Today I found my silver laced Cochin roo dead. It had just happened as he was still pretty limp. He was a BEAUTIFUL roo and a very good natured one too. He wasn't all flighty and didn't have to run off when I was walking amongst them. I could pick him up if needed even though he didn't care for it. When putting him back down he shake his feathers back into position and puff himself up but didn't feel a need to get away from me.This roo didn't take any guff off any other roosters, but he didn't look for a reason to fight either. He was kind to his hens and took really good care of them too. He didn't rip their back feathers off them either. He was just a NICE, gentle, easy-going and stately kind of roo. He was my fav of all the roos I have.
I suspect, because of where he was laying, and because there weren't any marks or anything on him that he may have been in the wrong place at the wrong time and got stepped on by a goat. He was in the pen with the 4 Nigerian Dwarf does are.
I'm glad I had just taken these 2 pics of him with his "wife". He really looks like he was listening and they had a conversation going on. (Look at all those lovely foot feathers!)I had him, the hen with him and a pullet from them from last Summer's hatch. I'll have to keep an eye on this hen so the other roos don't all gang up on her. She stuck right with her roo and none of the others bothered her at all.
I was going to put my 3 Brahma pullets with him until I find them a roo so he'd have a nicer sized harem. I had thought that his and the hen's neck feathers matched the Brahma neck feathers pretty closely and thought I'd be able to tell their eggs apart easily as the silver hen lays a lighter colored egg than the Brahma hens are laying. (It makes it easier to know for sure who's eggs are the purebreds for hatching.)
I'm really going to miss him; and he's going to be really hard to find a replacement for. Bummer.
I'm so sorry, Shar. Sounds like he had a lot in common with my Buff Roo, Tom Jones. I hope you're able to find a mate for your Hen that will be near as sweet.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Along with his hen, I also have a young pullet. I really hope I can find a roo as I was hoping to have eggs to incubate from them.
ReplyDeleteIt's been noticibly quiet today as far as crowing. I didn't hear any crowing except first thing this morning. I now now who was my all day crower!
Awwww. :-(
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry!
Thanks, Nancy! The other young boys out there have gone nuts and turned it into chaos with their squabbling and trying to assert themselves. I guess this boy I lost WAS the top roo! We're in some extremely low temps for the weekend and Monday's "warm up" will be most welcome. The boys are all heading outdoors to the other pen and the girls out there are moving into the barn. It's time for the 30 day fertility quarantine and that way the hens won't have to put up with the obnoxiousness that is running rampant at the moment. I just can't take critters out of the barn during this really cold time that's moving through.
ReplyDelete