Aggressive Rooster

[JiJis hens]

Why raising our own meat birds MIGHT be a good idea:
http://act.aflcio.org/c/18/p/dia/action3/common/public/index.sjs?action_KEY=4104

E coli in your grocer's freezer, on CHICKEN.

I do agree with you, your own raise chickens are way better than grocery bought meat. But I am vegan so no meat here. I am not saying whatever you chose is wrong or right. All I was saying is that I could not do it. I had to keep away from the meat bird and predator section because I woke up having nightmares.

Now if my grandma was alive I know she would be feeding my chickens until they were nice and plump.

I do hope I didn't come out sounding like if I was judging. Not my attention at all. I know every circumstance is different especially with little ones.

 

[Gypsi]

You didn't sound judgmental. I have observed that the only living organism that can live without preying on other life forms are plants. They can actually "eat" rocks.

I consider all life sacred, and broccoli to be not too far down the intelligence scale from my hens.
If I wish to remain animate I must eat. I think that is true for all. I would rather eat from my garden of healthy organically raised vegetables and fruits, than from the chemically tortured stuff at the grocery store. I eat more eggs than meat, and little beef. But I still must eat.

 

[HSMomma3]

I know I'm joining this "party" after the fact... but I have a question if anyone has a minute... We're fairly new to this chicken journey, and I always have such a great response from BYC-ers... so thanks in advance.

I've read this thread from the beginning. Found a lot of good help, but I'm still wondering about the adolescence issue - (the point was mentioned but not really clarified) - About a month ago, we culled our 12 roosters down to one, the strongest, biggest, most "manly" of the bunch, to take care of our 7 girls.... and he's not been aggressive to us at all until recently. Usually very calm around us, eats out of our hand like the girls, etc. But also in just the last week or so, he has started the courtship behaviors and now pretty regular mating with his hens. (They are all about 20wks old). We also found our first egg yesterday, and two more today). So my question is about the comment on whether it is an "adolescent" roo... If this is his first mating and he's still this young, is he just getting used to being the man of the coop? or should we take it more seriously? He has charged at two of our boys (one got away, one got scratched pretty good on the leg, but all three boys now afraid to go out if the chickens are out) ... and now just today, he has also attacked me as I brought fresh water out to them. With the boys I could see where maybe they were too quick with movement, or since they are smaller (our boys are ages 8, 10, and 11) ... but I was surprised he came at me also. I am 5'9", 150 or so, I'm not small... I was approaching as I always do, with "hey chick-chick-chick", in my nice chicken-momma voice, etc... not "threatening" I don't think... and before I knew it, he was fluttering and squawking at me, and had both feet clawed into my skirt (thankful it wasn't my leg!). I don't see spurs on his legs yet, but his claws are effective enough.

So anyway, I need advice please! Is this a young roo, who needs some discipline, (or I'm a newbie chicken-momma who needs to learn my chicken manners?) ... Or does he need to go? Best case, I would like to "rehab" him if we can -- since he is now our only option to have a clutch of "naturally hatched" little chicks at some point ... But I won't have my boys at risk... Thanks everybody !!!

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

I know I'm joining this "party" after the fact... but I have a question if anyone has a minute... We're fairly new to this chicken journey, and I always have such a great response from BYC-ers... so thanks in advance.

I've read this thread from the beginning. Found a lot of good help, but I'm still wondering about the adolescence issue - (the point was mentioned but not really clarified) - About a month ago, we culled our 12 roosters down to one, the strongest, biggest, most "manly" of the bunch, to take care of our 7 girls.... and he's not been aggressive to us at all until recently. Usually very calm around us, eats out of our hand like the girls, etc. But also in just the last week or so, he has started the courtship behaviors and now pretty regular mating with his hens. (They are all about 20wks old). We also found our first egg yesterday, and two more today). So my question is about the comment on whether it is an "adolescent" roo... If this is his first mating and he's still this young, is he just getting used to being the man of the coop? or should we take it more seriously? He has charged at two of our boys (one got away, one got scratched pretty good on the leg, but all three boys now afraid to go out if the chickens are out) ... and now just today, he has also attacked me as I brought fresh water out to them. With the boys I could see where maybe they were too quick with movement, or since they are smaller (our boys are ages 8, 10, and 11) ... but I was surprised he came at me also. I am 5'9", 150 or so, I'm not small... I was approaching as I always do, with "hey chick-chick-chick", in my nice chicken-momma voice, etc... not "threatening" I don't think... and before I knew it, he was fluttering and squawking at me, and had both feet clawed into my skirt (thankful it wasn't my leg!). I don't see spurs on his legs yet, but his claws are effective enough.

So anyway, I need advice please! Is this a young roo, who needs some discipline, (or I'm a newbie chicken-momma who needs to learn my chicken manners?) ... Or does he need to go? Best case, I would like to "rehab" him if we can -- since he is now our only option to have a clutch of "naturally hatched" little chicks at some point ... But I won't have my boys at risk... Thanks everybody !!!

