Innocent owner of a crazy Rooster....

Innocent of owner of a crazy rooster…

I have to confess that I am stealing this title from Mike… I had to do it because that is the only apt title for this blog. I love cats a lot and had my share of pets when I lived in Bangalore. But when I had to shift to a village home in Byndoor I had to give up my idea of having pet kitties. Our home is often invaded by rough and tough stray cats and the pets would never be safe here. Our house is old type Indian home which has lots of opening near the roofs through which the cats enter our attic ( yeah yeah I need a better home with running water bwahhh!!). This was supposed to be a temporary arrangement for us but some family feuds on my husbands side has got us stuck here for past 8 years.

I found a new kind of love for chickens over here.

First I had one hen which was bought by my husband for getting some fresh eggs. I used to feed her and gradually started to see that hens are so much smarter then we actually know and they need our love like dogs and cats…. I decided to allow the hen to breed and it was a success. Another hen wanted to join her and she did so. The mother hen tried to push her out but in vain. So there were two hens now taking care of the eggs in turn. They adapted to the task and shared the work to my amazement. The hens knew exactly everything about bringing the chicks into this world and they did it. We were a happy family watching the chicks until we found one could not walk. It was very weak and was struggling to get under its mothers wings.

Rayyan picked him up and slowly pushed him under his mothers wing and it stayed there. After two days the hens decided to take the chicks for a small day out trip and sadly the small one could not follow.

In the world of the fittest survives it was left behind and again Rayyan was to its rescue carrying him and taking him everywhere the chicks went. After a week it was as strong as the others and slowly because of extra love and care shown to it, it grew to be strongest alpha chick of the brood. Though its early days were spent like an outsider.

YwR

The chick in creamily white is the one I am talking about. When the chick was four months old we got to know he was a fine golden colored rooster… he grew up to be one of the finest rooster we have ever seen.

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My hens are not the interior types and they are left to roam free in my backyard. If I keep them confined for the fear of dogs they stop eating and get weak. This rooster would go far away from home but would rush back (if he was in the hearing distance) whenever I called him to have his lunch. He would enter my house and bedroom and sit beside Rayyan if he was sleeping waiting for his quota of special food. He was a huge bird but very friendly and you have to believe me that not once had he pooped inside the house. Our area had few other roosters but he set a rule that they should not crow. If ever he heard a rooster crow he would rush there and silence him. Once in a while he would bring a strange hen to hour home and ask me to feed her. It was very funny the way he stood there and watched them eat the food without touching any of it. One day somebody from the neighborhood complained that our rooster had tried to attack their kid. I told them the child must have troubled it, because this bird has been moving in and out of our house never attacking anyone. Few kids from my neighborhood do trouble the animals and they must have troubled him and he being a strong big bird he had defended himself. Another day one of Rayyan’s friend ran to catch hold of it and when Rayyan turned around he saw the boy was running with the rooster chasing him. It was a funny sight. Few months after that my brother’s son who was visiting us tried pulling its tail and the rooster attacked his face leaving a gash on his face. My sister in law was very upset and told me to cut and eat the rooster because he had wild behavior but again I told her that he would not have done that if he was left alone. I love my nephew a lot but I could not punish this rooster because I know if I had a tail I would not like it to be pulled for fun. There were few more complaints from the people that the rooster was not safe and I could not believe it. One day I heard screams of a boy and rushed out to see that the rooster was standing there quietly and this boy was shivering in fear. “Hey! Why are you so scared?” I asked him and he said my rooster had attacked him. The rooster stood there innocently pecking the ground for food. “Don’t lie. He is not even bothered about you” I sounded accusing and the boy swore that the rooster had suddenly changed his behavior when he heard my footsteps. I laughed out loud. Imagine a fowl attacking a kid and then pretending as though nothing has happened when I came out. But complaints kept pouring in steadily and finally I got to see that the rooster actually attacked a kid and changed into ‘I am Mr. Innocent’ when he saw me. Amazing. He was a mild bird, sitting on my sons bed, never pooping inside the house and moving out of way if Farheena was walking and to think he attacked kids behind my back was very tough on me. I pleaded guilty and said sorry to anyone who was hurt. I knew this would not last and I had to give up the rooster because if I confined him he would not survive. He could fly quite high and so no walls were boundaries for him. Finally as a last straw my neighbors kid was attacked quite badly with bit of wounds to show and they were very angry. So with a heavy heart I gave him to a woman who raised fowls for living. She said he kept brooding and never ate food which she gave him. When she left him free he would climb up trees and never come down. I again pleaded with her to take care of him for few more days until I could find solution for him and paid her handsomely for the help.. The last I heard she had sold him to some unknown person for a hefty sum. Now she is avoiding me but I don’t even try to get in touch with her because I know she does not know the person she has sold him to. We all think of him very often and miss him a lot. I go through the guilt of hanging on to him for sometime even after seeing he attacked a kid. It was very tough giving him away but there comes a time in our lives where our minds have to rule our heart. This was one of such moment where my mind overtook my heart. When I talk about pet chicks no one understands that they are actually my pet animals who come over to be petted and understand what is being said to them. They jump around happily when they see me.They have their own attitudes and personalities. People breed them just for flesh and eggs and never try to bond with them… Wish they knew what they are missing.