Thoughts on Roosters??

[3KillerBs]

Interesting. I had him from a chick and he was always happy with me round the girls, even happy with me stroking them, it was just if I tried to pick them up with him there. I'd love to know how you trained your cockerels to let you handle his girls with you there although I don't think I'll choose to have another.

I don't know that I exactly trained them. Australorps are fairly docile and laid-back by nature.

The only thing is that I do really is to "walk through" them regularly from the time they're quite young. I expect them to get out of my way and give me my space. I also talk to them constantly while working among them -- including telling any boys who aren't giving me my space "Don't even THINK about it," in a calm, firm voice.

I handle all of them off the roost at night, including the roosters, again talking to them constantly.

I don't pick up hens very often in the daytime, but if I do need to do some management -- like taking broodies out of boxes -- I don't need the boys interfering.

 

[holisticliving]

I've had chickens now for a few years, but never a rooster. I have a beautiful roo that I am thinking about keeping, but I'm honestly nervous that he's going to end up being aggressive and be more of a headache than he's worth. The main reason I'd keep him is to help protect against predators, but I'm not convinced it will make that much of a difference. Those that have or have had roosters, what are your thoughts on this?

My 2 cents, keeping in mind I've only had one rooster so far... I LOVED my roo!!! He was so beautiful, funny, entertaining, and very sweet and friendly (to me), and also took wonderful care of his hens. He was always finding them food and calling them, and constantly on the alert and looking out for any signs of danger. He would always warn them immediately and they would all run for shelter if he spotted anything. And he would break up fights among the hens if need be. He had a great personality and I loved his crowing!

He was occasionally aggressive towards my husband and the neighbor who watched them when we were on vacation, but not overly so, and only once in a while. We figured out how to deal with him eventually, and I would have kept him forever as long as he didn't get meaner (he actually seemed to be getting nicer with age).

Unfortunately, he was killed by a HUGE hawk last winter - none of the hens were touched, and he obviously put up a big fight. (I cried for weeks!) The hens missed him so much I thought they'd never recover, but eventually, they did, and the lead hen right now is my favorite. She is very sweet and not a bully at all, and she does a great job, but definitely isn't as alert to danger as Josh was. And the hens do seem to squabble more without him.

We have a 2-month-old Barred Rock now who I think is turning out to be a rooster - we're still waiting to see what his personality is like. (Fingers crossed!)

In my opinion, there are several benefits to having a rooster:

• Guard/warn against predators
• Keep peace in the flock
• Fertilize eggs for hatching
• Keep the hens warm in the winter (ours would always snuggle up - his body temp was noticeably warmer)
• Provide a lovely wake-up call
  
• Entertain and share food with the hens
• Provide entertainment for all!

If your rooster isn't showing signs of aggression, why not keep him? You can always get rid of him if he changes...

 

[Farmlife16]

We had our first cockerel, Inkey, with our hens for about about 6 years and he wasn't aggressive without cause. He attacked me quite badly a couple of time, one causing me a trip to A&E, not serious but just precautionary, and attacked my wife a couple of times.
The point was that in every case he was reacting to perceived attack on his girls. Any attention to them had to be done with him shut away. At all other times, he was fine and friendly. He used to keep the girls together and when a new one was introduced he moderated the pecking by the girls setting the pecking order so new girls were accepted much quicker.
It used to be marvellous watching him scratching then pointing at grubs or whatever for his girls to eat. Very attentive.
Re predators, the only time we saw any effect was when a friends dog went mad and went for the chickens. Inkey immediately drew the dog off and we spent 5 minutes trying to catch the dog with Inkey charging round and round the paddock. He made no attempt to fly to safety, I suspect because he was deliberately drawing the dog away from the girls and the dog made no attempt to go for them.
He was a truly magnificent boss bird and very beautiful. Sadly he dropped dead at about 6 years old from, we think, a heart attack.
Our other experience was with a silky cockerel and he was horrible. Attacked me for no reason at any time and wasn't very good with the hens either. He went to another home where he caused no trouble.
I don't think I would have qualms about having a large cockerel but wouldn't have a small one like a bantam.
Gosh that was long and drawn out and probably not very helpful.
inkey
View attachment 3543891

Hearing other people's experiences is always helpful

 

[The Chicken life chose me]

I've had chickens now for a few years, but never a rooster. I have a beautiful roo that I am thinking about keeping, but I'm honestly nervous that he's going to end up being aggressive and be more of a headache than he's worth. The main reason I'd keep him is to help protect against predators, but I'm not convinced it will make that much of a difference. Those that have or have had roosters, what are your thoughts on this?

You want to get rid of him because you haven’t had any predator action?

 

[Granny23]

I've had chickens now for a few years, but never a rooster. I have a beautiful roo that I am thinking about keeping, but I'm honestly nervous that he's going to end up being aggressive and be more of a headache than he's worth. The main reason I'd keep him is to help protect against predators, but I'm not convinced it will make that much of a difference. Those that have or have had roosters, what are your thoughts on this?

