I think a lot of it is the breed, from personal experience. I always handle my birds and create a good relationship with them, but repeatedly from breeds like leghorns and plymouth rocks, I have gotten extremely aggressive roosters that attack at any given opportunity. The hens from these breeds...
-Which breeds are best if you're after getting lots of eggs?
If all you're looking for is egg production, leghorns win hands down. They lay large white eggs on a near daily basis. Red and black stars are also stellar layers of large brown eggs, and I've had red stars that have laid jumbo sized...