If I were to ask people on the street what makes a rooster a rooster, what do you think they might say? I guarantee most would mention their crow, the large wattles and comb, or the impressive and beautiful feathering.
And of course, all those answers are correct, but there is one more important feature to a rooster that (although absolutely essential) I was totally ignorant of before I became a homesteader. The rooster spurs.
What Are Rooster Spurs?
Like the antlers on a whitetail buck or the huge tusks on a male walrus, all cockerels are equipped with an impressive weapon for defending their flock and sparring with rival males. The spurs are a wicked-looking spike of keratin — the same stuff that makes up the rooster’s beak or your fingernails.
A rooster’s spur is located abouthalfway between the chicken’s foot and hock.And like your fingernails, it has a quick that is directly attached to the leg bone. If you were to see a cross-section of a spur, you would see the small inner cone of the quick entirely covered by the hard outer cone of the spur itself.
如果你看到一只公鸡在进攻,它会跳起来,然后摆出它的脚。The spurs become the rooster’s leading edge会对任何阻挡它的东西造成严重的刺伤。伴随着阵阵羽毛,这是一个令人生畏的景象。通常,这种展示足以让好奇的捕食者离开去寻找更容易的猎物。然而,如果这还不足以起到威慑作用,大多数公鸡会为了保护母鸡而英勇战斗至死。
Spurs, therefore, can be an important part of your flock’s dynamic, particularly if you free-range your birds. The rooster is the first line of defense against threats, watching over your hens 24/7. Of course, you don’t want that pointy barrage to get turned against you, your pets, or your children.
So what is a responsible chicken-keeper to do with a rooster’s spurs? There are a handful of considerations to go through before you take action. Let’s discuss rooster spurs so you can make the best decision for your flock.
How To Manage Non-Problematic Rooster Spurs Without Removing Them
I have found that when you read through online articles or books discussing rooster spurs, you’ll quickly find yourself reading through a list of methods for removing them as if that were the only option for responsible flock management. I’d like to add a different thought. If your chicken has rooster spurs, but they aren’t causing any problems, just leave them alone.
I understand that there are endless rationalizations for removing inconvenient or potentially dangerous animal parts. Keeping any animal has an inherent risk, of course, but I can’t recommend that you hack bits off just because you don’t like their threat. For example, just because my dog could bite me doesn’t mean I’m going to rip out all his teeth.
如果你刚接触公鸡,不知道该怎么处理它们的马刺,让我先给你推荐一些方法,让它们从一开始就不成为一个问题。
Choose A Gentle Breed
首先,如果你想养一只公鸡,但你是养鸡的新手,那就选择对人类温和的品种吧。并不是每只公鸡都像疯子一样,在你一转身就会用标枪打死你——事实上,大多数都不是。
If you’re not well-versed on chicken breeds, I would recommend trying out anAustralorp,Orpington,Naked Neck, orCochinrooster. It’s probably best for a newbie to avoid a Rhode Island Red. While beautiful, they are somewhat notorious for being bad-tempered. Of course, keep in mind that birds are individuals. The only way to really know if you have a gentle rooster is to meet him.
Be Kind To Your Roosters
Second, be kind to your roosters. Remember, roosters often use their spurs for defense, so if the big guy feels threatened, he is more likely to lash out. Some keepers make a daily habit of catching and petting their roosters to keep relations friendly. I personally don’t cuddle with my rooster, but I do talk to him and make a point to calmly move in and through his personal space every day.
