The cock in the flock

On St. Patrick’s Day, we went out and bought 6 chickens.  The chickens are our first “farm animals” out here.  I had chickens in town for 4 months or so, but that’s a whole different story.  We bought everything we needed to get them through the first 6 weeks of life in the “brooder”.  I added two more chicks to our flock two days later….they were all alone in the brooder at the store and I felt sorry for them.

Baby chickens!

I REALLY didn’t want a rooster.  The crowing in the morning, the aggressive behavior, the hens getting over-mated….no thanks.  I made a point to ask multiple times to be sure we were getting sexed hens.  “Guar*an*teed”, they said!  “All hens for sure!  Well, 99% sure, at least…”

Fast forward a few weeks and one of the hens is larger, looks different, and is a little more aggressive than the others.  The old Sesame Street song “One of These Things is Not Like the Other” comes to mind.  Hubby said “Do you think that’s a rooster?  (S)he looks different.”

A little online research later and, for the only time in our lives, we are the 1%!  Not the 1% we’d want to be, but…alas.

The next day, I researched when and how to slaughter a rooster.  Maybe that’s a little harsh, I haven’t even given the little cock a chance.  Maybe he’ll be a cool cock and protect the girls.  Maybe I’ll enjoy his crowing in the mornings.  I don’t have very high hopes.

He is a handsome devil, though!

The cock in the flock

We’ll wait and see how it goes before convicting him to the death penalty.  I’ve been sure to hold him every day in the hopes that he stays tame.  But, I’ve pinned the post on slaughtering roosters….just in case…