How to prevent an aggressive cockerel

My experience makes me tend to agree with this assessment, but I'm one of those wusses who can't kill, sorry, so I'm looking for other ways of dealing with it. I guess it would be different if I had little kids or visitors much, but its just me and the stroppy rooster, and I tell myself its the joke of the ages, people have been dealing with stroppy roosters for thousands of years and I guess I can suck it up. And i got him as an egg from the neighbour and have NO plans to breed him. I think of him as basically hen bodyguard. But, truly, if you do breed a calm rooster I'm so interested!

Personally I would not back away from him if my roo came at me. I think it encourages them to keep doing it if they think they can get away with it. That's just my opinion.

chicksurreal said:

Personally I would not back away from him if my roo came at me. I think it encourages them to keep doing it if they think they can get away with it. That's just my opinion.

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Thats what I was thinking...

Don't back away but don't knock him off a hen either.

aart said:

Don't back away but don't knock him off a hen either.

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X2

aart said:

Don't back away but don't knock him off a hen either.

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I don't knock him off the hens.

Hey I know this might sound old school, but I've been taking my shepherd's crook when I go out and Bertie Rooster seems to respect it, somewhat.

My Jr. got me and I threw my laundry basket over him ( was the first thing I grabbed that he would fit under ) and left him there for about 5 hours. He's just a production roo, and I only want him to protect the hens, so since the laundry basket worked, he can stay, for now

I still don't trust him though! He does back down now though. He really didn't like being separated from his girls.

I don't let him mess with the girls when I am there. I ignore him while I do my chores and am confident around him. I do watch him, from out of the corner of my eye still and after I get the Heritage chickens going, all the production chickens will be in the stew pot. I am a farmer. That is one of the reason I got into chickens again, for food!

I would NEVER hatch from a human aggressive Rooster!

Another breeder told me a trick I had not heard yet. Handle the cockerels until they are two weeks. Then stop for two weeks. For some reason, that imprints with them and they don't become human aggressive. I am going to do this with my new chicks. If it works, and I bet it does, I will do this with all my cockerels.

I like the laundry basket idea!