What Do You Wish You Would've Known When You First Started Raising Chickens?

[QiyeTLyriQue]

There are several reasons to get rid of a rooster
1. Human aggression
2. Aggression towards the hens
3. You have too many for the amount of hens you have
4. You have multiple rooster and they won't get along
5. They aren't allowed where you're at (which doesn't sound like is the case where you're at)

Depending on why you need to remove said rooster you have a few options
1. In the case of human aggression or aggression towards the hens or if none of the other options are available, culling
2. Rehoming if the rooster is otherwise nice towards humans and hens
3. Separation into a separate setup if you have the space. You should have the ability to do this at least temporarily anyways as birds may need to be temporarily separated for a variety of

Interesting! So how mean can roosters get? I feel like Roosevelt (rooster) tests my gangster every now and then... but he's never been aggressive towards me. Well, okay, so there was this one time/day where he kept trying to peck me over and over and over (throughout the day) and the very last time he did it, I grabbed my snow shovel and *boop* he learned to fly (I scooped him up and flung him, so he wasn't injured). Haven't had any issues out of him since then though. He's definitely not mean w/ the girls. He's actually a gentleman w/ them lol

... but is his behavior a cause for concern?

 

[FrostRanger]

Absolutely love these tips! And I agree w/ 4/7. I noticed when I first got my 4 hens (& rooster) they were suuuuuuper skittish. Now they literally run to me whenever they see me in the backyard. I feel special lol

I did think about covering my run but decided not to. The closest to flying prey we have are pigeons, and Roosevelt (rooster) runs them off half the time... or my cats do. Or my dogs.

Right now my coop is super bare, mostly due to the construction... but what kind of clutter should I add?

Thanks again!

Basically anything that breaks line of sight between birds, especially if it can be perched on. In my own run I have a chair (that I also sit in while I'm in there), a tote, some five gallon buckets (which I fashioned into cheap but large feeders and waterers), a dog crate that which also doubles as a way to separate a bird within view of the flock if needed (or as a broody jail), a crabapple tree log that they adore perching on and the initial prefab coop I brought when I didn't know how much of a waste of money prefabs are which also has my poor attempt at an expansion. Needless to say I now have a larger coop and they only use the prefab to perch on and lay eggs.

There are many other ideas that work too to add clutter, get creative!

 

[FrostRanger]

Interesting! So how mean can roosters get? I feel like Roosevelt (rooster) tests my gangster every now and then... but he's never been aggressive towards me. Well, okay, so there was this one time/day where he kept trying to peck me over and over and over (throughout the day) and the very last time he did it, I grabbed my snow shovel and *boop* he learned to fly (I scooped him up and flung him, so he wasn't injured). Haven't had any issues out of him since then though. He's definitely not mean w/ the girls. He's actually a gentleman w/ them lol

... but is his behavior a cause for concern?

Roosters can get very mean and can do a surprising amount of damage if they get a good hit in, especially if the victim is a child

I would say keep an eye on him as he's certainly testing his boundaries but I wouldn't cull him yet

Also know that most roosters are fine, you hear a lot about the mean ones 'cause few people come posting "help! My rooster is a perfect gentleman". Be aware, but don't be paranoid and certainly don't put up with a rooster that attacks people

 

[QiyeTLyriQue]

Roosters can get very mean and can do a surprising amount of damage if they get a good hit in, especially if the victim is a child

I would say keep an eye on him as he's certainly testing his boundaries but I wouldn't cull him yet

Also know that most roosters are fine, you hear a lot about the mean ones 'cause few people come posting "help! My rooster is a perfect gentleman". Be aware, but don't be paranoid and certainly don't put up with a rooster that attacks people

Makes sense, thank you!

He's pecked at one of my cats and got away w/ it bc that particular cat is very (too) easygoing. Had it been almost any other cat they would've gave him the skipity pap pap lol

I will definitely keep my eye on him though, thanks!

 

[FrostRanger]

Makes sense, thank you!

He's pecked at one of my cats and got away w/ it bc that particular cat is very (too) easygoing. Had it been almost any other cat they would've gave him the skipity pap pap lol

I will definitely keep my eye on him though, thanks!

As someone with a buncha ferals that hang around, I wouldn't be so sure about that. All the cats around here are at least a little afraid of my birds. They will even back away from their food bowl if the ladies approach

 

[QiyeTLyriQue]

My cats aren't afraid of the chickens. They were curious in the beginning, but they don't pay a lot of attention to them now.

What's funny is that some of my cats HAVE taken an interest in chicken feed (weirdos) lol

 

[FrostRanger]

My cats aren't afraid of the chickens. They were curious in the beginning, but they don't pay a lot of attention to them now.

What's funny is that some of my cats HAVE taken an interest in chicken feed (weirdos) lol

One of my cats Phoenix (Manx mix kitten who was feral but has decided along with his brother that they live here now. Phoenix has a normal tail, but his brother Edgeworth is tailless) tried to eat the feed i spilled earlier when I was filling the feeders. Like dude, you're supposed to be a carnivore lol

 

[FrostRanger]

Cat tax

Phoenix is the one on the right, the one on the left is his brother Edgeworth

 

[Bawkbok]

You've been given a lot of great advice here. The only thing I can think to add to it is have tarps available to cover the sides of the run for wind control in addition to the roof tarp which has been mentioned. Birds don't like strong wind. We have a large tree log - about two feet in circumference, in the run. They like to lay behind it when they want to get out of the wind, in addition to placing tarps where and as needed. I have found a persistent wind above 12 mph annoys them.
Also, have a place for them to dust / dirt bathe. I used to think they needed sand only for dirt baths, however we use the deep litter method and they love bathing in the cool dirt in the shade. They have sunny sand areas in the yard when they want a sand bath. Our soil is all sand so we never have to buy any.

 

[QiyeTLyriQue]

One of my cats Phoenix (Manx mix kitten who was feral but has decided along with his brother that they live here now. Phoenix has a normal tail, but his brother Edgeworth is tailless) tried to eat the feed i spilled earlier when I was filling the feeders. Like dude, you're supposed to be a carnivore lol

Right!?