You have a rooster that needs some serious discipline. I would keep the kids completely away from him for a bit. Any aggressive behavior, even taking a step towards you with that "I'm the boss" look in his eyes means he needs to be growled at, chased away, picked up, carried upside down, kicked--whatever works for you. And don't let him mate any hens in front of you or your family. If he tries, kick him off (literally, kick him). Remember, the humans are the "top rooster" in the flock, and the head of the flock doesn't tolerate any other roosters mating his hens.

We have a two strikes policy on our farm. One aggressive move by a rooster gets him kicked and chased around the yard as fast as I can go trying to kick him again and squawking at the top of my lungs (my neighbors love that). Thereafter, if I know that rooster has it in him to be aggressive, I go out of my way to pick him up, turn him upside down, grab his beak in my hands, look at his feet, and carry him around while I do chores. Just to show him that I am bigger, stronger, and tougher than he is. After this treatment, if he makes even one more aggressive move, he becomes an ex-rooster.

Since you know he has some aggression in him, you probably want to pull the cap off his spurs. Get someone to hold him while you take a pliers and grab the top of his spur near the leg. Grip firmly, then rotate back and forth until that hard outer cap loosens. Pull it right off. Spray with Blu-Kote or something similar, and repeat with the other side. It's totally gross looking, I think, but it doesn't seem to hurt them and doesn't even bleed much. The spurs will be much shorter and less sharp after that.

There are a whole lot of free roosters in the world. Don't keep an aggressive rooster. If this rooster were mine, he'd already be gone.

 

[HSMomma3]

Wow, thanks so much for a quick response!! I appreciate it. My husband's gut-reaction is like you said... basically "it's rooster stew for dinner". And I'm fine with that, but my next question is ... do we "need" a rooster? I know we will get eggs either way, but I'm thinking of protection factor for the girls. We live on 12 acres, a small "homestead-farm" kind of scenario... Along with our chickens, we have 6 guineas, and 4 dogs (who are, so far, doing really well with the birds...). We keep all the birds mostly free-range, with some days staying in the caged run if we are not home. Mostly though, they are free to forage in the woods, in the pasture, in the gardens, in the flower beds, etc... they go where they want, and I know living out where we do, we have many predators in this area. So, I've always thought it best to keep a rooster for watch-care so to speak... to take care of the flock. Any truth to that? Or will the girls do fine on their own? Thanks again!

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

Technically, you don't *need* a rooster. I happen to think that flock dynamics are a lot better with a rooster. One of the most important things a rooster does is keep the hens from beating each other up. A good rooster will intervene in hen fights before anyone gets hurt. He will also keep watch and sound the alarm when he sees predators, and herd hens to a safer location.
If you don't have a rooster, a hen might move into that role in the flock. In my experience, hens are much nastier and meaner when they are in the top position.

Do you have a place to quarantine a rooster for a few weeks? Look on Craigslist. There will be a ton of free roosters, and you can get an adult one and ask about temperament. That's what I do with my extra roosters--list them on Craigslist for a week or so before I take them to the auction.

 

[HSMomma3]

Thanks again, WalkingOnSunshine... No, we don't have a quarantine area, but we're keeping the birds in the run (not free-ranging) for a while so the boys can go out without fear and without risking injury. And meantime we are working with the rooster to make sure he knows he's not the alpha over us humans. I found a VERY helpful article here on BYC about how to "rein-in" a rooster... holding him, making him submit, etc, and we're working on that each evening now, trying it out. The hubby is encouraged that maybe Rooster-Joe can be trained. Also, the fact that we need to NOT let him mate in front of us was completely new info. Thanks for the heads up. The boys had been very interested to learn about the behaviors and mating, so we will change that for sure. Hopefully that will help too, once we stop him a few times from mating in our presence. But either way, he's got a week or two probation, and if not we will definitely hit Craigslist to find a nicer rooster. So, thanks for the help, it is much appreciated! We're learning as we go! : )

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

Thanks again, WalkingOnSunshine... No, we don't have a quarantine area, but we're keeping the birds in the run (not free-ranging) for a while so the boys can go out without fear and without risking injury. And meantime we are working with the rooster to make sure he knows he's not the alpha over us humans. I found a VERY helpful article here on BYC about how to "rein-in" a rooster... holding him, making him submit, etc, and we're working on that each evening now, trying it out. The hubby is encouraged that maybe Rooster-Joe can be trained. Also, the fact that we need to NOT let him mate in front of us was completely new info. Thanks for the heads up. The boys had been very interested to learn about the behaviors and mating, so we will change that for sure. Hopefully that will help too, once we stop him a few times from mating in our presence. But either way, he's got a week or two probation, and if not we will definitely hit Craigslist to find a nicer rooster. So, thanks for the help, it is much appreciated! We're learning as we go! : )

Oh, I meant a quarantine for the new rooster, if you get one. For flock safety, you need to keep a new bird separated by as much distance as you can for at least two weeks. Also, make sure you feed that bird last, and then don't go out to the flock in the same clothes and shoes and without washing your hands.

