Wagyu Roosters

This summer I had an overproduction of roosters at my farm. Out of the 40 eggs I incubated, about 20 of them were roosters, 10 were hens, and about 10 of the eggs were duds and didn't hatch. My farm was quickly getting "boy heavy".

Roosters are very special to me. They are wonderful protectors, have interesting personalities, and are gorgeous. But, having too many roosters in a flock is dangerous for all the chickens. Too many roosters can mean hens get "overly-mated" and roosters start "cock fighing" for dominance. The general farm-rule of thumb is for every seven to ten hens in a flock there can be one rooster. In my chicken experience, even that is a bit much. I feel like having one rooster to 20 hens is better for the flock.

I always keep an eye open for this hen. Although she likes the attention, if her saddle sore ever becomes bloody or irritated, I would place her in a separate pen to get a lady's break from her overattentive boyfriend.

Although I love my roosters, my hens are the egg layers (the money makers) and have the biggest priority on the farm. I can visually see when I have too many roosters when the hens start showing "saddle sores" on their backs. This is an area where the rooster actually mates the feathers off, and the hens have naked backs.

In the picture, this hen has saddle sores because she is my rooster's favorite girlfriend. When most of my hens develop saddle sores, it's time to get rid of a couple roosters.

The technical term for killing chickens is called "culling", and I do not enjoy this part of farming life AT ALL. Since I was not raised as a kid used to hunting and killing animals, I'm not used to culling...it still feels quite savage to me. Chopping off heads with a large knife is absolutely not my cup of tea!

Because of my overabundance of roosters, I started searching for different ways to get rid of the boys...and God sent me a HUGE blessing!

Two hardworking, homeschooled boys at my church, named Cody and Chase, love homesteading, farming, and hunting with their mom and dad. They have their own honeybees, raise chickens, turkeys and horses, and hunt deer. Cody and Chase decided they would help me cull roosters so they could practice processing birds and freezing meat for their family. With the help of another adult hunter, Cody and Chase learned the correct way of beheading, plucking, and removing organs from each of the roosters....and they enjoyed doing it!

So, whenever I have a couple roosters I need to give away, I call Cody and Chase to the rescue!

This gets me back to my unusual title for this post, my Wagyu Roosters...

Wagyu Cow

If you know anything about livestock, there is absolutely no such thing as Wagyu Roosters, but there is such a thing as Wagyu Cattle. They are a type of Japensese Cow that are known for having the highest quality beef in the world. What makes the Wagyu Cattle have the priciest beef with the perfect amount of marbling fat? These cows are fed the best diet of high energy grains, placed in the most comfortable barns without loud noises, sleep to peaceful piano music at night, and some farmers even massage the cows as they feed them their daily beer. These cows live a life of heaven on earth. They do not know a moment of stress before they are butchered, causing their meat to be nice and tender, a melt in your mouth type of steak.

The Bachelor Pad

Before I take my roosters over to Cody and Chase for culling, these feathered gentlemen live the life of a "Wagyu" Rooster. They await their fate in a separate, special coop called "The Bachelor Pad". During their time in the Bachelor Pad, they receive special treatment of being handed sugary treats, like watermelons and grapes. They also have their own personal roosting bars that are not shared with a hundred noisy, gossiping damsels. The Bachelor Pad is surrounded by chicken wire so they do not have to be inconvenienced with predators hunting them.

Their last days are filled with love and comfort...which makes it a bit easier for me to say goodbye.

I'll have to ask Cody and Chase how the "Wagyu" Roosters taste...if they taste better than a normal store-bought chicken. Three of my Wagyu Roosters are waiting in the Bachelor Pad this week, and boy are they loud! Each time my other roosters crow, the Wagyu Roosters copy the crows in the Bachelor Pad. It's a daily Battle of the Bands at my farm with the different groups of roosters competing for the loudest crow...at all hours of the day!

It's going to be so much more quiet once the Wagyu Roosters meet their fate this week.

Thanks for reading my Country Squawk,

Kelly