Where I live we can't have roosters even tho in some parts of the city they are everywhere.
You can have pot belly pigs but not a rooster...I think the noise is the issue.
I found a chick that became a roo which is why I now have 6 chickens.!As far as being protective my barred rock Cookie does a great job of alarm sounding if she sees a threat...cat or hawk or whatever. I have 2 dogs and 9 cats. They go in the coop and are in my yard with the chickens all the time and Cookie rarely freaks out. Ive even found the cats in the nesting boxes sleeping! But we raised them carefully together.The chickens aren't afraid of the cats and the cats ARE afraid of the hens.
My goldendoodle was a problem as a puppy but now at 15 mos she doesn't do anymore that follow them with her nose in their butt feathers. She's been very good. She herds them a little but she no longer chases them.
Here's a picture of one of the younger cats, Sunshine, in the chicken enclosure drinking out of their water cups while the girls are out digging up my yard.
I personally think my hen Cookie does a great job as Boss Hen.

 

[Shadrach]

Are roosters worth it? As far as protecting from predators...​

If the only protection a group of chickens has is a rooster then the answer is most definitely yes. Unfortunately this is the primary role many keepers expect the rooster to fullfill and unfortunately often the rooster is expected to fullfill this roll with a massive life threatening handicap.

For a group of chickens mainly contained in a coop and run the roosters options on how to go about protecting his hens is severly limited. A predator breaks in and the rooster it seems is expected to take on the predator and defeat it. In most cases that's rather like a cage fight between a cat and a mouse. The mouse is going to lose because all those stratagies a mouse has to keep his family safe are useless if the keeping conditions don't allow him to use them.

If one is going to keep a rooster and hens confined then the confinement should be built well enough to ensure the rooster is never going to have to fight a predator in such conditions.

I had never kept confined chickens until very recently, they've always been free range and until one has kept free range chickens one has very little idea of just how much difference a rooster can make to the safety of the group. It's not about his ability to fight, it's a books worth of behaviors that confined roosters never learn and those that are innate, he never gets to practice.

My answer to the question therefore is it depends on how the chickens are kept.

 

[wrathsfarm]

We had a fabulous big white Roo with dark green tail and trim. He attacked the school bus when it stopped for our kids and the UPS truck-never a human nor pet. He kept his women safe and battled a raccoon more than once. We’d hear the “chicken alert” and would all run out with bats and golf clubs to find the hens safe, the raccoon long gone and the rooster with a bloody comb. He was awesome. Our neighbors made us rehome him. I was heartbroken. I’d say get one but be ready, if he’s mean, to send him away.

Next time rehome the neighbor.

 

[akroberts1085]

I've had chickens now for a few years, but never a rooster. I have a beautiful roo that I am thinking about keeping, but I'm honestly nervous that he's going to end up being aggressive and be more of a headache than he's worth. The main reason I'd keep him is to help protect against predators, but I'm not convinced it will make that much of a difference. Those that have or have had roosters, what are your thoughts on this?

I had a bad experience with a roo that my daughter had but it was because the kids kept pulling out his tail feathers. He's a gorgeous roo though.

 

[The Chicken life chose me]

Where I live we can't have roosters even tho in some parts of the city they are everywhere.
You can have pot belly pigs but not a rooster...I think the noise is the issue.
I found a chick that became a roo which is why I now have 6 chickens.!As far as being protective my barred rock Cookie does a great job of alarm sounding if she sees a threat...cat or hawk or whatever. I have 2 dogs and 9 cats. They go in the coop and are in my yard with the chickens all the time and Cookie rarely freaks out. Ive even found the cats in the nesting boxes sleeping! But we raised them carefully together.The chickens aren't afraid of the cats and the cats ARE afraid of the hens.
My goldendoodle was a problem as a puppy but now at 15 mos she doesn't do anymore that follow them with her nose in their butt feathers. She's been very good. She herds them a little but she no longer chases them.
Here's a picture of one of the younger cats, Sunshine, in the chicken enclosure drinking out of their water cups while the girls are out digging up my yard.
I personally think my hen Cookie does a great job as Boss Hen.

This is super cute! Lol

 

[TinyRaptorDodos]

I have three roosters! One baby, one teen, one adult. Before I brought the adult in(he’s a light Brahma Foghorn, bigger than my dog) we were having a fox lurking around the coop during the night and sometimes the day, along with the neighbors cat. I haven’t seen the fox since I brought him in, the cat only got one of my chicks when the rooster was out front and I have seen the rooster staring the cat down until it ran away.
The teenager(Biscotti) is SO sweet, he is a Swedish flower and will follow around my Brahma boy and eat with him, he’s also still terrified of my hens despite him already crowing.
My third little boy(Ziggy; Naked neck mix) is hard to tell, he’s so young but he seems like he will be nice. He’s a “rescue” chick, was very very lethargic and getting trampled so I snatched him right on the spot.

They do not fight and Fog is always on point with the birds. Haven’t even seen any eagles or hawks trying, he’s constantly making the warning noise and occasionally he’s actually right and the hens have hidden.