I hope Rooster Joe does well for you. This is something I've posted before, but it's helped people so I thought you might want to read it.


Quote:

 

[DTchickens]

Just wanted to throw in: Firstly breed type is of importance, if he is a game don't kick him for mating your hens. Games are completely different from heritage breeds in one major priniciple, a true game cannot be forced into submission. Hitting, kicking, rough handling etc- will only make matters worse. I have a bird on my yard right now that is human aggressive all because someone did not handle him correctly before I got him; I know because I had seen the bird before hand even after he was old enough he shouldn't have turned into a manfighter and he was about as gentle as can be.

This does not only apply to games, it can apply to other breeds as well. I don't know where that "kicking them off the hens" stuff came from but I find no reason in it. I have had fowl for 18 years, I will not count the amount of birds that have bred hens in front of me- but I can count with both hands I believe the amount of manfighters I remember us having out of probably thousands of roosters over the years. Bloodline plays a large role, if the bird is a manfighter before being handled/gentled down take note that his sons can be that way or worse; the same thing can be applied to the flighty birds. A lot of it is all in the genetics.

I have found the easiest way to make a bird gentle is just by picking them up everyday, or every other day (at least as often as you can) for as long as you can. Some say 5 minutes, that is a good rule, but if I have the spare time I will pull up a chair outside and sit while I hold them until they stop acting aggressively while I pet them. If they stop, move them and see what they do. If you just swap positions with them see if they're mean, if not, try letting them stand on the ground (While you hold them securely mind you, you want to give them a sense of independence but still hold on to them in case they decide to turn on you) and if they're still not aggressive- pick back up and pet a bit longer than ease them back into the pen. Repeat steps as needed.

I did this very method with a bird that most people would have killed due to being a manfighter and I got him to the point that I could walk up to him and stroke his tail as he just stood there; I could pick him up and he wouldn't even bite me. But, being as it is in the genetics most of the time, you have to keep in mind any offspring bare the possibility of you having to go through these steps with them. Also don't try to pick them up in the molt much, when a bird molts its rough on them and that can make some aggressive. Don't try to chase either, walk him around until you can grab him if possible (don't squeeze, holding fairly firmly is not that bad but remember they're small animals and can be squeezed by us pretty easily), chasing will cause fear which triggers the fight or flight response- with a human aggressive cock he is more likely to exhibit the first response. If you grab by the tail it is likely they will do the same as that frightens most birds, like I said if you can walk him around into your hands it is best but if not just try to aim for the body/legs. If you grab his legs, don't pick him up by one leg, make sure you handle him correctly.

God bless,
Daniel.

ETA: on the subject of top cock not letting the second in command mate, that is really very variable. I have seen some roosters that were very controlling "No mating, no eating, no drinking, no coming near me or the hens, etc" and then some which were very relaxed and would only bother the other bird if he appeared to be damaging the hens (fighting, or the hen refused to submit which caused him to chase, etc). Either way, a bird below him in the pecking order would still never show aggression towards him regardless of whether he mated in front of him or not. A lot of people use 2 cocks to a group of hens for breeds like the Manx Rumpy simply because of low fertility levels (rumpless gene defect). So therefore, given that two cocks are in the same pen one is going to be lower than the other, but both are required for fertility which means both have to breed in front of each other- doesn't mean the top cock is going to come kick him off though every time as soon as he starts or even beforehand as that would basically render it worthless on the breeders point to have two cocks in a pen but they do it and it is suggested if I remember correctly that an individual (if breeding those type of breeds) should do so.

 

[HSMomma3]

Technically, you don't *need* a rooster. I happen to think that flock dynamics are a lot better with a rooster. One of the most important things a rooster does is keep the hens from beating each other up. A good rooster will intervene in hen fights before anyone gets hurt. He will also keep watch and sound the alarm when he sees predators, and herd hens to a safer location.
If you don't have a rooster, a hen might move into that role in the flock. In my experience, hens are much nastier and meaner when they are in the top position.

Do you have a place to quarantine a rooster for a few weeks? Look on Craigslist. There will be a ton of free roosters, and you can get an adult one and ask about temperament. That's what I do with my extra roosters--list them on Craigslist for a week or so before I take them to the auction.

OK, so we've had another "attack" incident (thankfully to me, not the boys), and I have NO hesitation that Rooster Joe must go. He will be processed this evening. If you don't mind one more question, WalkingOnSunshine? (Or anyone else! -- With your input about the hens and their fighting, do I need to worry/watch for similar aggressive behavior toward us from the hens, or are they only nasty and mean to each other? I have for sure been humbled by this rooster, so I'm not exactly carrying myself with confidence as my hubby has pointed out. So once the rooster is gone, if the girls see me hesitant or skittish, will they be aggressive toward me? Just wondering if I need to keep my guard up. Thanks for the help!! Oh, and one more thing, anyone have suggestions for a breed that is known to be docile? We're in the market for a new rooster. ; ) Thanks!!