Strange activities going on out in the coop. I have a pen that has 4 young roosters in it. I figured it was ok for them to dwell together until I can take them to the poultry auction, as long as they don't fight, since they were hatched together from young.
This evening I was out there and I thought they were fighting, but that was not it. They were grabbing each other by the head feathers and attempting to cover each other. I didn't know that the males would do that.
Guess it's time to make a few changes in the living arrangements now that they are maturing.
I came in and told DH about it and his comment was, " We got a 'Brokeback Coop' ????
Brokeback Coop ?
HAHAHA! Peggie, that is so funny - Brokeback coop! I think it is more of a dominance issue than a mating issue. I have seen that happen in a rooster and in goats. If they are doing that it probably won't be long before they start fighting. I'd hurry up to the auction because they won't sell for much with a lot of feathers missing.
Haha! Yup, I agree, it is probably a dominance thing. I'd separate them to avoid fights. It can turn from romance to fighting so quickly. Sigh.
We have a chicken that we aren't sure what it is, sorta - it crows, covers the hens, is most aggressive in it's pursuit of the hens, but it laid an egg, that NONE of us would have believed, but we were there when the egg was laid - even tho we saw it, we thought it was some sort trick, and, laying the egg has not stopped the other behavior...
You know, I read a really funny little book called HEN AND THE ART OF CHICKEN MAINTANANCE and the author had a chicken who was very similar. I highly recommend it, it is a cute little book.
Seems like I heard of a hen that crowed and acted like a rooster. In the article, it said that the chicken contained both an ovary and a testes. This particular one laid eggs for a time and then turned into a rooster, practicing typical male behaviour from then on.
I can't remember all the details, but it was on TV. I thought maybe I dreamed it up (too much late nite tv when drowsy).......... but my son in law brought it up about a week later and asked me if I saw it, since he knew I would be interested in anything about chickens. I guess this is something that is not everyday stuff, but does actually happen sometimes.
Never a dull moment on the farm.....................