Aggressive Rooster. HELP

[bobbi-j]

I have a 10 month old Dominique rooster who has taken to attacking just in the last month every time I go into the chicken pen to feed and water and collect eggs. He got me just above my boot twice a few days ago on one leg, and once on the other leg; all 3 below the knee and right through my Wranglers! I have quite a bump and bruise! He's flown high, above my waist (I'm 5'4) - he is just a butthead! I don't know what to do! I have 9 hens - should I sell him? Re-home him with someone with only 1-2 or so hens? Should I put him in my other pen (after we get the roof on it!) with just 1 or 2 hens? I dread going out there now and I've had chickens for years and never had a rooster this aggressive!

Personally, I wouldn't put up with it. Especially if you have small children that live with you or come to visit. I guess before you make a permanent decision, you could ask yourself a few questions, like: Do I enjoy chicken keeping right now? If not, why? Is it the rooster? Would I be happier if he were gone? Why am I keeping a rooster in the first place? For protection of my hens? Fertile eggs? Because he's pretty?

If you can't come up with any good reason to keep him, then don't. I'll frank, though - I would not re-home an aggressive rooster. Of course, if you don't mind him going to a home where he'll end up in the stew pot, go ahead. I would rather process my own aggressive rooster than give him away after I put my time and money into raising and feeding him. If you do decide you want to keep him, check out the thread referred to in the above post.

 

[SouthernFarmChick]

Thanks! Yes, I've already pretty much made the decision he's gone, it's just how/where. I've never processed any of the chickens I've had. I used to have about 60, but they were all free range, and I never had any problems with roosters or hens with aggression. This started out of the blue and I could care less what caused it - I'm the only one who sees them, and I haven't altered my routine, so whatever his problem is, he's probably best in the stew pot. How do I go about it, what's the best way, especially with his hyper/aggressiveness and not wanting a gamey flavor? I would love to raise my birds for dual purpose, which most of the chickens I have now are. I'm getting so many eggs, I've got standing orders at the local farmer's market in town each week! ~~ Jo

 

[bobbi-j]

Check out the Meat Bird section of the forum. Lots of good threads on processing. When you cook him, be prepared for a whole different taste and texture than what you get from the grocery store birds. Low and slow is the secret. I wouldn't say they taste gamey. Just that they taste stronger than a store-bought one. It's hard to describe. They can also be.... I don't know if I'd say more stringy. It's hard to describe. What I will tell you is, after eating my own chickens, I won't go back to a store-bought one. I've gone without chicken until mine have been ready to process.

 

[speckledhen]

Thanks! Yes, I've already pretty much made the decision he's gone, it's just how/where. I've never processed any of the chickens I've had. I used to have about 60, but they were all free range, and I never had any problems with roosters or hens with aggression. This started out of the blue and I could care less what caused it - I'm the only one who sees them, and I haven't altered my routine, so whatever his problem is, he's probably best in the stew pot. How do I go about it, what's the best way, especially with his hyper/aggressiveness and not wanting a gamey flavor? I would love to raise my birds for dual purpose, which most of the chickens I have now are. I'm getting so many eggs, I've got standing orders at the local farmer's market in town each week! ~~ Jo

I have only processed one aggressive cockerel here. He was about 25 weeks old. We used only the breast meat, really, made a wonderful crockpot chicken stew. It was fabulous! His name was Jake. I went back the next day for more, asked DH where it was. He said to look in the freezer in the ziplock bag marked "Jake Stew".

Seriously, though, I was breeding these and since temperament is heritable, I didn't want to pass on his genes to another generation.

 

[prinellie]

agree - sorry to say but that boy needs to go and find a new one. It will only get worse.

 

[SouthernFarmChick]

Thanks! I'm the very same way about beef! I keep begging for another calf to bottle raise! I miss our cattle and want to start raising them again! After all, I was the only one who ever had to chase them if they got out! My other half's on the road 2-3 weeks at a time!

 

[SouthernFarmChick]

Jake Stew! Love it! This will be Roo Stew! And I LOVE my crockpot! You're absolutely right about not breeding the temperament on down the line! Thank you! I can get another day old chick and raise him up!

 

[speckledhen]

Jake Stew! Love it! This will be Roo Stew! And I LOVE my crockpot! You're absolutely right about not breeding the temperament on down the line! Thank you! I can get another day old chick and raise him up!

Best of luck to you. An easygoing rooster is a pleasure to have around. I haven't had to deal with an aggressive male (other than the silly little Belgian D'anver chicken nugget size males) for years and I cannot afford to have a rooster knock me off my feet with my fragile bones on this root-and-rock-ridden mountain property. Life's way too short and you just don't have to live that way.

 

[Shakenhead]

SouthernFarmChick did you make stew out of your rooster? I just took a bad rooster from my friend. He's a beautiful Americuna who has terrified all her hens so bad that they completely stopped laying. My goal is to have baby chicks by spring. I've been reading some threads on here about the same subject and I think I will try grabbing him as soon as he challenges me and shoving his head into the ground holding him down as if I was another rooster. From what I understand this is the only thing a rooster will respect. I just got him today so all this is just talk so far.

 

[CrazyTalk]

Shakenhead, the only thing that's going to get you is a rooster that's second on the pecking order, and looking to move up. That's how you get roosters that attack visitors, roosters that attack people from behind, etc. You don't want to be part of the pecking order.

Cull the bird, don't breed him. Find a new rooster from someone that doesn't have aggression issues.


You didn't say how many hens you have - but if you have say, 5, the rooster contributes 50% of the genetic material of the flock, and each hen contributes 10%. He's the most important bird you have - it's of utmost important that he have good genes.