Topic of the Week - Roosters, Yes or No?

[jsyvanen]

I finally gave up on keeping roosters. I was shocked about the mating (raping) process. Many of my hens look awful where feather have been yanked. Donna Trump, with her comb over comb, is almost bald on her back.
I know I'm not going to hatch any eggs and chicks are easily available, so why instead of why not is my question.

You got a bad bird. A good rooster will not only dance for the hens but will give gifts. We had a mutt roo we hatched out that got to the age of wanting a lady, and my mom had just thrown out a pile of potatoe pealings. He spent the entire day sorting through the pile for the best one, taking it to the lady he fancied, dancing for her, and watching her eat it and walk away.
We kept him and he ended up being our third in command. Very vigorous towards protecting the flock. He wasn't one we would ever go out and catch to pet, but never caused problems.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I finally gave up on keeping roosters. I was shocked about the mating (raping) process. Many of my hens look awful where feather have been yanked. Donna Trump, with her comb over comb, is almost bald on her back.
I know I'm not going to hatch any eggs and chicks are easily available, so why instead of why not is my question.

This is a good point. The only reason you actually need a rooster is if you want fertile eggs. Anything else is purely personal preference. Some people would not have a flock without a rooster. Others have extremely happy flocks with no roosters. There is a lot of different personal preference out there.

Some people should never have roosters. The mating process looks violent and especially with cockerels and pullets it can be. For some of us it’s a normal and natural process but as someone on here once said watching cockerels and pullets go through adolescence is not for the faint of heart. And as I said earlier, some chickens are brutes, even when mature.

A few years back there was a post where a lady grabbed a shotgun and blew away a neighbor’s rooster because he was raping her hens. I don’t know if I’ll ever get that scene out of my brain. Poor rooster. He was doing what is normal and natural and was shotgunned. By what she described nothing unusual was happening.

 

[Peeps61]

I enjoy watching the social interplay between my younger cockerels (I have two that were survivors of a July hatch this year) and my older hens. The younger boy tries with the older girl, and she tips him off, then turns around and gives him what for. I've noticed now that the boys are dancing for the older girls and tidbitting the others as food or treats are given to them. I have noticed that they are now having some success with the younger girls, but the older gals are still teaching them manners and respect.

Older hens + younger cockerels = a more respectful rooster with the ladies (at least most of the time). Sometimes, you just get a crappy rooster. I've had those too. I really like these two I have now, so far. They aren't human aggressive and my hens are surviving their teenage hormonal months!

 

[QueenMisha]

I finally gave up on keeping roosters. I was shocked about the mating (raping) process. Many of my hens look awful where feather have been yanked. Donna Trump, with her comb over comb, is almost bald on her back.
I know I'm not going to hatch any eggs and chicks are easily available, so why instead of why not is my question.

The issues you are describing are the result of not simply a rooster, but a bad rooster. There's a world of difference between good and bad roosters; good roosters are all pros, while bad roosters are all cons. In no scenario will it be pleasurable or beneficial to keep a bad rooster. While I don't think most hens necessarily ENJOY the mating process, with a good rooster they will not fuss at all and they will act as if the act is, if anything, rather neutral and boring. If they are acting as if some kind of terror is occurring when being mated, you have a bad rooster, who needs to be removed from the flock.

(Note that feather loss is not always associated with a bad rooster - in some cases a gentle but clumsy or active male can cause feather loss if kept with too few hens. However, in this situation it sounds more like the result of a bad cockbird than an incorrect hen/cock ratio.)

 

[Peeps61]

I decided to keep one rooster from my young ones, along with 5 hens. Roo Roo, the rooster, was very sweet for about 5 months. Now he's the guard of the hens. He will still allow me to pick him up on occasion and rub his chest, but he's quick to attack when i walk into the coop to feed or water, or if I walk in his direction almost any other time. I am the only one who braves the coop because of Roo Roo. He has always been the friendliest of all of the chickens, so I hate to get rid of him, but lately he's been causing me some pain...coming at me with his spurs and attacking me with his beak.

I've had four roosters. The first was handled as a chick and he was terrible! My best day was when a hawk got him. I ended up with a buff polish rooster and decided I'd try the hands off approach with him. He was great - never human aggressive at all. A predator got him this year, and the two young cockerels I posted about above are his sons. They were raised the same way, and I haven't had any problems from them at all. So, perhaps keeping a bit of that "human fear" alive in them is the way to go?

 

[Glendarie]

Just so everyone knows, the last rooster I got rid of was the third one I had. It was not a singular experience with a single rooster.

 

[Peeps61]

Just so everyone knows, the last rooster I got rid of was the third one I had. It was not a singular experience with a single rooster.

Hi - I haven't read the whole thread from start to finish, so I may be asking a repeat question. What kind of roosters were they? My first was an Ameraucana (EE) and he was Satan incarnate. At 12 weeks he was trying to attack and throwing his non-existent spurs up at me. My second was a buff laced polish tophat, and he was very roosterly but not at all human aggressive. The boys I have now are half white leghorn and half polish and they seem to have inherited their rooster's personality from their father. I understand white leghorns can be aggressive (roosters). I've not seen any of that, though.

I truly believe the breed of the rooster affects the personality to some extent.

 

[Glendarie]

Hi - I haven't read the whole thread from start to finish, so I may be asking a repeat question.  What kind of roosters were they?  My first was an Ameraucana (EE) and he was Satan incarnate. At 12 weeks he was trying to attack and throwing his non-existent spurs up at me.  My second was a buff laced polish tophat, and he was very roosterly but not at all human aggressive.  The boys I have now are half white leghorn and half polish and they seem to have inherited their rooster's personality from their father.  I understand white leghorns can be aggressive (roosters).  I've not seen any of that, though.

I truly believe the breed of the rooster affects the personality to some extent.

I'm sure you're right, Peeps61. All of mine have been buff Orpingtons, mainly because that's what kind of hens I have.

 

[GitaBooks]

Roosters that are hand raised seem to be more aggressive. Has anyone else noted this? They begin following you really close and trying to steal food at just a few weeks old. I had a rooster chick that was one day old and acting aggressive towards its siblings. It was a Partridge Rock, so not some super-aggressive breed. The roosters I have that are parent-raised are rarely ever aggressive, from their natural respect for people as well as the fact they don't think of them as a flock member as much as just a friendly giver of food.

I have some bantams that are really feisty but never aggressive towards me while my standard birds that were hand-raised could be pretty vicious.

 

[Beekissed]

Roosters that are hand raised seem to be more aggressive. Has anyone else noted this? They begin following you really close and trying to steal food at just a few weeks old. I had a rooster chick that was one day old and acting aggressive towards its siblings. It was a Partridge Rock, so not some super-aggressive breed. The roosters I have that are parent-raised are rarely ever aggressive, from their natural respect for people as well as the fact they don't think of them as a flock member as much as just a friendly giver of food.

I have some bantams that are really feisty but never aggressive towards me while my standard birds that were hand-raised could be pretty vicious.

Studies have been done on this and it's called imprinting...confuses the young male animal, causing it to regard the human as a female of his species.

https://www.usask.ca/wcvm/herdmed/applied-ethology/Bottle-raised males can be very dangerous.pdf