Breeding for PERSONALITY. AKA Hello SWEET ROO!

[AmericanMom]

Ok. I am discounted.

Are ya hoping one of us will buy ya??

 

[enola]

^. Funny post

 

[aart]

Ok. I am discounted.

Did you mean your post about training?

Everyone has talked about breeding for personality, but what about 'training' for personality? Is this not a possibility? Starting with a less aggressive breed, couldn't you raise and work with a rooster to get the results you want? I'm not experienced by any means. I have chickens and have raised most from chicks. They come when I call. They calm when I speak quietly to them. Our rooster, Big George, is a mixed breed and a huge, beautiful guy. He is very passive towards humans although will speak up when he sees a stranger. He also has zero tolerance toward dogs and cats and other roosters. He was young when I got him and focused on him a lot. I removed him from his roost at night many times and was only pecked once. He now tolerates it well. I stroke him and talk to him. I also go after him when he's acting inappropriately. Done this for 5 years. He gives me wide berth, but listens when I speak to him. Maybe I just have a smart rooster, but a lot of animals, including birds, can learn behavior management. Why not roos?

I think you got good one(docile rather than aggresive) to begin with and managed him correctly.
Some roosters may be able to be trained but alot of the very aggressive ones, it just their nature, hard wired into their brains and training can't overcome that.

 

[TaraBellaBirds]

The one I did became markedly non-aggressive (wasn't bad to begin with) but still crowed.

Sounds like you had a 'slip'. Even the tiniest peice of missed teste will reattach and continue to create testosterone.

 

[TaraBellaBirds]

I have yet to be able to 'train' a roo that is naturally aggressive. As Enola has said, I have learned that the best bet for a mean roo is the soup pot.

As I've said before personality is a huge factor for us, that said I would consider breeding a mildly aggressive roo if he was the only one that had a specific trait I wanted.

 

[BunnyTheSlayer]

I've been reading through this thread and it's very interesting! I wasn't planning on ever having roosters. I was always a little nervous about having one since I have three young children who love to go play with our ladies. I bought a group of chicks this summer however, and the guy threw in an Ameracauna Marans cross that he said was a pullet. Well, lo and behold the pullet starts developing a beautiful long tail and saddle feathers and you lovely people confirmed that she was in fact, a he. I was a bit worried, but now I don't know what I'd do without him! I guess. I got lucky, because he is the sweetest rooster ever. He's definitely no lap-rooster, but he follows me asking for treats and takes excellent care of his ladies. Always makes sure they get first choice of scraps I bring out and protects them from the evil hawks that live in our trees. He's never been agressive at all towards people. I absolutely adore him. I'm definitely hoping I can get some more nice boys out of him to trade around with my other chicken friends. Plus he's a pretty boy too! I think breeding for personality is an excellent idea. I'll be keeping my eye on this thread.

 

[GhettoRoo]

Andalusian Blue Rooster attack humans foot:

 

[TaraBellaBirds]

Andalusian Blue Rooster attack humans foot:

The guy filming sure thinks it's funny. Until his dog either get injured or kills that roo......This is a good example of what we are trying to avoid. Plus that fellow looked like he still had his spurs, injury waiting to happen.

That roo would make a good soup, maybe some lovely feathered earings for someone!

 

[BunnyTheSlayer]

Quick question....the rooster I just wrote about also still has his spurs, they are still growing in to be exact. Do I need to remove them or trim them? He's not aggressive and I would rather avoid unnecessary body part removal, but if it's an "injury waiting to happen" is that something I need to look into?

 

[lazy gardener]

Generally you don't need to do anything to them unless they are getting too long for him to easily walk, or they are long enough that you are concerned about him injuring his ladies, or they become "unsightly"... (what ever that means... it's all in the eye of the beholder.) Then you can remove or trim. If you remove the "casing" it will need to be eventually be done again, just as they will need to be trimmed again. There are some excellent threads on how to do this.