Which breed of rooster would you choose?

[pkw]

Honestly I love my columbian wyandotte rooster. He is such a handsome boy and he does his job very well (he is very protective of the hens).

 

[Carols Clucks]

Of the past 3 EE roosters we have had, both "white" ones were mean as could be. The red one is friendly. They all came from different hatcheries at different times.


Mom would LOVE to have a hen go broody! In the past dozen or so years, we have had one! She is a Brown Sex Link (Red Star).

At this point, should we get a broody hen, we are going to have to find her good eggs to sit on. At aprox 10 years old our good red EE rooster is still up to a lot of tasks, but he has pretty much given up the making babies thing.....

 

[ScotianChick]

I know a lot of people don't like RIR roosters and I don't blame them but I've had experience with a Leghorn and two Silverlaced ones and they've all been total jerks. Maybe I got lucky with my RIR. He's well tempered, treats his flock well, doesn't make a go at my husband or myself and he is beautiful to boot! Maybe instead of breed you should find one that was handraised and has a good track record.

 

[billfields]

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That's what I'm hoping, that by getting him as a chick with the rest and hand raising them all together it will help with his "people" skills.

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I was thinking that too. I have one (hen) on my list for exactly that reason. I thought that it would be interesting to see how the coloration and pattern mixed with something else.

 

[greenSearcher]

My experience has been I get what I need, even when I order males because I have breeding projects on my mind.
My first order of 12 pullets had 2 males, a BR and a Speckled Sussex, and I learned to dispatch mean roosters when the BR was about 8 months. I won't get any more BR. Right now Punkit has incorporated the new EEs into his flock, and of the new EEs 2 of 5 are male, and I will keep White Freddie. as Red Freddie may be an EE, but he is very gamy, long legged barely any muffs and no beard. I also got Delawares and Naked Necks for breeding projects, and Oakley is so sweet with his Annies (NN). He is 16 weeks now and there has been no sign of aggression. The NN are really pleasant birds, nice and calm. On the other hand, the Delaware roos are gone as soon as I get the NNxDel crosses, especially if the crosses are better tempered that the Dels. The Dels started picking me at 2 weeks, and the roos have already been introduced to the submission position after biting me. Won't put up with them any longer than necessary. So far mt breeding project has made it clear I that I don't care for the Delawares (I can't imagine one as a broody, will certainly need armor). I am hoping that the Del and NN cross will give me good meat birds that can handle the TX heat. be pleasant tempered and easy to pluck. Might as well shoot for the "whole thing" .

 

[Kaceyx73]

Apart from the breed question, the best idea is to find an adult roo that has been raised around chicken people. Instead of raising him with the girls, let him raise them. Check CL and other sources, there are many people with excess roosters that need homes. Do your sanity a favor and find a farm nearby where you can make a visits and observe any potential roo before taking him home. Even if you wind up with a roo or two in your order, that adult roo will see to it that he knows his place. If the time comes to pass your cockerels on to other families, they will have had the advantage of actually knowing how to be a rooster, daddy bird, flock protector and manager, and family friend all wrapped up into one. I have 11 RIR pullets (just beginning to lay), 1 RIR cockerel, and mixed adult rooster. They all get along great with the roosters roosting together quite often. Of course they do have a few tussles over the ladies throughout the day, but the cockerel knows to back down.

So far I have had to grab him by the neck just once. He started biting me on the hand (a bite and twist) if I tried to touch him. I don't mind the peck, or voicing his displeasure if he doesn't want to be touched, but the bite/ twist was a little much. I started backing him up, and eventually caught him in the coop at roosting time with my hand around his neck. No biting since.

So far I cant really complain about my RIRs, pullets or the cockerel. For a roo to do his job within the flock, he has to be dominant. No matter the breed, even the roo needs to know the pecking order starts with you. Let him handle day to day operation of the flock, but when you or family are present, he needs to know his place. I think having an adult rooster will go along way towards flock management. He will keep the flock in line, and step in anytime things get out of hand. Do remember, that like human adolescents, young females tend to pick on the males before they get their size. The roo will keep that down, so that the young roo doesn't grow up with that chip on his shoulder.

 

[donrae]

I say go with the ee roo. You don't know what color he'll be, and you won't know what colors are behind him, so you can get a big suprise there with chicks. Also, muffs and beards are cool! And chicks that lay green eggs and have funky combs----sounds like fun! Be sure to post pics in a year or so

 

[Ariel301]

Golden Lakenvelders are just plain gorgeous. I'd love one...or a dozen. Easter Eggers are fun, because they are so wild colored and you never know what you're going to get when you breed them.

My favorite roosters out of those I have owned are an Old English bantam and an American game. I love their proud look, beautiful tails, and HUGE personalities. My little bantam Old English is barely over a pound but he thinks he can pick a fight with a 150 pound goat and win when it comes to feed time.

He's really nice to the girls too, always calls them when he finds a nice place to eat, and sits up on something higher than them to watch for danger.

I had some Rhode Island Red roosters that I got free with an order from a hatchery. I got ten of them and they were all obnoxious, greedy jerks that crowed in the middle of the night and trampled the other chickens to death. They would wait til the other birds went to the feeder, then step on their heads and stomp until the others died! Now they are delicious soup. I won't get any more. Same with Barred Rocks, all the roosters I've had of those have been mean too.