Help needed with young rooster

[BartokRae]

Hi. Could really use some advice about our young rooster.

He is 5 months old, and the only roo with a mixed flock of 13 hens. He is a Bielefelder. He has been super aggressive with our head hen, a RIR. He will seek her out to chase, keeping her from food, water and other flock mates. She has been keeping to the coop most of the day and is visibly scared of him. She has been completely submitting to him when he catches her, but he doesn’t mount her yet he keeps pecking her aggressively. He drew blood on her comb the other day. The flock in general exudes a distinct ‘disturbance in the force’.

The head hen (and one other) is 6 months older than he. 2 more are 2 months older. He has 5 brooder mates hatched the same day, and 4 more hatched but one week later than him. 2 (at least that I’ve seen) are receptive to him; others not so much but he lets them go without issue.
His aggression toward the one (and the ripple of stress throughout the flock) is not acceptable for us. We seriously (with the heaviest of hearts) considered culling him, but have determined that we should try keeping him isolated for some time and see how that goes.

So we just ordered a separate coop and run for him. We are thinking of setting it up next to our current run. My questions are:

-should we let them see each other or block sight?

-should we let them free range together? (We live in the mountains and they have multiple acres to free range in)

-any things we can do to train him while he’s in isolation to make it more likely re-integration will be successful?

-when should we attempt re-integrating him and how?

We hope as they all mature, there will be greater receptivity among the flock, minimizing the stress overall. And that he will get used to his hormones enough to chill out. To his credit, he has been watchful and the girls (all of them) respond if he calls out potential danger. He has had a few moments of making safe space for the head hen and otherwise has been sweet to the hens overall. So he’s not a complete Ahole. We are concerned he might seriously hurt one of the hens. And that the flock might get more stressed out than it already is.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

You might try removing him for a couple days and see if that resets things. It sounds like he's just asserting his dominance and knowing how RIRs are I can't blame him lol. I don't have much rooster experience but I know if I have a jerk chicken removing her from the flock for a couple days resets things. It might work with a rooster but wait for more experienced advice.

 

[Folly's place]

You can try separating him for a few weeks (or months), maybe it will help. Also, multiple feeders and waterers, out of sight of each other, places to be out of view, and generally as much space as possible, all makes any social issues more manageable.
There's going to be drama at times out there, but relentless chasing isn't good.
Wish I could give a yes/ no answer here!
So far no real injuries have occurred, and that's good.
There's always the other choice: remove him, and raise some cockerels this spring, when you actually have mature hens, who will help civilize them.
Mary

 

[Tonyroo]

He's going into his young adult phase with ragging hormones. This is common for all cockerels. It will take 3 to 4 months in a separate coop to age him up and for his hormones to settle down to be a good rooster to the flock.

Don't let him free range with the hens. Just keep him in his own space for that time period. This will help your hens to de-stress from him terrorizing them.

Keeping his space near the hens coop will make it easier to integrate.
Just be patient with his development he will turn around.

 

[Perris]

So we just ordered a separate coop and run for him. We are thinking of setting it up next to our current run. My questions are:

-should we let them see each other or block sight?

-should we let them free range together? (We live in the mountains and they have multiple acres to free range in)

-any things we can do to train him while he’s in isolation to make it more likely re-integration will be successful?

-when should we attempt re-integrating him and how?

It sounds like you have a plan, or maybe 2 plans (plan a = Qs 1,3,4; plan b = Q2).

Q1 I'd let them see each other. Q2 If you are isolating him, don't let them free range together. Q3 Try to give him the best life possible while he's confined to his own coop. Q4 When you think he's got past this phase, if he's been visible to the rest the whole time, re-integration should be automatic from the moment you open the door to let him out. There will be a bit of argy bargy while he establishes his dominance, but if it doesn't settle quickly you could put him back in isolation for a bit longer.

 

[Mrs. K]

Roosters are a crap shoot. I believe in being aware of the tension in the flock and solving for peace in the flock. You may be trying to introduce a young rooster when the hen flock is really not quite old enough for it. Pulling him out and waiting until everyone is laying might really help.

Do the separation for now, if you are in North America the sap is really rising in roosters right now, so just pulling him for a month or two, might really help, by then, all of your pullets should be laying or close to laying.

If it doesn't work then, I would cull him. If you want a rooster, ask at the feed store, 4-H groups, or the local poultry club. Often times someone has a spare that is still alive because he is so darn nice. That is a great rooster to get!

People sometimes think that if they have raised a rooster from a chick, they are obligated to keep him. They are not. Behavior in cockerels goes through tremendous changes. It seldom goes back. There is no need to keep a rotten rooster when there are so many nice ones out there.

Mrs K

 

[BartokRae]

It sounds like you have a plan, or maybe 2 plans (plan a = Qs 1,3,4; plan b = Q2).

Q1 I'd let them see each other. Q2 If you are isolating him, don't let them free range together. Q3 Try to give him the best life possible while he's confined to his own coop. Q4 When you think he's got past this phase, if he's been visible to the rest the whole time, re-integration should be automatic from the moment you open the door to let him out. There will be a bit of argy bargy while he establishes his dominance, but if it doesn't settle quickly you could put him back in isolation for a bit longer.

It sounds like you have a plan, or maybe 2 plans (plan a = Qs 1,3,4; plan b = Q2).

Q1 I'd let them see each other. Q2 If you are isolating him, don't let them free range together. Q3 Try to give him the best life possible while he's confined to his own coop. Q4 When you think he's got past this phase, if he's been visible to the rest the whole time, re-integration should be automatic from the moment you open the door to let him out. There will be a bit of argy bargy while he establishes his dominance, but if it doesn't settle quickly you could put him back in isolation for a bit longer.

That sounds good - thank you. We closely surpervise our chickens when the free range. Would that make it ok to free range them together?

 

[Perris]

That sounds good - thank you. We closely surpervise our chickens when the free range. Would that make it ok to free range them together?

I guess you've nothing to lose by trying it, assuming you can catch or herd him to separate quarters afterwards, and potentially a lot to gain, in updating their mutual interactions and flock dynamics every time you do it.

 

[Bobmc914]

You don't have a location in your profile, so I don't know if this is helpful, but if your rooster doesn't settle down I'm in western Pennsylvania and I have an extra bielefelder rooster or two that will be a year old in March.
I have 4 with 21 hens, and so far they get along with each other, the hens, and me without any issues.

 

[Mrs. K]

See ^^^ this, there are people out there with lovely roosters!