Tancho Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Hi again! So after the wonderful advice on here I have now purchased a small mixed flock of girlies. Part of the group was a lovely big buff orpington girl (the breed I longed for!). However over the past couple of days my cries of joy have been drowned out by the cries of her crowing! I have read a lot about hens taking on the responsibilities of a rooster in their absence but I'm still really worried I've got a roo. She doesn't do a full crow but rather a long drawn out Kaaaaaaa-kaaaaaaa sound that sounds like half of a cockerels loud call. She's also mounting some of the other hens too! I haven't had any eggs from her yet (not helping my sanity), but when I go to pick her up she does squat like she's wanting to be mated, bum up in the air etc. Would a cockerel do this squatting behaviour? Have I got a girl that wants to be top? I'm really worried as we live in a fairly built up area and her crows are really loud! I don't want to have to re-home her but I can't have her crowing at 6am! They are all very new, is there a chance this behaviour will pass? Is there anything I can do to stop it? I have some pics but can't see how to post them on to the forum for a second opinion! Help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimnpaula Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Here's a thread about putting on photos: http://club.omlet.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=48619 You may need a couple more posts before you can put up the actual pictures, but should be able to post links to them. If you've got them on facebook you need the album to be 'public'. I hope you find a way of showing us and then we can all have a go at identification for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daxigirl Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Orpingtons are whingey and moaney (well my 2 are). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennie186 Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 My 2 buff orps were noisy when I first got them and one neighbour said they sounded like a cockerel, but this settled down after a couple of weeks. Now they hardly ever make a noise - Only when excited (peeps), upset when moved into new run (grumbling), general chit-chat (bok bok) or just laid an egg (announcement). Not sure how long you have had him/her but hopefully will settle down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tancho Posted March 26, 2014 Author Share Posted March 26, 2014 Hi there, Thank you for the thread link, very useful! Hopefully this picture will attach ok of "her" taken today. I really wish it was just normal whinging instead of this throaty half crow/croak. It's so loud! And the fact that she keeps mounting the other girls. I have never seen a hen mount to show dominance before so I don't know if they usually just jump on top of them and hold on, but she's also angling herself around as you imagine a male would when mating. She has been better this afternoon, only had two bouts of crowing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daxigirl Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Oh dear that looks like a him to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I think I can see pointed saddle feathers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsunset Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I would hazard a guess and say boy too based on the pointy saddle feathers. Are you able to keep him if so? I have seen a couple of my hens jump on another cockerel style and have put it down to a dominance thing in the pecking order. Looks cruel but the under hen submits to her fate and then waddles off after a telling off chook style to mind her place?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennie186 Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 I would say a boy. The comb is much bigger than my 2 girls Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tancho Posted March 26, 2014 Author Share Posted March 26, 2014 Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I've contacted the person I got her (or rather HIM) from, I can't keep a cockerel. My neighbours are fairly understanding (next door has pekins and they're noisy little devils!) but I think they would draw the line here. Otherwise i'm not sure what to do I did think it was really "going for it" with the mating thing, not just jumping on but positioning itself right down onto the other hens. The only thing that I found odd was that it submitted like a hen when I tried to pick it up (crouched and pushed its bum into the air). Really gutted as these guys really perked me up, we lost our house rabbit very suddenly a couple of days ago and the girls have really helped get me through it, I'm all stressed out now as to what i'm going to do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Definitely a him. But wouldn't it be great if your eggies were fertile!!! There shouldn't be a problem swapping over. You expected a laydeee but you got a randeeee. It's a shame you have to let him go but orpies sometimes develop late anyway. When we got ours we were told if any decide to be boys then bring them back to be swapped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 It's not that easy though is it, it's not like taking a pair of shoes back to M&S but think you do have to consider your neighbours and you don't want the dreaded noise abatement letter from the council:( Maybe give yourself a few days to think about things and see what your options are x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beantree Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 A Cockerel without a shadow of doubt Tancho. Very nice looking chap as well. We had one who crowed very softly indeed, even though he tried his hardest all that came out was a high-pitched squeak. We had him for a full year and it didn't change. So perhaps you can wait until he does crow properly, to be sure he is unacceptably loud? I can't see a big problem rehoming him. We sold our 'Spikey' to someone who gave him pride of place in his poultry business. We have two Buff Orpington cockerels now and they are both pretty loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tancho Posted March 27, 2014 Author Share Posted March 27, 2014 Thank you all for the support and opinions. You're right gavclojak, it's not like returning shoes, you get attached! However the decision was made this am after being woken at 6am sharp with a cacophony of crows from the coop. I contacted the breeder and they agreed to take him back. They were fine but I got the impression they weren't impressed. They were adamant it was a girl and wasn't a boy and that they had seen their blue orpington mating with it! Made me feel guilty somehow as if I was making it up!! However on a funny note, I took him to work with me and put his box out the back of the shop (as the breeder was near to it), and he crowed for an hour out the back - the other staff thought it was hilarious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Haha the thought of popping in a shop and hearing that:) OMG....6am.....yep he better go, hat a cheek from the breeder though! Guess you won't be using him again then! Fingers crossed they find him a good home x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Sounds like the breeder tried to pull a fast one. Very naughty. Glad all is resolved though - and peace and tranquility is restored. Nothing quite like stressing out over a noisy bird in the early hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tancho Posted March 29, 2014 Author Share Posted March 29, 2014 Thanks guys. Yes peace is definitely restored - and the good news is we found a lovely lady that was downsizing her flock and had a 100% hen buff orpington for sale which is a pet, so her girl, called Lottie, came to live with us today! However, the stress of the other breeder is really getting to me now. I received a text from them today asking if i'd clipped the birds wings when I had it. In my confusion I said yes because we'd clipped all our newbies wings. He replied saying he'd "found me out" and i'd "taken him as a fool" and given him a cockerel back and kept the bird I'd brought from him! I have replied saying actually it was a mistake (because we'd done the others and talked about doing "him" but hadn't actually got round to it) so I have shot myself in the foot there but at the same time I was flabberghasted that someone would accuse me of driving 40 minutes each way twice to swap a hen for a cockerel! I have photographic evidence that he was the only buff orpington I own, and I replied saying how dare he accuse me of swapping the birds when it was him that sold me a cockerel instead of a hen in the first place. The only person who's done anything wrong is him!! I'm kind of fizzing with anger at the moment, I want to ring him up and start having a go but trying to calm myself down!! I had to laugh though because he said "I know my birds" - IT IS HIS BIRD!!!! I only had the bird for 3 days, how on earth has it changed so much he doesn't know it! Needless to say I will be avoiding like the plague!!!! And they seemed like such lovely people too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 What an idiot, he ought to be ashamed of himself! You should threaten to publish his name on a well used chicken forum! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valkyrie Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 What an idiot, he ought to be ashamed of himself! You should threaten to publish his name on a well used chicken forum! I second that! He tried it on with you. What a complete But at last you can forget him. If I were you I'd block him from your phone too. Then we all need to know where not to get chooks from! And if you did a swap why would you go and get another one - you'd have 2 of them and yet you still only have one! Well you can never get enough chooks in any case! So pleased you have found the lovely Lottie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
