Just how useful is a rooster anyway?

[Redhead Rae]

I totally agree. The best you can hope for from your rooster is a warning call to the hens. I have free range Old English Bantams that live in a fenced pasture. My rooster is a rotten little thing. He will not tolerate anyone or anything getting close to the hens (including us). He spends a lot of time under a bucket when I need to worm, clip, trim, etc. hens. Nobody can understand why I keep him. Answer is: He has demonstrated twice that he would give his life for the hens. Once with a Siberian Husky and once with a rogue, much larger rooster. Patched him up and he's still kicking. He doesn't even eat when they are out in the pasture, just watches out for the girls. He has no idea that he is a little guy.

I guess that is the benefit of having a tiny rooster with a big old 'tude when it comes to humans. Just put a bucket over him. I don't think a bucket could contain my LF Cochins or Cornish if they got it into their heads to attack people. I have a kid (and another on a way) and a sassy banty could still hurt a kid, but if you can manage him and he is that good....

 

[lifeteacher]

I have found my roo, who turned out to be a beast btw, has great value in my flock as a peace keeper. When I introduce new hens to the flock he will intervene for them if the older ones are picking on them, they run to him and if the old nags approach they'll get a peck on the nose! That said; I have also had roos that were mean as a snake chased my grandkids and hurt the hens. Each has their own personality possibly the breed but sometimes good ones come out of rowdy breeds...who knows?

 

[FrozenPony]

Roosters get such a bad rap! If they're not "protecting" the flock like we assume they'll instinctively do, they're lazing about and/or/both having their way with the girls...or they're overly aggressive (which we as humans are responsible for, breeding and encouraging that behavior ie. cock fighting which is not the norm for similar wild birds except during breeding season so I've read).

I have a big RIR mix roo that I adore. He does chase after critters and invading neighbor roos, Always alerts to danger, he not only brings attention to goodies, he actually picks up and delivers bugs, worms etc. to the girls, and stands guard like the Buckingham Palace guards.

And he's gorgeous, just a beautiful animal! It's a long story, but I didn't come by this guy on purpose...it was sort of a divine intervention as he was a stray who showed up in our yard very sick. We took him in, nursed him back to health then later acquired a hen (Bob and Omelet respectively). The neighbor hens come around which is fine...Bob still does his job. I seriously love this rooster and it makes me sad that they are such berated unwanted creatures.

Maybe my Bob is an exception, but I would never have a flock without a rooster.

On a final note, I would run from a large predator too!

Just sayin'...

 

[SueT]

My young rooster (just a year old this month) has 2X protected hens from a hawk attack. Would he have fought to the death had I not arrived on the scene and scared the hawk away? I think yes. Here are the feathers he lost fighting the hawk. Just beyond that were a pile of feathers from the barred rock hen he saved. Both he and the hen seem fine now.



Here he is right after: Flugel, brave defender of the flock!

 

[aart]

it makes me sad that they are such berated unwanted creatures.

Maybe my Bob is an exception, but I would never have a flock without a rooster.

On a final note, I would run from a large predator too!

If you'd have a bad one, you would maybe understand..
Guessing Bob is one of the exceptions.
I would run too!

 

[farmgirlinok]

Hi all,

I've posted a few times about my back and forth thinking regarding keeping a rooster that showed up in our first order of sexed chicks. We ended up with four hens and a RIR rooster. There were a lot of up and down moments, but in the end our observation seemed to be that our little flock was well enough balanced and we figured the rooster provided some extra protection for our free ranging birds.

Thing is, I've been of the mind lately that our rooster actually doesn't do much protecting. We got a dog about two months ago, and while she is always leashed, she loves to make hopeless runs at the curious hens who always show up around us when we go outside. I couldn't help but notice that the rooster seemed unperturbed and also would turn and scoot when the dog showed anything resembling aggression.

Then this morning, as I sat at the breakfast table shortly after letting the flock out of the coop, I heard an almighty commotion. I turned around just in time to see perhaps the most beautiful fox I've ever seen in the wild gleefully chasing my flock through the yard. Everything happened pretty quickly - the dog was thrown into its pen, I ran barefoot into the yard yelling, and chickens were flying everywhere - but a lasting impression was the rooster, far ahead of his flailing hens, hightailing it behind the house. Luckily, no damage was done besides a few ruffled feathers.

When things had calmed down and I went to reassure the hens that all was well again, I found the rooster, as always, mounting his girls. And I just thought, you useless, cowardly creature. You haven't earned that right.

So does this sound like an inordinately ineffective bird? Or is this just par for the course? We put up with the rooster's noise, the girls put up with his insatiable sex drive, and for what? (For what it's worth, to balance the flock more we are adding an additional 4-5 laying hens in June).

