Double Trouble!

[hennypenny95]

I have a 6 month old Barred Rock rooster named Rooker who has attacked me.

He doesn't fully attack, but he did jump into my leg and tried to claw me through my boot (Not hard, but hard enough for me to tell). He has also fluffed his neck up at me when i touched one of his Rhode Island Red girls. (He seems to like those ones better.) I think its hormones, but i'm not sure. If it is, will it stop eventually? What ever it is, i need to know how to stop him from attacking me! Since my grandparents cant take care of the chickens, i am the only one available. I love him sooo much and cant stand the thought of having to eat him.

I also have a Buff Orpington hen that has been continuously sitting on a nest for almost two months! I don't know if she's gone broody or sick, but i felt under her today and there's no egg! Its gotten to the point where i have to manually feed her, and give her water. When i go into the coop she makes a soft squealing sound and puffs up. Whenever i get near her, she makes this really weird " Tut tut tut" sound. Whenever i pick her up a little, and then drop her, she falls back into the box limply. She has also been switching nests but with only 2.



I really need help with my two chickens. I completely refuse to kill any of them. Somebody please help me!


~ hennypenny95

 

[Angiebubs]

I had 4 Barred rock roos....and ran into the same thing with each of them. I believe I probably did a disservice with my handling of the situation when raising them. Since then I have had a couple orpington roos with better results. What I have learned so far is: Do not engage them when they act like this. Dont use a broom to shoo them away, push them away, etc. Also do not back down fromt hem, just stand still and ignore them if possible. When moving around in the flock, try not to come between them and the hens. If you upset the hens they feel its a personal challenge.

With all of that said, the advice I hear over and over again is-dont keep a aggresive rooster! I found homes for each of mine...people who had a flock for eggs only and didnt want to mingle with the chickens so the personality of the rooster didnt matter to them.

If you do re home him and decide to try again with another rooster, look for breeds that are known to have sweet, calm, gentle roosters such as Orpingtons and Faverolles.

Good luck!

 

[Bill Matthews]

I have a 6 month old Barred Rock rooster named Rooker who has attacked me.

He doesn't fully attack, but he did jump into my leg and tried to claw me through my boot (Not hard, but hard enough for me to tell). He has also fluffed his neck up at me when i touched one of his Rhode Island Red girls. (He seems to like those ones better.) I think its hormones, but i'm not sure. If it is, will it stop eventually? What ever it is, i need to know how to stop him from attacking me! Since my grandparents cant take care of the chickens, i am the only one available. I love him sooo much and cant stand the thought of having to eat him.

I also have a Buff Orpington hen that has been continuously sitting on a nest for almost two months! I don't know if she's gone broody or sick, but i felt under her today and there's no egg! Its gotten to the point where i have to manually feed her, and give her water. When i go into the coop she makes a soft squealing sound and puffs up. Whenever i get near her, she makes this really weird " Tut tut tut" sound. Whenever i pick her up a little, and then drop her, she falls back into the box limply. She has also been switching nests but with only 2.



I really need help with my two chickens. I completely refuse to kill any of them. Somebody please help me!


~ hennypenny95

The hen is probably just broody even though TWO MONTHS is a long time....You sure about the time frame?.....If really sick, would have died by now, right?.....Put her in a coop of some type raised off the ground/floor with wire or slatted bottom...Try not feeding or watering for about 24 Hours...It's not inhumane..Just a forced fast.....The Barred Rock rooster is another issue that I can't really give a satisfactory answer to....I would just live with the problem if you have no children he can harm....Some recommend killing aggressive roosters but I find them to be the most virile and pre-potent sires if you want chicks...Good luck?