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I don't know that I agree. This spring I grew one out that was pretty docile as a chick. In fact, he was the lap chicken of the bunch so to speak. After getting rid of the other cockerels, he started to get aggressive once he became the alpha. I tried for a month to reform him b/c my wife really liked him (he used to sleep on her lap as a chick). There is little doubt in my mind that he would have continued to get worse.
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I don't doubt that you can with persistence. The simple fact is I don't want to have to keep taming roosters b/c I let a nasty one dirty up the gene pool. I'll keep searching for one that isn't aggressive and has all the other qualities that I want. The worse that can happen is a nice chicken stew.
The reason I surmised that they begin that way as chicks and get worse was based on my experience with 'pecker', a barred cochin bantam. Everytime I would put my hand in the brooder to change food or water (I am not a cuddler or a holder of chicks, by and large), I would get pecked! Hard! It worsened as this bird got older, so it got re-homed along with several other birds that showed aggressive traits. I agree that they can be docile chicks and become aggressive adults.
I firmly agree with your statement that taming roosters is frustrating, doubly so because the offspring can have that tendency! Unless a rooster is a rare bird or perfectly colored and shaped to the standard, I think aggression towards people needs to be bred out.
I don't mind and fully expect them to defend the hens, even when I need to pick up hens. I hope that trait will keep my hens safe for years to come.
I don't know that I agree. This spring I grew one out that was pretty docile as a chick. In fact, he was the lap chicken of the bunch so to speak. After getting rid of the other cockerels, he started to get aggressive once he became the alpha. I tried for a month to reform him b/c my wife really liked him (he used to sleep on her lap as a chick). There is little doubt in my mind that he would have continued to get worse.
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I don't doubt that you can with persistence. The simple fact is I don't want to have to keep taming roosters b/c I let a nasty one dirty up the gene pool. I'll keep searching for one that isn't aggressive and has all the other qualities that I want. The worse that can happen is a nice chicken stew.
The reason I surmised that they begin that way as chicks and get worse was based on my experience with 'pecker', a barred cochin bantam. Everytime I would put my hand in the brooder to change food or water (I am not a cuddler or a holder of chicks, by and large), I would get pecked! Hard! It worsened as this bird got older, so it got re-homed along with several other birds that showed aggressive traits. I agree that they can be docile chicks and become aggressive adults.
I firmly agree with your statement that taming roosters is frustrating, doubly so because the offspring can have that tendency! Unless a rooster is a rare bird or perfectly colored and shaped to the standard, I think aggression towards people needs to be bred out.
I don't mind and fully expect them to defend the hens, even when I need to pick up hens. I hope that trait will keep my hens safe for years to come.