Hi all,

I've posted a few times about my back and forth thinking regarding keeping a rooster that showed up in our first order of sexed chicks. We ended up with four hens and a RIR rooster. There were a lot of up and down moments, but in the end our observation seemed to be that our little flock was well enough balanced and we figured the rooster provided some extra protection for our free ranging birds.

Thing is, I've been of the mind lately that our rooster actually doesn't do much protecting. We got a dog about two months ago, and while she is always leashed, she loves to make hopeless runs at the curious hens who always show up around us when we go outside. I couldn't help but notice that the rooster seemed unperturbed and also would turn and scoot when the dog showed anything resembling aggression.

Then this morning, as I sat at the breakfast table shortly after letting the flock out of the coop, I heard an almighty commotion. I turned around just in time to see perhaps the most beautiful fox I've ever seen in the wild gleefully chasing my flock through the yard. Everything happened pretty quickly - the dog was thrown into its pen, I ran barefoot into the yard yelling, and chickens were flying everywhere - but a lasting impression was the rooster, far ahead of his flailing hens, hightailing it behind the house. Luckily, no damage was done besides a few ruffled feathers.

When things had calmed down and I went to reassure the hens that all was well again, I found the rooster, as always, mounting his girls. And I just thought, you useless, cowardly creature. You haven't earned that right.

So does this sound like an inordinately ineffective bird? Or is this just par for the course? We put up with the rooster's noise, the girls put up with his insatiable sex drive, and for what? (For what it's worth, to balance the flock more we are adding an additional 4-5 laying hens in June).

I have had chickens for 9 years always free-ranging them. I have always had a rooster with my flock...here's what I know about a 'good' rooster: Clucks to show hens where the food is, crows to tell them to follow him to good foraging ground, watches for hawks or other predators (a really good rooster watches overhead) and then sounds an alarm to run for cover-leading the run, and is not mean to the hens. So no they will NOT fight a predator on the norm. I have heard of a penned up rooster fighting off hawks, but never a fox. Foxes are deadly killers of chickens. They can wipe out 25 chicken flock in one night in the coop! Rooster did right to run leading the hens to safety. More hens will help, RIR Roos are vigorous breeders. Fertilized eggs are much healthier for you: no cholesterol, and found to prevent Altzheimer's. We have good stock dogs that are trained to protect our flock, so we loose very few to predators. Maybe train your dog to protect them not harass them which will lead to killing them, even accidentally.
Hope this helps.

 

[Vicker]

I've decided not to have any more roosters after a few go 'rounds. They end up overmating their favorite hens, leaving bald spots on their backs and "shoulders". I tried hen saddles for protection but that was just too much trouble. The hens seem stressed with all of the chasing and mounting. My last rooster was supposed to be a hen when I bought it. His breed was too big for the hens. He wanted to mate from the second their feet hit the ground in the morning to just before dusk. For the sake of the flock, he had to go. And I never saw a rooster make a difference in predator losses.

 

[ARose4Heaven]

Are Silkies Roo's ever aggressive toward their keepers?

 

[Luke1334]

Hi all,

I've posted a few times about my back and forth thinking regarding keeping a rooster that showed up in our first order of sexed chicks. We ended up with four hens and a RIR rooster. There were a lot of up and down moments, but in the end our observation seemed to be that our little flock was well enough balanced and we figured the rooster provided some extra protection for our free ranging birds.

Thing is, I've been of the mind lately that our rooster actually doesn't do much protecting. We got a dog about two months ago, and while she is always leashed, she loves to make hopeless runs at the curious hens who always show up around us when we go outside. I couldn't help but notice that the rooster seemed unperturbed and also would turn and scoot when the dog showed anything resembling aggression.

Then this morning, as I sat at the breakfast table shortly after letting the flock out of the coop, I heard an almighty commotion. I turned around just in time to see perhaps the most beautiful fox I've ever seen in the wild gleefully chasing my flock through the yard. Everything happened pretty quickly - the dog was thrown into its pen, I ran barefoot into the yard yelling, and chickens were flying everywhere - but a lasting impression was the rooster, far ahead of his flailing hens, hightailing it behind the house. Luckily, no damage was done besides a few ruffled feathers.

When things had calmed down and I went to reassure the hens that all was well again, I found the rooster, as always, mounting his girls. And I just thought, you useless, cowardly creature. You haven't earned that right.

So does this sound like an inordinately ineffective bird? Or is this just par for the course? We put up with the rooster's noise, the girls put up with his insatiable sex drive, and for what? (For what it's worth, to balance the flock more we are adding an additional 4-5 laying hens in June).

 

[Luke1334]

My Bantam roo gave his life for the girls when 2 neighborhood dogs got in my yard. I keep a Bantam with the big hens, he's not as loud, not agressive and does keep a watch out. Japanese Bantams rock.