Teach Your Kids To Be Kind To Your Birds
此外,不要让你的宠物或孩子逗你的鸟。他们可能认为追逐你的袋鼠并吓到它很有趣,但他们所做的一切只是预先让它永远变得讨厌和快乐。最后,在他面前不要表现得害怕。他能感觉到。用善意、自信和警惕的眼光去做你的鸡肉生意。
Be Aware Of Rooster Body Language
第三,花时间了解公鸡的身体语言。无论他看起来多么平静,总是注意到他在哪里,以及他对你的出现是如何反应的。如果公鸡快乐满足,他不会注意到你。他会忙着确保他的母鸡们井井有条。
But when a rooster spends a long time looking at you, it’s because he’s not entirely comfortable. The term “cockeyed” may have come from a rather apt description of a rooster’s habit of inspecting a potential threat. If a rooster is uneasy about you, he might move toward you sideways, head down as if he were looking at something in the grass, but he’s really studying you.
You can see an aggressive rooster exhibiting this behaviorin the first two minutes of this video.If he rushes and bumps into your leg, he’s showing aggression and you need to not take it lightly. If he starts fluffing up his feathers —particularly if the hackle feathers around his neck are on end— he’s getting ready to attack.
Take heart, though. If you have a gentleman of a rooster — and many are — you may never see him get to get to this point. Just treat him with respect and always keep yourself aware of his disposition, as you would with any male livestock.
Consider The Reasons Why Their Behavior Has Changed
Fourth, if you have an otherwise calm rooster who suddenly seems to turn aggressive, don’t immediately blame him — check yourself. These birds are often creatures of habit, and they can be upset by a change to the routine.
Are you wearing new, squeaky boots? Maybe a flappy raincoat? Things that may seem totally innocuous to a human eye may be a big scary threat to a simple-minded bird, and prompt him to bring out the spurs to protect his hens.
Make Sure Your Flock’s Sex Ratios Are Reasonable
Fifth, make sure the sex ratios in your flock are balanced. Listen, I bet that straight-run of fluffy chicks may have been a delight to raise, and they all have a string attached to your heart. But once the roosters distinguish themselves from the pullets — often emerging spurs are a tip-off — you need to make responsible choices with your bird population and either trade, sell, or eat the extra males.
Though general wisdom says each rooster should have 10 hens in his harem, a single rooster in his prime can handily fertilize and guard up to 16 hens, and at the very least, needs four to himself.
养太多的公鸡和太少的母鸡,用不了多久,你手上就会有一场完全可以避免的、不必要的大屠杀。虽然这听起来很残酷,但如果你的公鸡在打架或互相残杀,这不是它们的错。这是你的。
Related Post:Chicken Molting: What It Is And What To Expect
You can solve the problem by either establishing a second chicken flock and associated coop someplace else on your property, or getting rid of all but one of the roosters (depending on your flock size). Everyone, poultry and human alike will breathe a sigh of relief.
Remove The Mean Rooster All Together
Finally, if you have done all the above and you still have a mean bird that is prone to attack, make the judgment call and send him to the freezer. A rooster like that is not worth the trouble or threat to your homestead.
吝啬也被认为是可以遗传的,所以如果你有一只天生讨厌的公鸡,它可能会生出讨厌的后代。然而,一碗美味的自制炖鸡并没有什么恶心的。
How To Deal With Problematic Rooster Spurs
上面说,有几个例子,你可能需要做一些马刺维护与你的公鸡。
The spur never really stops growing, and with some older birds, it may start to grow so long that it curls back toward the leg. In some instances, the spur can curl until it digs into the shank and harms the rooster. In this circumstance, a careful trim may alleviate the issue for the old guy. Be aware, though, that the spur will never stop growing, and in a year or so, you may need to give him another trim.
Another instance where rooster spurs can cause issues is in the spring when chicken hormones are raging, and mating is happening at what might seem like a constant pace. Even if the sex ratios in your flock are appropriate, your rooster may have a favorite hen who takes the brunt of his affections.
Related Post:Buying Baby Chicks: A First-Timer’s Guide
Or, you may have a rooster who just isn’t gentle with his girls and ends up tearing up their backs — usually, a young, inexperienced one is to blame. In both cases, you can either outfit any bare-backed henswith a special mating saddle for protection, or trim down the overzealous rooster’s spurs for temporary relief.
