One of the best resources I've found on dealing with roosters

[sdm111]

There's incorrect information both in the link and posted by posters other than the original poster. I'm not gonna bother highlighting it cause I don't feel like getting into a passing match. Believe what you will but by doing so you're doing the animals an injustice. Hint: folks should pass on information that they themselves have experienced not just what they read off the net.

 

[TexasBlues]

I have some birds that were hand raised to be tame. You could say they imprinted on me. What age should I expect my roosters to attack me?

 

[sdm111]

I have some birds that were hand raised to be tame. You could say they imprinted on me. What age should I expect my roosters to attack me?

Between 284 and 287 days old.

 

[aldarita]

Thank you very much for creating this thread. This is a very controversial subject, unfortunately there are many years of "old timers" advice on how to deal with aggressive roosters and it is mostly responding with aggression to show them who is the boss. Aggression only begets aggression. It is hard to go over this advice because it is an instinct to respond with aggression when one is being attacked. I myself have to check myself when my banty rooster floggs me. I have to stop and think, not react. I read his movements and stop him before he launches towards me, then I bend down to be closer to him and talk softly, he has no clue what I'm saying but he responds by moving away and do something else in the yard. This has worked for me so far so I'm happy we've gotten into an understanding.
I had to research to find other ways to deal with an aggressive rooster since I do not agree with the so common consensus of aggression

 

[MysteryChicken]

All of my birds have been hand raised, by me. Only had one batch that was broody raised, & had no differences in how they interacted with me, or my sister.

The worst chickens with human aggression I've ever raised through out my early years were RIRs, all the batches had cockerels/roosters, who attacked us. Only ended up with 1 friendly boy who, had the worst luck, & was cannibalized by his hens.

Stopped raising that breed after that, but kept one hen.

I had this Silkie roo back in the year of 2019, he was named Mr. Evil. It was because the way he looked, but he ended up being evil. He'd pick fights with the other birds, & attack us. Even trying to flog us through the fence. He was a big boy too. He ended up as soup.

My second most previous human aggressive rooster was a black Sumatra, I got back in 2020 I think. He hated my guts, always attacking me. The run was unsafe with him around. Got rid of him last year. He was the most beautiful rooster I had, but terribly aggressive.

Hope everyone else will share their aggressive cockerel/rooster experiences as well.

 

[SarahGfa]

I have some birds that were hand raised to be tame. You could say they imprinted on me. What age should I expect my roosters to attack me?

I don't think hand raising is the same thing as imprinting. Maybe I am using the terminology wrong. Some roosters hatch out of the egg, knowing what should/should not be attacked. I raised all my roosters the same way and they could not be more different. DNA matters a lot.

 

[Red Mangrove]

I read his movements and stop him before he launches towards me, then I bend down to be closer to him and talk softly, he has no clue what I'm saying but he responds by moving away and do something else in the yard. This has worked for me so far so I'm happy we've gotten into an understanding.

Bird brains function very differently from mammals. Crouching in chicken language is submission. Having to stop violence through submissive body language is merely kicking the can down the road imo

All of my birds have been hand raised, by me. Only had one batch that was broody raised, & had no differences in how they interacted with me, or my sister.

I've noticed very big behavioral differences in both roosters and hens based on their upbringing. For starters, the only chickens I've ever had visit my neighbors are the ones I raised with my own hand. The broody raised hens avoid absolutely all humans, all cars and civilization entirely, except for my family

I've not had a single broody raised chicken leave my forest, but the human imprinted chickens are comfortable with strangers. I believe they simply have humans and chickens confused to an extent

 

[MysteryChicken]

Bird brains function very differently from mammals. Crouching in chicken language is submission. Having to stop violence through submissive body language is merely kicking the can down the road imo


I've noticed very big behavioral differences in both roosters and hens based on their upbringing. For starters, the only chickens I've ever had visit my neighbors are the ones I raised with my own hand. The broody raised hens avoid absolutely all humans, all cars and civilization entirely, except for my family

I've not had a single broody raised chicken leave my forest, but the human imprinted chickens are comfortable with strangers. I believe they simply have humans and chickens confused to an extent

We all have different experiences with the way we raise our birds.

My broody was cooped. Also hand raised.

I currently I have a hand raised Red JungleFowl/Sumatra pullet that acts like a feral/wild chicken. Wants absolutely nothing to do with us. Flies really well also. Ended up on the house roof one day.

 

[sdm111]

They most certainly are made. Breeding fighting cocks and dogs for bad temperament has been around a long time. When European honey bees and African honey bees were crossed they ended up with an incredibly defensive honey bee. Breeding is everything.

The fighting cock remark here is absolutely false and couldn't be farther from the truth. People shouldn't speak on th8ngs they know nothing about. My point being that the last thing a gamecock handler wants in the pit is a human aggressive cock with razors or gaffs strapped to him. Does it make sense to anybody? I thought not. In my actual first hand experience gamefowl are very docile towards people. Can they have a rogue man fighter, sure. I've experienced way more human aggressive males in layer types where the only goal in breeding is egg production to the point where the males are just a byproduct. Gamefowl are selectively singly bred and still carry the characteristics of chickens 2000 years ago.
Also in the link where it says male and female can't be told apart for 4 months or whatever is also totally false. Also in my actual first hand experience human aggression is not hereditary. Mean ones can have nice ones and vice versa. Every person's experience with any breed is going to be their own situation and not a definitive across the board rule.

 

[Red Mangrove]

We all have different experiences with the way we raise our birds.

My broody was cooped. Also hand raised.

I currently I have a hand raised Red JungleFowl/Sumatra pullet that acts like a feral/wild chicken. Wants absolutely nothing to do with us. Flies really well also. Ended up on the house roof one day.View attachment 3711350

Very beautiful pullet. I think genetics are the most important part of chicken behavior, followed by imprinting

In other words, whether or not a chicken will be human aggressive is first determined by genetics. Gamefowl for example are not human aggressive regardless of how they're raised. It's just not in their blood

However if someone gets a breed with the capacity for human aggression and they raise it from a small chick, then that bird will both have the capacity for violence and they'll think it's okay to direct that violence at humans

Genetics are most of the equation followed by imprinting, in my experience anyways