07/10/2026
Rocky was supposed to die before he ever really had the chance to live.
He was only a couple of months old.
Rocky came from a backyard chicken breeder, where unwanted young roosters were killed by cervical dislocation - their necks broken - because there simply wasn’t a place for them.
Rocky went through the same ordeal.
Believed to be dead, he was thrown into a firepit-type burner with the others, with the pit to be lit the next day.
But the next day, something extraordinary happened.
Rocky walked back over to the breeder.
He had survived.
The breeder decided that Rocky deserved to live, despite ridicule from family and friends for sparing him.
On 28 May 2016, Rocky arrived at sanctuary.
More than ten years later, it is almost impossible to comprehend how close he came to never having this life at all.
Today, Rocky has a very special role. He watches over a small group of special-care hens - girls who have arrived carrying broken bodies and sad stories of their own.
He stays close, keeps an eye on his ladies and seems to carry out his duties with enormous rooster pride.
And yes… he is also exceptionally handsome. 🐓❤️
Rocky’s story is also the story of countless roosters. Whenever chickens are bred for eggs, including in backyards, male chicks are born too. Hens are wanted because they lay eggs. Roosters usually aren’t.
There are only so many homes for them, and at any one time thousands of roosters are looking for somewhere safe to go.
It is one reason we are uncomfortable with breeding chickens for egg production, particularly commercially. Behind the hens whose eggs are valued are brothers who are often considered to have little value at all.
Rocky was once one of those unwanted boys.
Today, he is a protector, companion, sanctuary character and a rooster with a very special place in our hearts.
Sometimes we watch him caring for his little flock and think about that tiny rooster who somehow survived.
More than a decade later, we are still astonished that he is here.
We are so very glad you stayed, Rocky. ❤️🐓