular as Orpingtons or Barred Rocks, I think)

 

[HennyPenny44]

Hatching out your own eggs is extreemly addicting. I have ducks, too, and hatched out a mixed batch of their eggs to get some more ducks for my drakes. What a blast! Since drakes do not crow, I can keep more of them. Between my partner and my neighbor, I have a choice of 3 Barred Holland cocks & their hens for eggs, I am hoping to have a variety for selecting the best egg-layers and largest roosters. Then next year I can hatch some of my own Barred Holland eggs! Meet some other chicken people in your area, and you will have places for those shipped eggs that hatched out so many unexpected chicks. (Barred Hollands really ought to be just as popular as Orpingtons or Barred Rocks, I think)

I would love ducks one day. Their eggs are delicious and they’re adorable. Yes, I got the incubator “for the future” in case hatchery birds would be hard to come by but when my Speckled Sussex died, I couldn’t find my 2-3 replacement hens without paying a huge small order fee and shipping fee, plus there were none available until late in the summer from my go to hatchery. So I decided to hatch because I had a “chicken emergency” and needed more chickens and eggs. My broody hatched half and the incubator hatched the other half. It was so addictive that within a week after hatching, I was shopping around for more hatching eggs. I had to control myself.

I live in suburbia so there aren’t many chicken people around me. The person who got my Barred Rock came from an hour away and was surprised that I have chickens and a full scale garden because nobody does that around where I live. We are looking to move out of the suburbs and the state actually so there is more of a farming/homesteading community around us.

 

[Parront]

I would love ducks one day. Their eggs are delicious and they’re adorable. Yes, I got the incubator “for the future” in case hatchery birds would be hard to come by but when my Speckled Sussex died, I couldn’t find my 2-3 replacement hens without paying a huge small order fee and shipping fee, plus there were none available until late in the summer from my go to hatchery. So I decided to hatch because I had a “chicken emergency” and needed more chickens and eggs. My broody hatched half and the incubator hatched the other half. It was so addictive that within a week after hatching, I was shopping around for more hatching eggs. I had to control myself.

I live in suburbia so there aren’t many chicken people around me. The person who got my Barred Rock came from an hour away and was surprised that I have chickens and a full scale garden because nobody does that around where I live. We are looking to move out of the suburbs and the state actually so there is more of a farming/homesteading community around us.

Like they say here, "Chicken math is real"! Chicken people around here live about 30-45 min drive from me. Plenty close enough to exchange breeding stock and eggs. I have a large old half acre lot in an old neighborhood in the city limits of Prescott, which is an old town and has pretty liberal rules for chickens. But according to those rules, roosters are not allowed. There are at least 3 roosters that I know of in my neighborhood, and only one of them is mine. There are even some horses. The noise complaints around here are most likely about loud stereos in cars and loud parties. Since they do not enforce against those noises, I keep my rooster!