Button Roo nipping at his newly hatched chicks? Urgent Help!!!

[smallbluejellybean]

My eggs are hatching in my aviary. The Roo helped incubate the eggs, but now they have hatched he is nipping at them each time they stray away from the nest.
Does this mean, he wants to kill them or does it mean that he is just telling them to go back to their mothers?
I can put him in a seperate cage with another female. Should I do this?
Or should I wait and see as not all the eggs have hatched yet and thats why the mothers aren't leaving the nest?
Help please!!! I don't want to loose any of the cuties.

 

[quailbrain]

It sounds like he might just be asking them to go back to mom but I'd keep an eye on him. Are these his first chicks? If he's a new father he might not know what to do with them.

If the mother is watching the chicks removing the father wont hurt. It might hurt his feelings at most. They are able to feed on their own and if they have water near they will figure that out quickly. If they are getting too cool and the mother is watching she probably will let them go back to her. I think it is pretty warm if not hot where you are this time of year so they should be ok running around a bit.

 

[citalk2much]

Button roos can be funny some will help some will kill the chicks if you do not have a couple of days to watch him. I would move him. I would rather upset him a bit then have him kill chicks

 

[smallbluejellybean]

Thanks quailbrain and citalk2much,
I had to do it. Mr Roo has been evicted to another cage with the female that didn't share with the incubation too much. 2 hens set tight for the last 2 days, so left them with the chicks.
The hen removed is fatter than the others, as she kept on her merry way, eating normally. She layed eggs with the other girls, but not that many.
Mr Roo went nuts and really went at one of the chicks that ventured out. Not a nip but a full onslaut. Luckily I was there and jumped in.
The chick is fine for its ordeal.
They settled in pretty quick after I gave them a house warming gift of 6 meal worms. He even fed some to the hen. So there is a bond there already.
The Mr Roo and the hen are both wilds, but from the eggs I incubated, she is the one that only lays silvers. There must be some kind of recessive gene thing working there.
Once again thanks for your responses. It makes me feel I did the right thing.

P.S. Went out to check on everyone "I mean the birds" and the hen that I put with Mr Roo has made a nest in a basket tunnel and has already layed an egg. Oh boy Mr Roo is quick of the mark.