He had it coming. I’d had my eye on him for quite some time. This time, I couldn’t let him get off easy. No, he’d done too much; he’d crossed the line. He was going to regret every picking on my children! When I heard my son’s screams, I knew exactly who it was. He’d been so cocky, such a Big Shot. Why didn’t he pick on someone his own size? When I rounded the corner I saw him, my son cowering in the corner with tears streaming down his cheeks trying to fight him off. I stormed toward him with clenched fists and fire in my eyes. I would not abide him any longer!
It was a quick fight. He didn’t really stand a chance. Vengeance had been taken! Justice was done. Had I meant to kill him? I’m not sure. All I could see was that laughing face as I choked the life out of it! Once I’d had the taste of blood I moved on to the others that had caused so much trouble. I knew right where to find them. Before I knew what had happened, five bodies lay at my feet!
Can you see the cruelty in those beady eyes? Can you see why I did it? Does anybody understand?
He won’t peck at any more kids ever again! Sheri’s going to make him into coq au vin…Yum!
And his buddies, the he-ducks, won’t bully the females any more. Last week they ganged up on one of the female ducks and killed her. At the time, I knew what to do, but didn’t have the time to take care of them.
So we weren’t planning on butchering ducks and chickens today. I’d been planning to work on the greenhouse, not harvest poultry. I’ve got a pretty awesome wife, though. She had other plans for the afternoon when I walked up to the kitchen door holding the dead rooster. I asked, so do you think I should go kill all the male ducks too? She said, “Sure, why not?”
So here we are plucking a rooster and some ducks, thinking, “No wonder everybody buys their poultry under plastic wrap at the grocery store.”
By the way, in the side-by-side comparison, I’d pluck five chickens for every duck. Those duck feathers are a pain!
So as newbie farmers we’ve learned quite a bit our first year:
- Ducks are really messy and not worth having around.
- Chickens are way easier to pluck.
- In the farmyard a little testosterone goes a long way.
- Some roosters are just plain mean.
We figured we’d kill the mean rooster before our community supported agriculture customers started bringing their kids to see the chickens on pickup days. We’ve got a couple more roosters, but after what happened to their big brother, I think they’ll be on their best behavior.