I will repeat it here, though, because I think it’s important. If you want to remove a rooster’s spurs because he’s aggressive towards people, it’s not worth it.Getting rid of the spurs doesn’t solve the problem. Get rid of the rooster.
How To Trim Rooster Spurs
You can trim down a spur much like you would a long toenail or the claws on a cat. It’s an attempt that you should probably make at night when the rooster is subdued anyway, and with the aid of a towel to hold him safe and secure. If he struggles even then, try covering his face to calm him.
When you do make a cut, trim carefully. If it’s your first time, I would recommend erring on the side of caution and cutting as little as necessary. If you hit the quick, hidden away beneath that hard outer shell, you’ll cause a lot of bleeding and damage — not to mention pain for the poor rooster who is already being held in an awkward, uncomfortable position. It is wise to keep some cornstarch or styptic powder on hand while you’re trimming spurs, in case you go a little too far.
Check out this video from Cackle Hatchery that uses a reciprocating saw.如你所见,公鸡身上会留下一个钝刺,它的武器会被收回一段时间。然而,这个点最终会重新增长。
How To Remove Rooster Spurs
Another way to blunt the end of the spur is through judicious use of a file. You cansee a video of the process here.You can also use a Dremel tool to quickly rasp it down — I’d certainly want to make it a 2-person job, though!
从技术上讲,鸡刺可以由兽医通过手术去除,但我不知道为什么有人愿意经历这个危险而昂贵的过程。I have also heard of cauterizing rooster spurs onbaby chicksbefore they grow, but again, I believe it is an unnecessary, cruel, and potentially lethal hassle.
There are several methods for tearing off rooster spurs, but I don’t recommend them. Removing the outer spur totally exposes the sensitive, blood-rich quick. This could put the rooster in pain and may require a separate isolation area so he can go through the recovery.
And despite the fact you are tearing off the entire spur in this procedure, you are not eliminating it forever. Eventually, the rooster will heal and start to regrow the spur again. If you still think this is the best choice for your rooster, you can search for instructions on your own.
Frequently Asked Questions About Rooster Spurs
Can You Permanently Remove Rooster Spurs?
从技术上讲,是的,但要花很多钱。有可能让兽医手术切除公鸡小腿上的角质层,但这是有风险的和昂贵的。
It is also possible to cauterize a chick’s spur bud to prevent a spur from growing in the first place, but again, it is a risk. It is possible that a damaged, misshapen spur may grow anyway. You should consult a veterinarian if you decide to try it.
Do All Roosters Get Spurs?
They all should, though there may be instances where a unique individual may not. Spurs may also develop on some hens — particularly Mediterranean breeds and older hens — so spurs alone are not an accurate indicator of gender.
Do Roosters Spurs Fall Off?
Naturally, they won’t. Think of them like a fingernail. They only fall off if something traumatic happens to them, like getting stuck on a fence or being torn. Not pleasant!
What Age Does A Rooster Get Spurs?
The answer to this question depends on the rooster’s breed and individual growth rate. Fully developed spurs can appear as early as three months, but some slower growing birds may take as long as nine.
Do Roosters Need Their Spurs Trimmed?
这个问题的答案取决于公鸡和环境。如果一只风度翩翩的公鸡的马刺没有造成任何问题,我建议不要碰它们。
如果一只年长的公鸡身上的马刺向后卷曲,弄伤了他的腿,修剪一下是明智的。如果马刺在交配季节伤害到母鸡的背部,修剪一下可以给它们一些缓解。如果公鸡正在攻击和伤害人们,不要浪费时间修剪它的马刺。把他送到冷冻室去!
希望这篇文章为所有新的养鸡人带来一些未知的公鸡刺激。请在下方评论。你还有其他问题吗?有什么关于你的公鸡的故事让我们开心吗?我欢迎对我的观点表示赞同和反对。你是如何处理鸡皮刺的?
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