Boys from the past

When I lived in a rental house, I was not allowed to have any roosters, and a limited number of hens. In order to keep peace with my landlord & my neighbors, we could only have a few hens & I would hatch chicks in the garage. Or the "chickatorium" as I liked to call it

I would order fertile eggs from other breeders, which is great for diversity, but every 4-6 months it would turn into a sad day at our place-- the first little warbling crow would permeate our home. Sometimes multiple crows, all at the same time! Then I'd go out to the garage & look into the pens (really they were large plastic rubbermaid set-ups) & see which of my adorable little chicks had made the transition-- they would only be able to stay with me for a couple of days longer. *Sniff sniff* 

It was heartbreaking to give up the little guys that I had hand raised, but rules are rules. Luckily, I never had a problem finding wonderful loving homes for my roosters. I'm still in touch with many of the families that adopted my little roos, so that makes me very happy. 
Now that I have a permanent space to raise my birds, I am thrilled to have some roosters around. But I still miss some of my little roos from the past.