Cockerel behavior

[smott]

Newbie to chicken-raising! I have 14 chicks of various breeds that range from near 4 to 6 weeks, and so far, I have only identified one cockerel, Rudy. He is a RIR who is the largest and appears to be the oldest chick of the bunch. He seems to be already exhibiting quite a few roo-ish behaviors that I am trying to understand. He will peck the other chicks if I am holding them! He will pace around me, giving me the one eyeball stare, peeping incessantly, and he will sneak in and attempt to peck them on the feet or even on the body if he can't get to their feet. I am wondering if he is "jealous" of me or if he is already expressing possession of the other chicks?? He is docile otherwise and will allow me to hold him, so I am just curious if this is normal behavior or if it is a sign he will be "mean" later, since he hasn't even gone through chicken "puberty" yet lol.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

He's being controlling. I personally would already dislike him. I prefer males that keep back. More forward ones tend to become more aggressive as they sexually mature. I personally don't handle the roosters so they maintain a natural wariness of me.

 

[Egg Snatcher]

You could try to take hem away from the others and work with him.

 

[smott]

You could try to take hem away from the others and work with him.

He already acts like it disturbs him if he is separated from any of the others (He peeps loudly and paces). He is very friendly with me individually... eats from my hand, allows me to hold/pet him, and will climb on me if I sit down. I’m so hoping he’s not going to be a problem roo bc I’m really fond of him!

 

[Egg Snatcher]

good luck with your roo.

 

[smott]

good luck with your roo.

Thank you!

 

[aart]

He will peck the other chicks if I am holding them!

Have had pullets do the same.
Nip it in the bud, peck them back.
I recommend not cuddling a cockerel chick,
they need to learn to keep their distance and let you handle the other birds without interference.

 

[smott]

Have had pullets do the same.
Nip it in the bud, peck them back.
I recommend not cuddling a cockerel chick,
they need to learn to keep their distance and let you handle the other birds without interference.

Thanks aart! I have been gently pushing him away when he does so. Will try the pecking lol. In my ignorance, I was hoping that handling him more frequently would keep him from being "mean" as he got older. I've read articles about people tucking their adult roos under an arm and basically forcing them to be submissive, so I guess I misinterpreted that into thinking I should keep him as friendly as possible.

 

[aart]

Thanks aart! I have been gently pushing him away when he does so. Will try the pecking lol. In my ignorance, I was hoping that handling him more frequently would keep him from being "mean" as he got older. I've read articles about people tucking their adult roos under an arm and basically forcing them to be submissive, so I guess I misinterpreted that into thinking I should keep him as friendly as possible.

There are a lot of 'techniques' for 'raising roosters'.
@Shadrach probably has the best understanding of them,
not sure it applies to confined birds tho.

I believe they should not be handled much at all.
They need to be just a little tiny bit 'afraid' of you so they stay out of your way.

 

[BabasCoop]

Have had pullets do the same.
Nip it in the bud, peck them back.
I recommend not cuddling a cockerel chick,
they need to learn to keep their distance and let you handle the other birds without interference.

This I find This very interesting. We have one cockerel and he seems very avoidant. He doesn’t attack us or anything but he keeps his distance.
The kids and I go out daily and spend time with our flock and the pullets are very curious. We pet them, pick them up, and interact with them. But Blue (our cockerel, Blue Wyandotte) will hang in the back. He will come up to us, but if you reach for him he backs away and doesn’t like us touching him.

I was beginning to get worried that his avoidance was a bad sign. We plan to keep him and I have heard stories about aggressive roosters. So I thought if we worked more with him, held him more that it would help. Is this wrong?? Should I let him be avoidant ? As long as he isn’t aggressive with us when we are handling then hens, is that a good sign?

Sorry first time Cockerel Baba here. Thanks for any feedback in advance.