Why did the rooster cross the road?

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bronxangel

bronxangel

Hatching
7 Years
Dec 29, 2012
9
0
7
Loganville, GA
So, why did the rooster cross Ozora Road? To hang out at my house. For the past three weeks a flock of chickens and one rooster were walking around the church parking lot across the street from my house. Once in a while they would walk along Ozora Road, but never crossed. Five days ago the rooster made it across. I've been taking care of him, thanks to doing much research on this site. I figured soon enough, he would get lonely and go home. Sadly, two days ago a hen tried to make her way across the road to get to him, I suppose. She didn't make it :( I have thought about knocking on doors and asking people if they lost a rooster, but then I feel like it is the owner's responsibility to look for his or her flock. I haven't seen the hens for a week now and I think they are probably getting picked off one by one, either by cars or animals. I don't mind the rooster and am actually growing quite fond of him. He has a great personality: comes to the front door and looks in windows, comes to you when you call him, comes in my garage and walks to the side door. He and my cat actually hang out together sometimes; it seems that she watches over him. I feel bad for him because it is obvious that he is lonely. So now I am stuck with a dilemma, build a coop and get him some hens or rehome him and hope that he does well. I live on 2.2 acres and in my county it is 3 acres to allow chickens. There is no hiding a rooster as he can be really loud. So, here is my question. If I decide to keep him, do I need to build a coop? Right now he goes into the woods, I guess to a bush or something and sleeps. He comes out in the day and I feed him. I got a bag of scratch and he eats safflower seeds and peanuts on the side. Today I tried to give him some warm oats, but he didn't care for it. My main concern right now is that there is no place for him to sleep. The man at the country store told me that I do not need to house him, but I feel bad. It's been in the 30s. Please give me some advice on this lonely rooster. Thanks!
 
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from washington state glad you joined us!
looks like they new where to go!
 
Greetings from Kansas, bronxangel, and
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! Great to have you here! Sounds to me like someone got tired of having chickens and "freed" them in a very irresponsible fashion. Glad he found you! What became of the other hens? As a rooster he may get lonely and do what roosters do and go searching for his lost ladies. In terms of a coop, I think he needs one - it is cold for one thing. Another is predators - he won't last long overnighting it in the woods. You might consider getting him at least one pal 0 chickens are social and need company. Good luck to you - feel free to ask questions - we were all beginners once! Happy New Year!!
 
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, from Virginia! What a lovely surprise you have on your hands! So sad his lady hen friend didn't make it, as I'm sure he does miss all his friends. I'm glad your cat is trying to keep him company in the mean time!

If I were in your shoes, I'd ask my neighbors how they felt about having a rooster live next door. If they didn't mind, I'd keep him and let the city ask questions later, while seeking to change the ordinance.
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If your neighbors do mind, then he'll have to go to another good home, sadly.

If you are able to keep him, he'll definitely need shelter of some sort if you want to ensure his physical safety from predators, but also for his own mental needs. My girls really appreciate the safety blanket of their coop when they get scared and the weather is unfavorable. Sometimes I'll find them in the coop just hanging out for no apparent reason at all. They have definitely made it their home!

They are certainly sociable birds, so he'll need a friend soon. I witnessed a couple of my gals get separated from the flock recently and both of them went into such a panic that even my familiar presence with treats was not enough to calm them down. Nothing could have calmed them down except the comfort of their flock family. After seeing that, I have no doubt your rooster misses the familiar flock family he's known and will need a speedy replacement.

Would love to hear what you end up deciding, so please keep us posted!
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Well, it looks like the rooster is mine. My daughter named him Ricardo.

I went across the street to talk to the pastor of the church. He said the flock was at his church for 3 or 4 weeks. They would sleep up in a tree at night. A fox came and got one of the hens :( I asked him if he knew where they came from and he said that he thinks someone set them free and then moved. I think the last hen must have tried to get to him across the road, but didn't make it.

Last night Ricardo jumped up on top of a shelf in my garage and fell deep asleep. It was really cute, except for the poop I had to clean in the morning. I am going to build him a coop and get him two hens. I don't want chicks because I don't know how to raise them. I'd rather buy adult hens.

So now for my questions...

Right now I am feeding him scratch, hot oats, peanuts, and safflower seeds. I noticed from pictures that chicken feed looks more like pellets. Should I get him that instead of scratch? Or is that reserved mainly for hens?

Is there anything that I need to do medically for him? Does he need anything added to his water?

Where can I buy adult hens?

I am going to build a coop, I've seen a few that look easy to build.

Thanks for your help; I am going to need lots of it!
 

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