A Harvey By Any Other Name

Handsome Harvey Henbanger - Ladies Man

It's been almost a year since the prodigal hen, Electra, came home with her batch of chicks and surprised the heck out of us.  After all, we thought she was dead because we hadn't seen her in weeks.  Her two offspring that we kept are almost a year old, and it's time to revisit Harvey Henbanger's evolution into the very handsome boy that he is.

Baby Harvey - strutting his stuff already.

Harvey was one of two roosters and he quite happily let Uno rule the roost, so to speak, and take the lead.  Harvey was a follower, sweet in disposition and happy to hang back and sneak in a quick rendezvous with the girls at any opportunity.  Life was good for Harvey, all of the benefits with no responsibilities.

Uno had to go as we could only have on rooster, and it was decided that Uno had the potential to be a bit too dominant, and I wasn't going to deal with another aggressive rooster attacking me when my back was turned.  So Uno went to a new home, and Harvey Henbanger became the main man.

As I have written about before here, Harvey had a bit of an uphill climb learning his new role and trying to sort out his place in the universe.

He has turned out to be the most delightful boy, with his kind and gentle personality winning everyone over, even my ever-suffering husband who normally has to deal with unruly and ungrateful roosters.  Everyone that meets him agrees that he is something a bit special - in every sense of the word!

I'm special!

Harvey is now an attentive guard to his flock, constantly watching over them, alert to swooping birds and those pesky airplanes.  The girls now (mostly) listen to him, and look to him if they are concerned.  A good rooster will 'gift' the choicest food morsels to his harem before he partakes and he does this with aplomb.  When I give them their scraps and treats in the morning, despite the fact that there is enough to go around and the girls are already tucking in, he magnanimously places food in front of them. This presentation is highlighted with prolific clucking and chattering and a step back to ensure that they understand it's for them, not him.  Their comfort and happiness is his greatest delight.

But don't let his sweet demeanour fool you, he is still a rooster, and a very randy one at that.  The beginning of spring has brought with it an increased fervour within him, and it seems like he is always on top of one of them, proudly dismounting with a fluff of the feathers and a proud chest.  Some of the girls, sadly mostly his mother and sister, are missing some feathers on their backs and wings due to his attentions.

We have also noticed another interesting trait of his personality that has come to light in recent times.  When one of the girls sings the song of her people and announces the great accomplishment of laying an egg, Harvey Henbanger notices.  He must have something in him that drives him to immediately fertilise the next egg in the pipes, and he takes this task seriously.  He can be up the front of the acreage, hanging out with his girls, scratching for bugs in the garden, and the raucous ringing of the hen's announcement travels on the winds up to his little pointy head.  He grows about a foot taller, puffs out his chest, the wings go back at a rackish angle, and he runs.  He runs long and hard and fast, and nothing is going to stop his quest for fornication.  The hen is still singing loudly and proudly, walking around aimlessly when she sees this black and white bullet bearing down on her with dogged determination.  Some will submit, others will try and make their escape, and there is a flurry of feathers running in circles around the yard, one trying to avoid and one trying to conquer.

At heart, he is still a sweet boy and will often give up.  But the pull of rooster-hood is strong, and sometimes he doesn't care what the hen thinks - he has his mission.  He does it often enough that we now call him Harvey Weinstein as consent doesn't seem to be an issue for him. 

But no matter, the girls seem to have taken to him after many months of disinterest and disrespect.  He has earned their love and worked hard to do so, and is now reaping the rewards. 

We love you Harvey, you crazy rooster.

Harvey's Life Plan.