A Tale of Two Roosters

Hello dear reader!! Long time no chat. *Ahem* apologies. 

Okay, y’all. I’ve discovered through my research that this is a heated topic and has “only one single solution.” I disagree, so hear me out. This is based on my personal situation on my chicken farm. This is the story of 3 roosters. 

February, 2025. Enter Hades, Lottie, and Sapphire, stage right.

Lottie the Barnevelder Rooster (Right).

Hades and Lottie are my OG boys. They were raised together in a clutch of 4 chicks, and they both turned out to be little roos. I kept that in mind as they got older, uncertain of how things would go. The only options I knew of at the time were that you’re supposed to have one rooster or they’ll fight, you must re-home or cull any more.

They are now 4 years old and are happy boys that live harmoniously together. I think it helps greatly that they were raised together. Now, please remember, dear reader, that they ARE still roosters. They’ll still spar (fluff their neck feathers out like an umbrella and do a stand off while staring each other down), but because they grew up together, they have never seriously injured each other to the point that I needed to separate them. It’s funniest when they do it through the fence, I have zero worries about anyone being hurt. Plus I’ve always had at least 10 hens, and they have ample room to spread out. So there are no resources for them to fight over. 

Hades the Sicilian Buttercup Rooster.

Hades and Lottie, just chilling.

Then in came Sapphire. Side note to you, dear reader: occasionally I’ll grab a collection of eggs from the hens and hatch them in my incubator. I enjoy documenting the shell color, guessing who the mother is, then once the chick has hatched, I can make an educated guess who the father is. It’s fun to me. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

Sapphire the Barnevelder x Jersey Giant cross Rooster.

Sapphire’s father is Lottie and his mother is Raven. Sapphire is a cross between a Barnevelder and Jersey Giant. He’s a big, gorgeous boy. Beautiful coloring. He was a very sweet chick, so he is well socialized and doesn’t fear me having to pick him up when need be. He’s 9 months old now. He’s still a youngster. 

Baby Sapphire at 2 days old, July 2024.

3 month old Sapphire.

As Sapphire got closer to adulthood he would often engage in sparring with the other two roosters as roosters do. Until one night, about a month ago, I checked on everyone for the night, and I saw Hades on the floor of the coop with a deep bloody gash in his comb. I knew I had to bring him in and separate him until he healed up. Later that night, he had a seizure while I was cleaning him up. Sapphire had really messed him up and stressed him out badly. It absolutely broke my heart to see him hurt like this. Hades still has a little limp to this day from this altercation.

My “Chick Crib.

This is my “chick crib” my spouse lovingly made for me 6 years ago. This is where all of my current flocks have been raised from a chick before they are integrated into the flock outside. I absolutely love it because it’s easy to get to from our bedroom, and it comes in handy for so many situations. In addition to keeping chicks here, it has turned into a great alternative where I can place sick or injured chickens while they get better before being returned to the main coop outside.

So now, every morning I’ll bring Hades from the house to his separate enclosure in the coop so he can still have food, water, and see his friends. Then every night when I put everyone away, I pick him up and walk him back to the house and make him feel safe. During this time that I’ve been taking care of him, I’ve grown very fond of him. I’ve always known chickens to be intelligent and have their own personalities, but I feel I can actually understand him now, read his body language, and talk to him. It makes me happy that our bond has grown stronger. 

While I’ve been monitoring his healing and progress, I recognize that he’s afraid of Sapphire. On several occasions I’ve witnessed Sapphire try to attack Hades through the enclosure. Thankfully this separate enclosure worked for as long as it did. Until Sapphire figured out, he can fly over it.

Because we live in a very rural area, we have chosen not to clip our chickens’ wings. We feel that this gives them a better advantage when defending against predators.

One day I came home from grocery shopping, and went over to check on the chickens and I assumed Hades was in his separate enclosure like normal. He wasn’t. He suddenly shot out from his hiding spot, running towards me with Sapphire on his heels and pecking his head. My method to keep Hades safe during the day had failed. Either Hades was strong enough to get out, or Sapphire chased him out. I immediately grabbed Sapphire and picked him up, waited for him to calm down, then I walked him to the house to put him in the chicken crib temporarily, till I found a more permanent solution.

So, why is Sapphire targeting Hades? I believe he’s protecting his territory. Survive, defend, procreate. But it’s very possible that he’s jealous of the affection I give Hades. I have tried to work out their behavior for weeks to no avail. Hades is still scared of Sapphire and Sapphire is still aggressive towards Hades. 

I know the majority of you are saying JUST CULL HIM. HE’S YOUNG SO THE MEAT WILL BE GOOD. Oh, dear reader, I’ve considered doing this. However, it’s not in my typical homesteading practice to slaughter chickens. In February I spent some time researching the proper methods for slaughtering chickens in the most humane way possible, because if I am to do this task, I want to be prepared, have all the steps planned out, know where and how to humanely cull him, and know what tools I have at my disposal without having to buy any extra supplies. Having never slaughtered a chicken before we also did some research on the best way to pluck a chicken once it has been slaughtered. 

On Saturday, March 1st, 2025, my spouse and I planned to do it together. We were as ready as we were going to be. I had Sapphire by his feet, and I looked at my spouse’s face and saw his resolve leave his eyes.

You see when my spouse was a kid, they wanted to grow up to be a veterinarian. They grew up with all kinds of animals as pets which they loved dearly. And animals have always been a big part of both of our lives. My spouse did not end up becoming a vet in the end because they couldn’t handle seeing all that blood. We don’t like to kill the animals we raise; we don’t like to see them suffer. Even if the intent is for food. We sometimes entertain the thought of being full time vegetarians. But that’s a whole other topic.

So, we decided to not cull him, but we still had to find a solution to the problem at hand. We have considered making him a free-range chicken, we have also considered creating a more secure separate enclosure for him with some new feathered friends. Our main goal is to make sure he doesn’t get to Hades. So, he must not be able to get into the main coop. We found out last night that he can fly over the tall fence and still get in. Recently I’ve been starting to train him to stay in another part of the property that already has ample space, and a small coop that has a door on it. It’s not fully fenced, so I’m not comfortable bringing hens to be with him yet, plus it’s near the road and I don’t want to lose any of my beloved and valuable egg layers.

I started with giving him treats, and positive enforcement. But he gets bored of that easily and runs back to where the main coop is. I get it, he wants to be with his friends. But for now, he will have to be separated until I can devise a better solution. In order to protect one chicken, I must sacrifice the desires of another chicken. Such is the life of a kindhearted homesteader.

Now 9-month-old, hormonal Sapphire, Son of Lottie, in his rooster jail.

After many emotionally draining weeks, unfortunately I was not able to keep Sapphire with my flock; and after much debate, I finally reached the conclusion to re-home my beautiful boy. During this process I found a decent home for him.  The new home is local, the humans that will care for him have an established flock of hens and ducks, and they were already looking for a rooster to bring into their care. While I was in communication with the new owner, they mentioned that they had fertilized duck eggs available for trade and asked if I was interested. I said, “Heck yeah!” In the excitement of exchanging pleasantries, swapping fertile eggs, and saying a tearful goodbye to Sapphire, I completely forgot to ask what breed of ducks these eggs come from.

I’m sure you’re wondering, dear reader, why don’t you ask the original owner? I texted them and they simply haven’t responded yet. Well, soon enough, we’ll find out.  

Thanks for reading!

P.S.

Mystery Duck Eggs

Mystery duck eggs hatched May 7, 2025.