No coloreds allowed......

We have a few "broiler" chickens that are all white. This is very different from the "yard bird" free range chickens we have. They are all different colors and breeds. Buff Orphington, Welsommer, Rhode Island Red, Banty, and a few "guess what". I keep the broilers in a separate building by themselves so they don't exercise all their meat off. I also feed the Free Range birds in their own coop.

I don't have a problem with any of the broilers getting out - they are quite happy to be "inside" birds. I also don't have a problem with the other birds getting INTO the broiler house - USUALLY.

There is this young rooster who thinks he's real smart. He likes to eat his breakfast in his house then run across to the broilers and join in for seconds. I have caught him in there 3 or 4 days. He usually tries to hide amongst the other chickens, but his color gives him away. I reach in, grab him by his legs and toss him out. He's starting to get sneaky, now.

This morning, He came running out of his house and headed for the broiler house when he saw me. He stopped cold and acted like he was just out for a morning stroll. I disappeared around the corner of the shed, so he figured it was all clear. I waited about 30 seconds and went back to check. Sure enough, there he was in with the broilers, trying to chow down. He heard me coming and tried to hide in the corner. He knew what was coming, so he just stood there, waiting for me to nab him. I grabbed his feet and carried him outside. He didn't even squawk, or fidgit ANY. I guess he has gotten used to it.

I grabbed him around his back and tossed him as high in the air as I could. He came fluttering back to earth and ran to a bunch of nearby hens. He tried to act the "macho" man, and went into his "Chicken Dance" routine, but the ladies weren't interested in him. I disappeared around the corner again, for about a minute, then checked the broiler house again. There he was, just hopping down off of the fence into the pen.

When I got to the pen, he had his head in the feeder and didn't hear me coming. I reached in and grabbed him across his back. This time, he wasn't so calm. I guess he thought he was safe! We went back outside for another "flight". He landed amongst the hens again, and started his dance. This time they COMPLETELY ignored him and wandered off, leaving him standing there all alone and rejected.

He saw me standing there and decided he'd had enough, so he wandered off toward the barn. We'll see what he tries in the morning.