Aggressive Rooster - Best Rooster Breed

[Jacqui66]

Howdy Jacqui! I know you were talking to CC, but I am also in Oroville. I have at least 2 roosters I'd like to rehome. Both well behaved with the girls (hens) and humans. If you are interested you can message me and I'll give you my phone number. I'm in the hills overlooking Lake Oroville, close to Feather Falls. I can also sell you eggs to hatch in an incubator if you have one. . . . .

Hi! I actually have 9 roosters right now...naive purchase of 12 chicks in a mixed run from Tractor Supply. But how exciting to meet a neighbor here on BYC! I live off of Forbestown Rd. We should get together over breakfast or lunch soon.

 

[Aleelupton]

Well our rooster is gone. I find myself enjoying my flock 10x more than I ever have. I have four chicks from him that are almost 4 weeks old now. No obvious males. I will most likely replace him next spring unless my girls do well on their own.

 

[Folly's place]

 

[Mimi13]

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Well, ironically Raptor turned aggressive on me just a short time after my initial post. He's just getting big enough to overpower the large laying hens for dominance and breeding (remember he's a jungle fowl so he's bantam-sized). For two mornings in a row he's tried to spur my feet whenever I've around the hens while I'm wearing black crocs. I suppose he thinks they're a rooster. His spurs are still nubs so he can't do damage yet. I figure if there is a chance of correcting his behavior, it's now.

Swatting him hasn't deterred him. So this morning I took a cattle prod to him. It didn't zap him hard but it got his attention. I wasn't even sure that I connected with it as he didn't give a dramatic jump like animals normally do. He just decided to run away from it after I poked him with it a few times. Now when he sees me he gives a quiet alarm cackle and he steers clear of me. I can push myself on him and he gives the ground to me instead of standing off with me as he's been doing. So I'm hopeful there's some likelihood this might work. Hopefully he's not as smart as say, a dog, and doesn't learn only to respect me when I'm holding the prod.

I prefer giving him the discomfort of a zap now than culling him later. I'll report if this corrects the problem as time goes by.

Just to follow up, I can report that no corrective action I've taken has changed his behavior. He'll back for a day or so after taking a zap or a swat from me but after a short while he's back at it again.

Most concerning is that he's beginning to attempt to ambush me when I'm walking around barefoot. He's smart enough to know when my legs or uncovered I'm more standoffish with him because I'm actually concerned at taking a scratch at that point.

I've accepted that he'll never be cured of it. The biggest mistake I made is that I misinterpreted his "friendly" behavior as a chick. He wasn't being friendly he was being aggressive, just not in a way that appeared standoffish. He never bowed up or stood his ground against me then when I'd reach for him. But he was always staring at me and wanting to get close to me and get to eye level to me when he could, even when he was just a few weeks old. He should have been a cull early on. None of his brothers that I've given away have any human aggression to the extent I've been able to keep up with their progress. The common denominator with all of them is that they were indifferent to me as chicks and cockerels, where Raptor was supremely interested in me.

Raptor has also been overthrown as the dominant bird by Heihei and that has ramped up his aggression to me. Heihei shows no human aggression.

 

[NewBoots]

Just to follow up, I can report that no corrective action I've taken has changed his behavior. He'll back for a day or so after taking a zap or a swat from me but after a short while he's back at it again.

Most concerning is that he's beginning to attempt to ambush me when I'm walking around barefoot. He's smart enough to know when my legs or uncovered I'm more standoffish with him because I'm actually concerned at taking a scratch at that point.

I've accepted that he'll never be cured of it. The biggest mistake I made is that I misinterpreted his "friendly" behavior as a chick. He wasn't being friendly he was being aggressive, just not in a way that appeared standoffish. He never bowed up or stood his ground against me then when I'd reach for him. But he was always staring at me and wanting to get close to me and get to eye level to me when he could, even when he was just a few weeks old. He should have been a cull early on. None of his brothers that I've given away have any human aggression to the extent I've been able to keep up with their progress. The common denominator with all of them is that they were indifferent to me as chicks and cockerels, where Raptor was supremely interested in me.

Raptor has also been overthrown as the dominant bird by Heihei and that has ramped up his aggression to me. Heihei shows no human aggression.

I assume you'll cull or have culled him already?

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

I’ll be culling him as soon as I get a hatch of these same game chickens. It took me a year to find these particular game so I don’t want to be left with just one rooster in case I lose my good rooster.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I’ll be culling him as soon as I get a hatch of these same game chickens. It took me a year to find these particular game so I don’t want to be left with just one rooster in case I lose my good rooster.

People that have a lot of games in a yard have a short T-stand for each one and tether a leg to it so they can walk around and roost on it. They're still available for breeding but can't follow you and attack.
The great thing about culling and eating a mean rooster is that it isn't nearly as hard slitting the throat as it is on an unneeded nice bird.

 

[Folly's place]

Two thoughts here. Don't go out there without jeans and boots or shoes, EVER!
And, Raptor (so well named!) is a liability, from a safety standpoint, and as a breeder. Do you really want any of his offspring? Maybe some will be okay, but the way to produce good temperments is to select breeders that have it!
Mary

 

[SarahGfa]

Well, ironically Raptor turned aggressive on me just a short time after my initial post. He's just getting big enough to overpower the large laying hens for dominance and breeding (remember he's a jungle fowl so he's bantam-sized). For two mornings in a row he's tried to spur my feet whenever I've around the hens while I'm wearing black crocs. I suppose he thinks they're a rooster. His spurs are still nubs so he can't do damage yet. I figure if there is a chance of correcting his behavior, it's now.

What was the source of your jungle fowl? Are they from a hatchery or are they the real deal?