Why did the rooster stop crowing and trampling hens?

Solution methods

So, before solving our problem, and in order to wean birds from pecking eggs, we should find out the reason. To do this, we need to secure the nest, for example, place it with an egg collector and see what led to this behavior. If it is not possible to change nests, then you will have to check the boxes every three hours and see which of the hens is the promoter of pecking. Sometimes it helps to simply remove the bad guy from the general herd.

Proper nutrition

So, if your chickens start pecking eggs, you need to immediately review their diet. Do they provide enough protein and minerals? Perhaps it’s worth replacing some component? The introduction of animal feed into the diet helps solve the problem. For example, it is good to give bone meal, fish meal, and dairy products. You can feed legumes and vegetables rich in protein.

Be sure to place a separate feeder with gravel or coarse sand on the walking area, if there is none. Crumble the chalk and shell rock into a small trough. If your chickens willingly peck at this mixture, then we have found out the reason correctly. Often, giving such substances does not change the problem, so you can resort to stronger methods. These include pharmaceutical drugs and some medicinal herbs.

Pharmacy drugs

Special pharmacy-purchased preparations help wean chickens from pecking their eggs or each other. Often, manifestations of pecking and cannibalism are associated with the same reasons, so you can take the same drug. Such remedies are not particularly popular, few people still know about them, but in special difficult cases they help. For example, this includes Biovetin, Methionine.

Traditional methods

Most owners who start pecking at eggs use long-known, and most importantly, proven folk methods. For example, this includes beak trimming. This procedure in poultry farming is called debriding. It is mandatory at all poultry farms to wean chickens from tearing out feathers or pecking each other or eggs. To do this, the sharp part of the end of the beak is removed with a special tool.

At home, this part of the beak can either be filed off with a file or trimmed with wire cutters. It is advisable to do this to pullets whose stratum corneum has not yet fully formed. After this, the cut area needs to be cauterized with hot metal, for example, a regular knife will do. Although this does not help to wean him from pecking eggs, it is unlikely to succeed with a blunt beak.

Also among the folk remedies to wean one from a “bad” habit is placing decoy eggs on chickens. It can be made from plaster or replaced with a regular tennis ball. The bird will try to peck at the decoy a couple of times and this will help wean it from this habit. You can take a regular egg, pour the liquid through a small hole and use a syringe to fill in the pepper or mustard solution. The laying hen will definitely not like such a spicy snack, so next time she will think about whether she should do it or not.

Disturbing silence

But why the rooster stopped crowing needs to be clarified as soon as possible. A bird’s voice doesn’t just disappear like that. Most often, the cause is a variety of respiratory diseases, which can soon lead to the death of the individual. Indirect symptoms of this will be rapid or intermittent breathing, coupled with paleness of the comb.

Sometimes the rooster is silent during the molt. If so, he will resume his songs when the difficult period is behind him.

The worst thing is if, due to a recent illness, the rooster “changed sex.” This does not mean that he became a chicken, but internally he stopped perceiving himself as a male, a leader. He loses interest in his harem and ceases to defend his accountable territory.

The bird should be taken to a veterinarian immediately. In most cases (except molting), the rooster must be replaced.

Chicken fertilization process

Not all poultry farmers want to breed chickens using the incubation method. With the natural breeding method, fertilization is necessary for the appearance of chicks. Therefore, a male is needed on the farm.

Fertilization

Chickens, like other birds, have love etiquette and rules of behavior in the flock. The rooster is the leader to whom the hens obey unquestioningly. The leader has his own favorites with whom he shares food.

When flirting, the male sedately walks around the hen, scratching his wing with his paw.
The mating process begins with the rooster climbing onto the hen and moving his paws over it, looking for the recess provided by nature on the back, “tramping” the hen.
It grabs her head with its beak. Mating begins: short-term contact of the cloacas of the partners. At this moment, the seminal fluid penetrates the oviduct - fertilization of the egg occurs.
During mating, when the rooster holds the hen's head with his beak, the organisms of both birds prepare for fertilization. When trampled, the cloaca of the partners is slightly turned out. In males, the gonads are located on the inside of the cloaca near the outlet.
Seminal fluid remains in the hen's body for up to 20 days. During this entire period of time, fertilization of the eggs occurs. The seminal fluid penetrates their soft shell, which is not yet covered with a shell. Whether there is an embryo in the egg is determined with an ovoscope. This is a device for candling shells.

The sexual activity of roosters varies. Some males are capable of 20 matings per day. In order to plan and properly manage a household, you need to know at what age a rooster begins to trample hens.

