Attached rooster?

[bobbi-j]

Just to be sure I understand - he's a single bird right now, without a flock? In my opinion, that's why he's so attached to you. Chickens are flock animals and need the company of other chickens or animals. Right now, as Mrs. K said, he sees you as his flock. It may seem endearing right now, but when he decides to put you in your place, it could be a whole different story. If you have kids, or kids that come visit you, PLEASE lock him up before they get there. I'd even suggest putting him in coop or run when you have adult company coming over. Personally, if I were to go visit a friend and constantly have to worry about their rooster attacking me, I'd stop going over there.

ETA - I'm interested in knowing why he was re-homed to you in the first place.

 

[cassn]

He's close to a year old. He was rehomed because the previous owners ended up with multiple roosters and it wasn't going well. No young kids just adults here! When we do have kids around, they're all teenagers.

I'm kind of confused by me picking him up that he's submitting to me because I've read repeatedly online that picking them up like that reminds them that you're in charge? I've read people saying that they pick up their rooster to be him in his place so I'm thrown off by hearing the opposite.

He had a lot of other chickens with him before so I was thinking he was confused by the change? Like I said he's been very calm with the hens and hasn't shown any aggressions towards them. He has been with them in their penned in area and they've been able to share food without any issue and the dogs we have he's been around them without any issue. He has only actually gone after one person and that was after they hugged me and then started walking away. There have been a few other times when he started puffing up as if he was getting ready but stopped as soon as I said no and then moved away from them. Since we live farther away from our friends and family our visitors are infrequent and for the most part he's been indifferent to them if they're not interacting with me in particular. For example, one of my husband's friends was over cutting up some downed trees one day - the rooster was around him but kept a distance and was mostly just hanging out. When the friend came over to take breaks and sat on the patio with me, the rooster came and stayed right next to my chair, but there was a distance between the friend and I. The biggest thing seems to be whenever someone has physical contact or proximity to me so I didn't know if he was just acting that way because he currently is without a flock outside with him all the time and I'm doing 98% of the caretaking of all the animals. ?

 

[aart]

Sounds like he might think you are one of his 'hens'...it's really hard to say.

There are many different ways to handle male animals and a multitude of reactions by said animals.
All individual live animals have their own behaviors, just like the humans that keep them, and how this guy will end up behaving in the long run is a crap shoot.
There are some commonalities and rules of thumb, but in most cases only time will tell.

How old are the other 'hens' and why haven't you let them range?
They can go back to coop if cold.
His attachment to you is not really surprising as you are his keeper/bringer of food/controller of his females.

I'd be very interested to know how this progresses and encourage you to let his girls out to range ...
...and also encourage you to have a place ready to isolate him immediately if things go south.

 

[cassn]

The other hens are 7 weeks old and we just got them recently. Some of them were not fully feathered and since there are not any other hens in the unheated coop we were worried about the drastic change in temperature being too much of a shock, since they had a ton of other hens in the cage with them with heat lamps.
To get them acclimated without it being such a drastic change, they've been going outside for a little bit each day, with the time being increased each time until we can get them into the coop full time which should be within the next couple of weeks. I just don't want to put them out there without letting them adjust since it is colder here and has been snowing last few days. I was sweating in the area they were at before we brought them home so we've tried to make a gradual adjustment for them to the colder weather.

The coop has two different areas so we can cordon off if we need to.

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome! I'm also concerned that this guy will get worse, and I cull for ANY human aggression at all. If one of my cockrels tries to threaten me, I correct the behavior and mark that bird for watching. If he tries again, he will be invited to dinner. You didn't raise this guy, and he's showing very bad judgement going after humans, for any reason. Your pullets should be out there very soon, and a solitary chicken isn't going to be happy or 'normal' IMO. If your clients are being threatened or injured by your animal, it's a big lawsuit due to happen, and it's just wrong. Mary

 

[aart]

Ohhhh, those are just little baby pullets!
Won't be hens until one year of age.

 

[Folly's place]

So true! Under one year of age are pullets and cockrels. Over twelve months of age, hens and cock birds. Mary

 

[Free Feather]

I think he sounds fine, especially if there are no kids. People blow this stuff out of proportion.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Newly hatched chicks bond to the first large moving object or thing that they see. So your rooster seems to be bonded to you. Any problem is not of the roosters making but is the responsibility of his owner.

 

[Folly's place]

He should bond with the pullets and spend his time with them. Are they all out in the yard together, or still fenced apart? Mary