Aggressive cockerel.

[WalkingOnSunshine]

I do just want to get rid of him, I would rather give a home to a nice cockerel but I have all my family on my back saying how cruel it is and that if anything he should only be rehomed and I said "no, he doesn't deserve a home when nicer cockerels are in need for them". They are really starting to annoy me. And I wanted to use my own eggs to hatch out but because he is a pr*ck, I cant.

Please don't send your problem to someone else. Give your family a deadline. Tell them that they have one week to find him a home, and they have to be HONEST about why he is being rehomed. At the end of one week, you do the deed no matter what they say. You're going to have to be firm on this one. Remind them that you can save a life by picking up an unwanted but sweet cockerel that would otherwise be culled.

You're also right, that you don't want to hatch from him, since aggression has a strong genetic component.

Good luck, you're doing the right thing.

 

[chooks4life]

Quote:
Stay your course, be strong, you're doing the right thing. It's not always easy especially the first time. Those least involved with animal care and least educated and experienced in it are usually those who blame the person rather than recognize the need to remove a dangerous animal. If they learnt more about it they would arrive at the same conclusion.

If they think they're being kind to animals, perhaps they could try to imagine how some of the more long-term devoted and attached chicken lovers felt when they finally realized they had to cull a rooster they'd tried so hard with. If so many truly dedicated and experienced and educated chicken keepers find no other way, perhaps your family naysayers could consider the situation you're in with fresh understanding. You are responsible for human life in this matter. Condemnation's all easy now, and I'm sure their intentions are good and they think they're right to try to save him, but what if your nasty rooster maims someone? Even if you re-home him, the behaviour will continue. Do they think you can just re-home a dog that's mauled, to fix its problems? Same thing.

My family initially protested a bunch of rehomings and cullings of various hens/roosters, but if I'd let them have it their way, I'd have a leucosis riddled and aggressive flock. I'm the one who feeds, tends, breeds and manages them, I'm the one who deals with ill or injured birds, I'm the one who is responsible if we start hatching nasty sorts, so my word on it is the final one. Heck, I'm the one who pays for them! I've invited other family members to step up to whatever position of authority they want concerning the chickens, since they were a family venture initially that fell to me to maintain, but since the job includes educating yourself and consistent effort, they elected to leave me in charge. Originally it was everyone trying to have an equal say without any effort or education behind it... Chaos. In some situations democracy fails, lol!

In future you'll likely get better at spotting warning signs. It's a complete mentality in my experience, not just a single separate behavioural aspect in an otherwise 'good' bird. We have a responsibility to ourselves, our families, our flocks, our communities, and future generations of both humans and chickens, which we must uphold with what we do in our lifetimes. If I'm having a slightly hard time paying due respect to faults in a rooster due to other excellent qualities he may have, even if he's not violent, all I have to do is think of my hens. They have a huge and finite reproductive burden on them and I've got to organize things right to maximize the best potential of every bird and every genepool in the families I maintain, so they can't be wasted on anything. No half-decent roosters. Only excellence will do, or I'd be wasting my best hen's reproductive lives, and a huge amount of my time and effort. You're on the right track, I hope your family comes to understand that. Best wishes.

 

[Johnn]

My family eventually agreed to him going to be culled but when they said they agreed my stomach dropped, I got what I wanted to hear but I wish I didn't hear it in the end. I went up to the hens praying he would have changed over night because I know the guilt will eat me alive if I get rid. He hasn't changed, if anything probably worse. I really don't know what I am going to do. Either way, he is going to come out on top. If I keep him, he will carry on being a pr*ck and if I get rid, the guilt will eat me alive. I HATE him for putting me in this position!

 

[Johnn]

He is getting culled on Thursday unless he has some sort of change in attitude. I will feel so bad for this.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

I'm sorry. I know it's difficult--especially for a bird that is just a jerk, doesn't have any physical reason to cull. But this is for the best. Hope all went well today.

 

[Johnn]

I'm sorry. I know it's difficult--especially for a bird that is just a jerk, doesn't have any physical reason to cull. But this is for the best. Hope all went well today.

Its next Thursday he is going. So if he wants to be nice now is the time!

 

[chooks4life]

In my experience he won't change. Don't be guilty; if that emotion threatens, imagine the greater guilt you'd feel if he maimed someone. They are fully capable of that. Even from the ground a rooster can fly up and spur your eyes or jugular out, or just scar your face. Spur wounds are nasty. Even the claws of a vicious chicken are nasty enough. You don't have to cull him yourself, you can just get rid of him to someone who will, of course making them aware he's attacked before.

The only time I've seen a nasty animal change its attitude, is after a severe near-death experience with much suffering and usually physical disability being involved. Not a fright, an actual crippling or deathbed illness. At no time am I suggesting you attempt to do this to him, though I know you wouldn't; just saying. And these nasty animals had not gone as far as him with actually attacking a human like that.

 

[Johnn]

Well today surprisingly, he didn't even attempt to attack! but I did only take my eyes off him for seconds at a time. I do believe its a one off because I can tell he has no respect for me, he mates infront of me and everything. (I kick him off when he does). But I was feeding a ill hen some food and he was getting so jelous and looked angry, he started going side to side around me with his head down picking up bits of straw. I didn't want to risk being attacked when I was so low down so I just stood up.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

He's definitely preventing you from enjoying your birds. I wouldn't wait until Thursday. As Chooks4life said, you can get someone else to do the deed in exchange for the meat if you don't want to do it yourself.

 

[Johnn]

He's definitely preventing you from enjoying your birds. I wouldn't wait until Thursday. As Chooks4life said, you can get someone else to do the deed in exchange for the meat if you don't want to do it yourself.

I am getting someone else to do it, but I just cant take him until then due to work hours...