I don't know about Capons, but I wouldn't castrate a rooster personally. Having the ability to fertilize the eggs and create new chicks without outside help is one of my personal requirements for my backyard flock. If the chicken/egg industry shuts down tomorrow, it wouldn't change anything in my life really.
Roosters are rough on hens if you have too many roosters though. They will gang up and hold them down to fertilize the hens, and they will take turns on the same one for sure. I keep 1 rooster per 10 hens MAX. I have a ton of pullets and cockerels right now, and I will slaughter the majority of the cockerels right as they mature in order to protect the hens from that shit. I will probably keep 3-5 roosters for the couple dozen hens I will have just to be safe, but if they start ganging up on the hens I will just separate them into different areas with their respective hens and effectively create "clans" of chickens.
Had 0 points 2.9 years ago
I don't know about Capons, but I wouldn't castrate a rooster personally. Having the ability to fertilize the eggs and create new chicks without outside help is one of my personal requirements for my backyard flock. If the chicken/egg industry shuts down tomorrow, it wouldn't change anything in my life really.
Roosters are rough on hens if you have too many roosters though. They will gang up and hold them down to fertilize the hens, and they will take turns on the same one for sure. I keep 1 rooster per 10 hens MAX. I have a ton of pullets and cockerels right now, and I will slaughter the majority of the cockerels right as they mature in order to protect the hens from that shit. I will probably keep 3-5 roosters for the couple dozen hens I will have just to be safe, but if they start ganging up on the hens I will just separate them into different areas with their respective hens and effectively create "clans" of chickens.