So Long, Roger!

[TheSeedObsesser]

Journey, that's actually a trick that I learned in 4H, it makes it very easy to show birds. Holding the legs, with the bird's back propped on your knee, you could easily handle a 40 lb turkey like this. I think that what happens is that the blood rushes to their heads and they start to get sleepy because of that, calming down. By the way this not only works for turkeys and chickens, but also ducks and geese. And if you have a guinea or peafowl, I don't see why it wouldn't work with them.

 

[so lucky]

I did end up grabbing Penny by the legs, but Roger was a different story. One of the issues was that the coop is about 2.5 feet off the ground, and the chickens were just about at my face level when they were "exercising their wings."
I used to "hypnotize" the chickens when they were smaller. Roger was pretty easy to subdue when he weighed 1/4 what he does now!

 

[journey11]

I saw Martha Stewart hypnotize a chicken on her show once. That would probably "hypnotize" me too...with vertigo! (My inner ear bothers me sometimes.) Well, at least Roger is someone else's problem now. I haven't had much luck with roosters here. I love to look at them, but they always want to flog my kids. Maybe I'll try again when the kids get bigger and can manage a broom.

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

Journey, if you want to have a semi-tame roo that won't attack your kids -

Bring the roo indoors when he is a chick. Just raise him in a box (no other chicks) and let your kids play with/hold him. We did that with Peep and he is a great rooster (He is tolerant of being picked up now, but will run when he doesn't want to be picked up. He is good at protecting the flock and will go up against a gaggle of geese if necessary - won't attack people). Sure he got noisy when he was a chick (and we weren't holding him) but it turned out fine, your kids will probably be much more willing to spend a good portion of their time with a baby chick than I would. If you do decide to do this - I advise having a paper towel on one of your kids' laps and sitting the chick on their when they're holding them... just in case.

 

[Wishin']

That is exactly how we tame our roosters. One of the knocks on my bedroom window every sunday morning, I open it and let him in and he hangs around on my bed sunbathing for an hour or so then I toss him back outside. He is so sweet, you can go pick him up whenever you want, you can lean down and pet him, and if you tap your lap and call him he'll hop up and lay/stand in your lap, we also keep treats in our pockets, and give them to him often to keep him sweet and encourage him to come to people.

 

[so lucky]

That is exactly how we tame our roosters. One of the knocks on my bedroom window every sunday morning, I open it and let him in and he hangs around on my bed sunbathing for an hour or so then I toss him back outside. He is so sweet, you can go pick him up whenever you want, you can lean down and pet him, and if you tap your lap and call him he'll hop up and lay/stand in your lap, we also keep treats in our pockets, and give them to him often to keep him sweet and encourage him to come to people.

Wow!

 

[so lucky]

I'd never heard of them taking adult chickens at the feed store. What do they do with them? Sell for layers or stew?

Have you tried holding the chickens upside down by their shanks? Mine will flap their wings a few times then calm down and just chill. I guess it's a prey/predator instinct...they quit struggling when they think they must be a goner. It won't hurt them though. I sneak into the coop at dark and just immediately grab their legs out from under them with one hand, going for the roo first. You can carry them around like little chicken suitcases then.

Yes, people around here like to buy point of lay chickens, and I guess they occasionally want a roo to protect the girls. When I went to the store yesterday, they didn't have any full size pullets or roos. This morning, they had about 20 or 25 pullets. The chicken man said some man brought them in late last evening. No other roos, though.

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

That is exactly how we tame our roosters. One of the knocks on my bedroom window every sunday morning, I open it and let him in and he hangs around on my bed sunbathing for an hour or so then I toss him back outside. He is so sweet, you can go pick him up whenever you want, you can lean down and pet him, and if you tap your lap and call him he'll hop up and lay/stand in your lap, we also keep treats in our pockets, and give them to him often to keep him sweet and encourage him to come to people.

Ha! I wonder why our rooster isn't that nice? Must be the BCM in him.

 

[ninnymary]

Wishin, doesn't that rooster on your bed poop on it?

Mary

 

[Wishin']

Wishin, doesn't that rooster on your bed poop on it?

Mary

That is the first question everyone asks me. The fist few times I was worried he would, but he never has if he did I wouldn't be to concerned, when I'm not sleeping on the bed I cover it with the "dog" blanket to keep cats,dogs, and chickens from ruining my blankets.