How Goose is Saved

A couple of days ago, when i was writing this post over on Chicken Chat, i realized it.

I realized that 3 weeks have finally almost already passed, and it's time to have a hatch!

Hatches are great!

And with this particular hatch, i'm going to make a little money, get my broody hens back to laying eggs more quickly, and prepare for our big summer slaughter (i'm sorry; that's just the way it is).

Also, i'm very pleased that my lowest-on-the-rooster-pole rooster, Goose, is not (provided and Lord willing these people come tomorrow) going to have to be part of the slaughtering party.

This is Goose.  He has been saved from the dumpling pot several times now.

First, he was scheduled to be butchered about 4 months ago, when he should have been looking about like he is now.  But, alas, Goose was very slow to mature and was still too small and gangly, and we didn't think he'd be worth it.  This, incidentally, is also when he got his name.  He was all neck, so i started calling him Goose.

Next, he finally started gaining a little size - though it still seemed that he would never actually grow up - and we knew it was time to butcher him if we were going to.  But frankly, i wasn't in the mood.  I had a lot going on...puppies, broodies, baby chicks.....  So, i called on my good friend Eva Joy, who was coming for a visit and agreed to transport Goose back to the home he originally came from, where he would be butchered by that family.  The plan was that i would do as i had done before when needing to catch a rooster - i would wait until he was in the coop for the night and use the opportunity to corner him and then isolate him someplace where he could easily be transported.  Well, Goose must've had a sense about the whole thing because that night, he refused to go in the coop, and when Eva came the next day, he was not to be caught.  Believe me.  We tried.

Now, this time.  As i said, it's coming time for a big (for us, anyway) slaughter of young roosters we've been raising for just that destiny.  And we knew that it was time to either go ahead and slaughter Goose or find him a home.  Thing is, he's getting old, AND my husband has some kind of a bad impression of Goose that makes him not even want to eat Goose.  So Goose would be slaughtered and fed to the dogs.

So today, while i was thinking about schedules and sales and slaughters and whatnot, i put ads on 5 different  online venues where i could advertise a FREE ROOSTER.

I can't tell you how excited i am that i got a response to ad number 4, from a lady who has one lonely pet hen who needs a companion.  Goose is going to be such a fat happy pet rooster!  He has grown to be such a beautiful and gentle guy, and i am absolutely pleased!  For the first time in his life, he'll be the only dude around.  He's going to be in rooster heaven.  Yay!

As soon as i got the email, i went outside and was able to walk directly up to Goose and pick him up.  No problems.  It's like he knew.  So he's hangin' out with my broodies for the night - and getting a nice meal - so that i can easily retrieve him in the morning when this wonderful person comes to take him to his new home. Yippeee!!

So, in conclusion, this weekend, Little Mama's chicks are hatching, and this week, Rhodie's chicks are hatching.  As soon as that's over, my little butcherees are going into the brooder to get fattened up so they'll be in shape for freezer camp.  And (for those of you who expressed an interest in watching the chaos) we'll plan to have a freezer camp party on probably (only pencils, for now) the 19th or the 26th of this month.

Maybe by then the bunnies will start doing what rabbits do best, and we'll be off and running with meat sovereignty.  But that's probably a different post.