Roosters for raptors

Usually, if I have an unwanted rooster or two, I 'dispatch' them (as poultry folk say) myself. They end up in the freezer and get eaten at some point, by us or the dogs, depending on whether I can face rooster stew or curry after skinning and gutting them. But today I had four poor young cockerels who needed to go. They had started crowing and throwing their weight around and our existing rooster didn't like it much. Things were starting to get a little violent in the chook house.

Last year on a visit to the Raptor Refuge of Tasmania, we learned that they accept donations of unwanted live roosters, who are humanely euthanised and fed to birds in their care. I think it's a great idea. Anything to stop irresponsible chook owners from dumping them and help rehabilitation of these beautiful birds sounds good to me. Well, not good for the roosters clearly, but better than some other fates. You need to contact the refuge first to arrange a convenient time for drop off (in the box shown here) as they have limited resources, with staff and volunteers kept very busy caring for the animals.