Sexual function is affected by:

the presence of adult and aggressive rivals,
breed characteristics,
quality and sufficiency of feed,
conditions of detention.

Reproductive capacity is reduced or lost completely during molting. More often this happens in the fall, but there are no exact dates.

Infectious bronchitis

The cause of the disease is a virus, which is particularly tenacious, but is easily destroyed under the influence of ultraviolet rays and disinfectants. A farm in which infectious bronchitis is detected can be a source of infection for surrounding poultry farms throughout the year. The mortality rate is quite high - more than 65%.

Roosters with infectious bronchitis experience the following symptoms:

cough, difficulty breathing;
mucous discharge from the nose;
loss of appetite;
diarrhea.

If infectious bronchitis is diagnosed in birds on a farm, they are subject to quarantine. The chicken coop should be systematically disinfected. This disease in chickens cannot be cured.

The meat of a diseased bird does not pose a danger to humans.

In order not to let such an insidious virus come to you, you need to observe quarantine measures when purchasing young animals. If the farm is large, then it would be useful to vaccinate birds against this disease.

Who are capons

These are roosters that are indifferent to females because they are castrated. The operation is performed by surgeons at a veterinary clinic when the male chick is 3-4 weeks old. This is done at the behest of the poultry farmer, who wanted to raise a large individual with unusually tender and tasty meat, which becomes so thanks to the even distribution of fat between the fibers as the bird grows.

Hierarchical ladder

It is important to understand not only why roosters crow, but also in what order they do so. In a poultry house, especially not the smallest one, there are usually several males. And they are strictly distributed according to leadership. This hierarchy clearly regulates the order of access to food and mating. And the main indicator of the ranking is the order of morning singing. Japanese biologists published a research report in the journal Scientific Reports, in which they indicated that the alpha rooster vocalizes first, the one following him second, etc. If the head of the flock dies or grows old, he is replaced by the next one on the list.

Why do roosters crow in the morning?

How a rooster impregnates a hen

Many people are interested in how a rooster crows. In fact, this is the familiar “crow”. Moreover, in different countries they hear completely different things. This is probably why birds do not understand people when they try to imitate the voice of a rooster.

The reason why the rooster crows in the morning lies in the hierarchy of animals. The proud alpha male makes a sound first early in the morning, followed by low-ranking individuals. In this way, places in the hierarchy are distributed among the roosters. In addition, crowing is a way of marking territory and warning enemies that they will be in trouble if they decide to be intruders.

Why do roosters crow in the morning?

What time do the roosters start crowing? The time when they make their first sounds is determined by the birds' biological clock. The first roosters start crowing at 1.00, the second at 2.00, and the third at 4.00. But depending on the conditions and biological characteristics of a particular rooster, the time may vary. The researchers also noticed that the time the rooster crows is related to the location of the stars in the sky. So, the first roosters begin to crow when the star Canopus appears above the horizon, and when it disappears, they stop. The third rooster often coincides with dawn.

The question is, why do people need to know what time the roosters crow? And the explanation is very simple. In the village, when there was no clock yet, this was one of the landmarks when to set off on the road (waiting for the first roosters was considered a good omen), the second was often a signal to go milk the cows. Well, the third is a sign that you need to get up and get ready for your daily work. In general, like a village alarm clock. When a bird crows, you can immediately tell what time it is.

For your information! Few people know that a rooster can also cluck like a chicken, and they do this to call their “friend” to eat.

Lifespan

In the wild, chickens can live an average of 13 years. But with proper care at home, the life expectancy of birds can reach 30 years. In practice, this rarely happens, since everyone makes mistakes in care, and the bird itself may be genetically weak or raised in conditions conducive to the occurrence of diseases.

It also all depends on the purpose of raising roosters. As a rule, this is a continuation of the chicken family. Therefore, roosters live as long as the period of active fertilization lasts. On average it is 4 years. As soon as the rooster becomes a weak male, he is sent along with the chickens to slaughter. Well, there’s nowhere to put it, it’s so useless, but it will still be useful. Normally, 1 male should fertilize 10 females.

Note! How many years roosters live depends on the quality of food, the temperature in the chicken coop and many other factors (a skilled poultry farmer should prevent fights between roosters, as they negatively affect the psyche of the animals).

Several reasons why a rooster crows often

Speaking impartially, the loud “alarm clock” screams not only according to the schedule. He can start screaming in broad daylight. However, there must be a reason for this. It can be:

Invasion of the protected territory of a potential enemy.
Challenge by a young rival alpha to a battle for championship.
The upcoming sudden change in weather.

