Roosters at Who Gives a Cluck
Roosters are companion animals. Those that can have a rooboy live with them, love them and understand how great they are at protecting their flock and keeping order!
Sadly we get messages every day from someone that has seen a dumped rooster on the side of the road or they took in some chicks and now they have a rooster and are not allowed to keep him.
This page tells you what you can do if you need help or if you want to help!
Together we can make sure roosters are not bred to be abandoned…
How you can help
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desk warriors to research information for us about all things roosterish or will spread our information onto social sites about poultry.
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If you live in south east qld or northern rivers NSW, we desperately need:
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rooster catchers;
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rooster foster carers;
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someone with a property that will allow us to set up a rooboy batchelor pad.
Hatching Projects are cruel.
To the decision makers in schools and parents of children in classrooms.
Hatching Projects for your children may seem ‘cute and educational’ yet in reality, the opposite is true. It is cruel to the mother hen, to the chicks who are left in a glass cage for the first weeks of their lives and to what happens to the chicks after the project is finished and to the parents who take them home thinking how cute it would be to have a hen or two in their backyard but don’t know what to do when one is a rooster and starts crowing.
A mother hen that wants babies cluck clucks to her unhatched chicks as she sits on them to keep them warm. In a Hatching Project, these fertilised eggs are taken away from mother hen and kept in small incubators/glass cages so children in a class can see them hatch. This is not nurturing a child’s compassion for animals.
Please think about what you are teaching your child if you allow them to participate in a Hatching Project.
- Babies can and should be taken away from their mothers.
- Babies can be left alone in a glass cage without a nurturing mum.
- Children can pick them up whenever they like, without knowing how to properly hold and care for them and unintentionally hurt them.
- They can left unsupervised on weekends when school is not open.
- A sick chick may die from being mishandled or not getting the care it needs.
Rescue organisations like Who Gives A Cluck receive messages every day about roosters needing a home or they’ve seen dumped roosters. The strain on our resources is frustrating because we know that if parents and schools made more thoughtful choices, these roosters would not have been born in the first place, so would not experience being taken away from his friends and a safe environment only to be euthanised or dumped and left to survive on his own. Our rescue organisations spend hours rescuing them and finding foster carers even when we have no more room to take in any more dumped roosters.
- Who Gives A Cluck, with the support of Bede Carmody Animal Sanctuary Fund, are creating an online virtual ‘Life of a Chicken’ that all school children can use and we are also doing in person, ‘Hen Zen FunShops’ at schools or 4 to 8 years olds. To register your interest, contact us here:
https://whogivesacluck.org/contact/ - Take your children on an outing to a sanctuary where they can visit animals that are cared for.
- Show the children the Life cycle of a chicken without using live eggs. Go to this link ‘Chicken Life Cycle’ from
https://www.teaching.com.au/product/LER2733
Adopt a Rooster
Who Gives A Cluck adopts roosters.
If you live near or can get to any of our adoption areas, from the Sunshine Coast to Gatton, Brisbane, Jimboomba, Gold Coast, Mullumbimby, Lismore or Grafton, then we have some Rooboys for you to consider adopting.
- •We rescue roosters when we have the resources to care for them until they are adopted.
- •They are all health checked, wormed, lice/mite protection given and while at our Foster Carers home, we get to understand their personalities too, so can often ‘fit’ the right boy to your flock.
- •We need to know these Rooboys will be cared for when they go to their new homes, so once you’ve selected (& bought for free from our shop on line), we will ask you some questions to feel comfortable they are going to be looked after well.
- •If you are already one of our valued Mother Cluckers (an approved Hen Parent), then no questions asked as we know you will take care of any rooboy you adopt.
- •If you live elsewhere and want to adopt a Rooboy, we will try to work something out with you or contact sanctuaries that may have a Rooster that needs a home so please reach out to us at
https://whogivesacluck.org/contact/
Why you never dump a rooster and what you can do
While right now you have to deal with this situation you are in, we desperately hope you will never again take on chicks, fertilised eggs or allow your hens to hatch eggs unless you are 100% prepared to take responsibility for any roosters that you have.
Here are the 6 reasons you should never dump a rooster:
- Animal Welfare. They are domesticated animals, that need protection, feed, security. They are not native or wild birds that know how to live in the bush, or on the side of a road. Once dumped they stay in that location as they don’t know what to do. They are undernourished and lonely. Some people throw them feed, maybe they can get water. They don’t get the right food or the treatment they need to worms, lice, mites, ticks. Most importantly they are left alone or sometimes with a couple of rooster mates that are also dumped, instead of doing what comes naturally to them, protecting a flock.
- They become a target for cruelty. They are attacked by dogs (often encouraged by the dogs owner), taken by predators, left to the amusement of cruel people who think it’s fun to chase them, hurt them (reported cases of dumped rooster with both it’s legs broken) or catch them and use them for live dog bait or cull them for food.
- The local community is affected. Often dumped near homes or properties. The crowing, roosting on picnic tables, aggression because they are hungry, caring people furious that someone can do something so cruel, spends time trying to give them feed and water but can’t take them home either.
- The Environment. Rooster dumping adversely affects our local environment as they compete with native animals for food.
- Illegal. While you might dump them at night, so not caught. You are still doing something illegal. The prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979 carries a $5,000 fine.
- Strain on already full sanctuaries. Volunteers spend hours rescuing dumped roosters. Sanctuaries always have more roosters than people to foster them or adopt them so they can not keep rescuing these dumped rooboys.
Here is what you can do:
- Advertise on local and rural social media pages. Please vet the people very well, visit their property so you can be assured they are genuine people who will give him a good home – even a nice old lady coming to take your rooboy could simply want him for their pot! It’s horrible I know but we’d rather forewarn you – if you say you want to visit their home, then if they are genuine they will say yes!
- There is only one sanctuary we know of that might take in a rooster for a 20kg bag of chook feed. They are up past Gympie (QLD). While for many of you that’s a long way, it’s a trip that can save the life of your rooster. You can also contact us to see if we are planning a road trip up there with some other rescued rooboys. But if you need to act quickly, then contact them and make the trip:
https://www.facebook.com/Serendipity-Farm-Animal-Centre-Inc-355149664045/ - Euthanasia. If you cannot find a good home for the Rooboy then the best outcome for this fella is euthanasia at your local vet. Sounds cruel? For the rooboy he will go to sleep and hopefully in your arms so that’s a peaceful ending for him. For you, it’s a lesson that will mean, no more dumped roosters, on your watch, ever.
- DON’T contact us. Our charity won’t assist with roosters that have been home bred, bought as chicks or taken in from a school hatching project – this is because we promote no breeding, as we know how many roosters are abandoned or given to people who will use them for un-savoury purposes (like dog baiting or to eat!). We are heart wrenched that it means so many roosters will no longer have the safety of a home and a flock to protect, but our Foster carers are always full and we can’t find enough people to adopt the rooboys we have. Please do not ask us. It hurts every time to say no, but we will say no.
Become a Rooster Sponsor
So we can rescue more roosters we need your help. If you love the Rooboys then please consider becoming a Rooster Sponsor.
- Sponsor a rooboy for $20/mth for feed and care
- All donations are tax deductible
Your regular donation will:
- Provide veterinary care and emergency treatment for the Rooboys
- Build and maintain safe Rooboy sanctuaries
- Run community education programs to stop Hatching Projects which we believe is the main reason roosters are dumped.
Please make a note on your donation that it’s for the Rooboys and we know to use your donation for their health and security.