Aggressive cream legbar roo

[Starrfall370]

I have a crested cream legbar rooster I got at a week old. He’s been hand fed treats and given pets since we got him and has been generally pretty chill.. Up until the last couple of weeks.

He attacked my face and throat while I was hand feeding treats to the flock (6 ladies). He attacked me again twice today while I was filling their water. I brought a stick in with me to keep some distance between us and he attacked me again after I whacked him with it.

He then stood in front of the exit of the run and puffed up at me. I had to gently spray him with the hose to get out. Is there a way to reconcile or should I plan on processing him? My main concern is my grandfather who spends a lot of time with the chickens. Our rooster has been aggressive towards him as well but not fully attacked like he did me.

 

[AinaWGSD]

IMO there's no reason to put up with an aggressive rooster. If it were me I'd send him to freezer camp and try again with a different rooster.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I have a crested cream legbar rooster I got at a week old. He’s been hand fed treats and given pets since we got him and has been generally pretty chill.. Up until the last couple of weeks.

He attacked my face and throat while I was hand feeding treats to the flock (6 ladies). He attacked me again twice today while I was filling their water. I brought a stick in with me to keep some distance between us and he attacked me again after I whacked him with it.

He then stood in front of the exit of the run and puffed up at me. I had to gently spray him with the hose to get out. Is there a way to reconcile or should I plan on processing him? My main concern is my grandfather who spends a lot of time with the chickens. Our rooster has been aggressive towards him as well but not fully attacked like he did me.

He thinks you’re another chicken, possibly because of all the handling from when he was little.

When you gave the girls treats, you became another rooster competing with him by tidbitting his ladies. He’s openly competing with you for dominance now, blocking your access to the coop door and so on.

I’m guessing he’s 4-6 months old now? Or not.

He’s showing a dramatic escalation in behavior. I doubt that this can be turned around without significant risk to both you and your grandfather. I’m sorry.

Edit to add - do you actually NEED a rooster? Think about this on all levels. If you decide that you do, find a mature rooster, over a year old, who’s such a good guy that his owners can’t bear to kill him, but they can’t keep him for one reason or another.

Also, read this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/understanding-your-rooster.75056/ Maybe it’s a bit long, but the information is invaluable.

 

[nuthatched]

Making pets out of cockerels can often backfire, unfortunately, I wouldn't give him a second chance.

 

[Airyaman]

Yes, in my short experience with roosters and cockerels, being overly friendly actually tends to be a bad idea. I will pick up hens to inspect them, but I only visually inspect boys while standing and at a distance. I only pick up the boys when I need to pull them off another chicken (rare) or they have something that needs tending (also rare, for me).

I have one CCL cockerel who did puff up at me a few times, and even pecked me on the back of the leg when I went to look at a pullet in the wooded area of my free range space some time back. He ate dirt for a good minute for that one and has not tried it again, or even hinted at it. If he ever does it again, he will be food for my cats and dogs.

YMMV.

 

[McChooky]

I have a crested cream legbar rooster I got at a week old. He’s been hand fed treats and given pets since we got him and has been generally pretty chill.. Up until the last couple of weeks.

He attacked my face and throat while I was hand feeding treats to the flock (6 ladies). He attacked me again twice today while I was filling their water. I brought a stick in with me to keep some distance between us and he attacked me again after I whacked him with it.

He then stood in front of the exit of the run and puffed up at me. I had to gently spray him with the hose to get out. Is there a way to reconcile or should I plan on processing him? My main concern is my grandfather who spends a lot of time with the chickens. Our rooster has been aggressive towards him as well but not fully attacked like he did me.

I never let my rooster close to me not even when he was young except when given treats. I also crate them when I need to handle the hens because they think they all belong to them. Hitting one with stick ,kicking it or and spraying it with water hose brings out the worst in them.Its time to cull him if you can't take care of your flock without being attacked

 

[D13]

It's always so heartbreaking when a rooster turns on you. They go from being your little friendly dude to an aggressive hazard so quickly, and it makes everything so hard.
I will have to disagree that being "too nice" to a roo as a baby can cause problems; cause I've had plenty of baby roos that I've fondled and loved a whole bunch and they ended up returning that love, so...

Also you never have to worry about a Cochin being aggressive, so if you really want a rooster but are worried about aggressiveness; I recommend a Cochin 100%.
(Not to mention they are extremely heat and cold hardy.)

 

[Altairsky]

As owner of a bold CL rooster myself, I sadly think yours is too far gone to be rehabbed.
Babying roosters when young tend to bring the worst out of them when they grow up.
You should cull him before he seriously injure someone, or if you can't, you should give him to someone who can turn him into dinner, warning them that he's extremely human aggressive.

 

[McChooky]

I usually catch my rooster and put him in a crate before I handle my hens because nothing gets him stirred up quicker than the hens squawking and flapping their wings. I like to think my chickens are a normal flock but maybe they aren't? They follow me around hoping to get a treat until I reach down to pick one up. Then its on like donkey kong. Giving them a visual inspection,wormer or annual dusting for lice takes an act of Congress.One scream brings the rooster running so I've learned to put him in a cage first.Chickens aren't too smart

 

[McChooky]

Reasons why some roosters are jerks 1.) too much testosterone 2) they perceive their handlers to be a threat and 3) they're the offspring of another jerk. I don't raise chicks from aggressive hens or roosters