Young cockerels who do not intend to compete with the leader can also try their voice. In this case, the leader does not respond to the cry, but gives the impudent a beating. And if he doesn’t take the hint, he might peck him to death.

If the rooster crows constantly, throughout the day (or even night), there can be two explanations. Firstly, the personal character of the bird is affected. And here the owners will have to either come to terms with this or change the manufacturer. Secondly, a stressed bird can vocalize continuously. For example, if you bought an adult. In this case, you just need to wait until the adaptation period passes.

Bronchopneumonia

Bronchopneumonia is one of the types of respiratory diseases in chickens, when roosters wheeze and do not crow. Its causes may be hypothermia of the bird or a virus transmitted from a sick bird to a healthy one.

This disease can be recognized by the following picture:

a sharp decrease in activity;
breathing is rapid;
the bird begins to wheeze;
Due to difficulty breathing, he breathes through his mouth.

Bronchopneumonia in chickens is treated with antibiotics. Terramycin, Penicillin, Norfloxacin are prescribed. After a week, the disease goes away with the help of antibiotics, and the bird can return to the chicken coop.

What to do if there are no signs of the listed diseases, but the rooster wheezes and does not crow? Most likely, the bird caught a cold. It will also require an antibiotic to treat it. You should give ¼ every other day. After 5-6 days, your pet will delight you with its singing.

The rooster crows at night: signs about the rooster

The Slavs believed that each animal or bird was strictly responsible for its narrow area of predictions. In the conventional division of birds into “light” and “dark” roosters were lucky to be “on the side of good.” Which is no wonder, because, according to ancient beliefs, it is to the crow of a cock that we owe the morning “awakening” of the sun, the retreat of darkness, and therefore our safety from various kinds of evil spirits.

Considered a creature with a special “sense” for evil and evil spirits, the rooster was revered by our ancestors as one of the best predictors of various kinds of troubles and troubles.

If a rooster crows in a bad voice and hits the windows Warning: a fire may soon occur in the house.

The rooster suddenly lost his voice - to the illness of one of the family members. If at the same time, for no apparent reason, your neighbor is hoarse and screaming, there is reason to fear a real epidemic.
A rooster that runs into the house and climbs onto the dining table, according to signs, is a sign of a deceased person in the family.
The rooster constantly shakes his head for no apparent reason - it means trouble.
For the owner, keeping an old bird on the farm means inviting illness, or even death.

Do not think that our ancestors only had bad omens associated with roosters. For example, the same Slavs believed that a snow-white kochet would certainly bring happiness and prosperity to the house.

Household signs

There were countless signs predicting the near future of the entire family based on the behavior of a domestic rooster:

Waking up in the morning to the sounds of a rooster crowing is a sign of great luck; the whole coming day will be extremely favorable.
A rooster crows in the middle of the night - trouble almost happened; With its ringing voice, the bird drove away death flying nearby or one of its “angels.” According to other signs, the rooster crows late in the evening, at night - to the dead.
A kochet suddenly singing in the middle of the day warns the owner about sudden changes in his life and, perhaps, about the imminent appearance of some urgent matter.
With an important look, the rooster “patrolling” the yard and constantly “preening” hints to the family about an imminent visit from a stranger. The behavior of a kochet who suddenly stopped at the gate (or on the threshold of a house) and “crowded” was interpreted similarly.
Weather prediction
Any bird reacts quite clearly to any changes in the atmosphere surrounding it, allowing an attentive observer to predict the weather directly from its behavior. This also applies to roosters.
Poultry “bathing” in road dust always means rain. It is also worth interpreting the behavior of birds that have gone to roost for the night much earlier than usual or have huddled somewhere on a hill for no apparent reason.
But if the rooster begins to shed feathers and molt, good, dry and warm weather will soon be established for a long period.

Black rooster. Signs

Roosters of the purest black color are quite rare. Such birds have long been considered “witchcraft” and even “devilish”; they were credited with a direct connection with the other world and the ability to “bring disaster” to a stranger.

To this day, there is a sign that in a strong thunderstorm (or other bad weather) you should stay as far away from the black rooster as possible; otherwise, it might even strike you with lightning. But in normal times it is even useful to have such a bird on your farm. It is believed that the owner of a black rooster is not afraid of thieves or other ill-wishers. After all, the “witch bird” reliably protects his property and himself from any encroachment from the outside.

