This is the story of Spike. Spike is a polish rooster who lived in a home with about 10 hens and another rooster. This other rooster was selfish and wouldn't share the hens with Spike. Spike got beat up often and wasn't happy. His people decided to find him a new home and put an add on Craigslist.
There was another woman who had 2 hens and a bantam rooster. She felt the bantam wasn't doing his job which was to get his girls out and about. The bantam was a wuss and spent most of his time in the coop and encouraged the girls to stay with him. When they were out he spent a lot of time hiding under the girls. So this woman had been thinking of getting a full-sized rooster and when she saw that Spike was available she couldn't resist. She figured the bantam was so passive they'd all get along.
Turns out the woman was wrong! The bantam didn't take well to having another rooster enter his territory and manned up. The bantam spent most of his time chasing Spike around the yard and nipping at his feathers. The woman set up an area for Spike in the other pen but Spike didn't like being alone and kept coming back in with the other chickens and getting chased. The woman knew one of the roosters would have to go. At first she thought she would re-home the bantam but then Spike started crowing at 6 am. Full size roosters are very loud!
So, the woman decided to find Spike a new home. She posted a message about Spike and his sad story on the local homeschool list. Luckily, someone wanted Spike. Spike went to his new home today, he will be the only rooster with a polish hen. Spike will finally get the life he deserves!
This is the story of Spike. Spike is a polish rooster who lived in a home with about 10 hens and another rooster. This other rooster was selfish and wouldn't share the hens with Spike. Spike got beat up often and wasn't happy. His people decided to find him a new home and put an add on Craigslist.
There was another woman who had 2 hens and a bantam rooster. She felt the bantam wasn't doing his job which was to get his girls out and about. The bantam was a wuss and spent most of his time in the coop and encouraged the girls to stay with him. When they were out he spent a lot of time hiding under the girls. So this woman had been thinking of getting a full-sized rooster and when she saw that Spike was available she couldn't resist. She figured the bantam was so passive they'd all get along.
Turns out the woman was wrong! The bantam didn't take well to having another rooster enter his territory and manned up. The bantam spent most of his time chasing Spike around the yard and nipping at his feathers. The woman set up an area for Spike in the other pen but Spike didn't like being alone and kept coming back in with the other chickens and getting chased. The woman knew one of the roosters would have to go. At first she thought she would re-home the bantam but then Spike started crowing at 6 am. Full size roosters are very loud!
So, the woman decided to find Spike a new home. She posted a message about Spike and his sad story on the local homeschool list. Luckily, someone wanted Spike. Spike went to his new home today, he will be the only rooster with a polish hen. Spike will finally get the life he deserves!
12 comments:
How beautiful is Spike!
Christy
I'm very happy for ya Spike. Best wishes.
Gotta love it! And Spike lived happily ever after... I just love happy endings.
RiverBend Farm
Texas
Good luck to you, Spike. Poor guy. Not sure if you recall, but I've done the Polish hen/rooster thing. My rooster, Pip, needed to be rehomed because not just my other rooster, but my hens, too, were pecking him bloody. I really believe the books now when they say that some breeds just should not be mixed. The Polish is an ornamental breed which just seems too "different" for the other chickens. Chickens don't like "different".
I'm sad to say that Pip's rehoming experience (where he was the only rooster to 14 hens) hasn't worked out well, either.
I hope Spike lives happily ever after!
I don't like to have crested birds. Like Farmgirl_dk mentioned, the other chickens aren't very nice to them.
I've had a few Polishes given to me that I put in with my established flock, and they were pecked really badly. I figured it was just because it was not part of the clique.
Then this past spring McMurray Hatchery put a free chick in my order, and it happened to be a Polish. He was pecked just as badly with his agemates and flock as the others had been....so I won't get any more crested chickens.
Speaking of picked on chickens, have any of you had problems with Roosers favoring to "be" with the Buff Orpingtons more than your other hens? My poor Buff's backs were always plucked clean because they were the Roosters' favorites. Is it because they are blonde or what?! (We had several hens, so having 2 roosters didn't seem to be a problem for the other hens.)
That is interesting about the polish being picked on. I hope being with his own kind he'll do well. It will just be the 2 of them. I do plan to get more hens soon but will stay away from the polish and will stick to our one rooster. I'm not looking to get chicks so he should be fine.
Yay for Spike! And what fun for you and Logan to be a temporary foster home to Spike. He was on handsome Polish, too!
Maybe his visit was a good reminder to your own roo that he needs to man up or lose position. hehe
It's so funny reading about how others have had problems with their standard hens and roosters getting along with crested breeds.
Personally, I've had only positive happy experiences with my Polish Rooster.
Heck! He even gets along with his partner Rooster, a Japanese Silky. They are buddies and even sleep side by side and share the 'women'.
Maybe my chickens are more accepting of each other? Maybe they are just happier? Maybe my Polish Roo is a 'real man' and so the hens and other roos respect him?
I don't know but I do feel very lucky. Another thing that surprises some people is that my roosters weren't even raised with my original flock of 13 hens. They came a YEAR later as chicks.
I introduced them slowly and made sure my hens knew that I accepted these new chickens (Four in all-two Japanese Silkies, male and female, and two Polish chickens, one male and one female) and the entire experience was easy and uneventful. :)
There has never been any head pecking, fights, or arguments among my roosters or hens and we've had them for over 10 months now.
Maybe I'm just the exception, and I'm just lucky, but I really do believe that mixing ornamental breeds with standard chickens can be done, with enough space so they can move away from each other when wanted, and time to introduce the chickens slowly and gently.
And maybe my chickens are just more accepting of others that are different. lol!
That's why our ranch is called Laughing Orca Ranch. 'Cause were always laughing, happy and everyone gets along.....even the chickens :D
~Lisa
Spike has taken to your son quickly. Good Luck with your new rooster.
Oh i love spike and wish he could come and live here..xx
What a sweet story. I hope he does well at his new home.
Poor Spike, he sure was pretty. He should be happier now.
Glad you were able to rehome him so quickly. Now maybe your roo will get a hint about what his job is besides sleeping.
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