Interesting fact! In the cultures of many nations, the black rooster is considered a symbol of material wealth and well-being, but at the same time, an unsuccessful marriage and a weak family.

The ancient Greeks believed that the lion was afraid of the rooster's voice.

Do you want to know? Then let's figure it out.

The sudden “ Ku-ka-re-ku ” is unlikely to be just a spontaneous desire of the rooster to crow. Most likely, something scares or worries the bird, and in this way he warns his flock of danger, and small predators that the chickens here are not “ownerless” and are under his protection.

How loud does a rooster crow?

The volume of a rooster's crow can reach 90 decibels . This is roughly equivalent to a dog barking. And the clucking of alarmed chickens is only 70 decibels . But all sorts of lawn mowers and power tools can produce much more shrill and annoying sounds than an entire flock of chickens.

Based on the level of sound irritability, people are more likely to make an exception for a dog than for a rooster. We encounter dogs much more often. Even in the city, not in the countryside, we are constantly surrounded by dogs – our own, our neighbors’, or the traditional pack in our yards. Dog barking is much more common, so we have learned to simply not notice it.

Conscientious dog breeders do not allow their pets to bark loudly at night or early in the morning. But with a rooster things are more complicated. You can't force him or persuade him to shut up. He has his own plans for this and he will shout contrary to any of your wishes.

Why does the rooster crow in the morning?

Until recently, there was no clear answer to this question. Although traditionally, from time immemorial, the rooster was considered a reliable “ live alarm clock ”. But a group of scientists from Japan conducted research in 2015 and proved that the first crow of a rooster in the morning is still an “announcement” of dawn .

The first "official announcement" comes from the most dominant rooster in the area. Then the representative of the “second rank” shouts, and so on, down the hierarchy. If someone violates the crowing order, the dominant male will try to challenge the “violator” to a fight.

This instinct remains from the times when chickens lived in the wild jungle and were not domesticated. In this case, shouts allowed them to mark the boundaries of their “domains.”

In addition, as we already wrote at the beginning, the cry was a warning to small predators that the herd was “under protection.” Although, for example, a rooster's crow, on the contrary, will only attract a fox.

If you hear an untimely rooster crow in the middle of the night, this will most likely be a distress signal: some predator has sneaked into the chicken coop and wants to feast on your chickens.

The rooster is a living alarm clock

One of the most interesting things the researchers discovered is that roosters have an internal circadian clock. Although this idea had long been accepted, it remained unproven.

When the birds were kept in complete darkness for several days, they still remained tuned to the 23.8-hour day. And they continued to “announce the dawn” without ever seeing it with their own eyes.

How often does a rooster crow?

Usually, after one or two screams, the bird calms down, believing that all its neighbors have been successfully alerted to its presence. After this, he remains calm for a long time until something alarms him.

How to stop a rooster from crowing

We must remember that the rooster is a kind of running alarm clock. At night he sings constantly. This happens at night at one, two and four o'clock in the morning. Experts explain this by the bird’s internal biological clock.

Is it possible to make a rooster crow at night? The answer here is clear: no. Almost nothing can be done to stop a rooster from crowing at night.

Experiments by scientists indicate that a rooster in any situation under any conditions will crow at approximately the same time.

Someone is annoyed by the rooster's crow. Some are concerned about his absence. Let’s agree that it’s fun: “Crow” brings joy to life. And if the rooster is silent, then this is an alarming signal for the owner. We need to find out what the reason is and take action.

Colibacillosis

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With correct and timely diagnosis, colibacillosis is treated with antibiotics. Biomycin or terramycin is mixed into the feed. Plus sulfadimezin and multivitamins.

Constant screams

Some particularly zealous individuals can crow around the clock with short breaks for food and sleep. This behavior can only be explained by some deviations in the genetic code. Experienced poultry farmers believe that these manifestations may be a consequence of breed costs.

It was noticed that on the territory of our country, uncontrollable screamers are most often found among breeds derived from the Yurlovka vociferous (the second part of the name explains everything), such as:

Zagorsk salmon;
Moscow black;
Adler silver;
May Day.

A comparative analysis of the propensity for curing of meat and egg-bearing breeds showed that the “leadership” belongs to the latter.

Results

There are no silent roosters. You shouldn't even think about it. This is their way of communicating with the herd, with you, with the outside world. All you can do is just try to reduce the intensity of this noise.

Isolation won't help either - as we now know, the internal circadian clock will definitely tell you when to “declare dawn.”

But it’s better to just love these birds and try to make friends with them. If your attempts are sincere, then soon friendship and trust will appear between you and the bird.

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