cold blooded killers

[redroosta]

will roosters help take care of the little feather butts or will they brutally attempt to kill them?

chick protector

:cd

 

[77horses]

BUMP!

Not sure. I want to know, too. But hopefully our broody hen does a good job at protecting the chicks when they hatch.

 

[Southernbelle]

My roosters had always ignored the babies. They're mostly concerned with breeding the hens, finding snacks for the hens, breaking up fights between the hens and keeping an eye out for all dangers. Like many men, they leave the child-rearing to the women.

The broody hen would sleep on the floor to keep her babies warm and he would hunker down next to her. He didn't seem to care if a baby burrowed under him or not.

I guess it all depends on the rooster...

 

[77horses]

Well I wish our rooster was like that, Southernbelle!

LOL I don't know about the little day-olds, but he will chase the small bantam and Ameraucana pullets around, trying to peck at them.

So I don't know how he will act around the babies. Hopefully mother hen will take care of it; he's a big baby when the hens start to get mad at him because one time one of our BO's attacked him and he ran away like a bee had stung his butt!

 

[dancingbear]

Mostly they ignore them. Some take care of them. Very few will attack, though some might run over them, while chasing hens. I think it partly depends on the breed, and then just the individual temperament of the roo.

I had a buff Brahma roo that would let babies climb all over him, and sleep with him in a nest box. He never learned to roost, the guy I got him from raised him in small pens with no perches. So he slept in the nest boxes.

When I had a single chick hatch in the 'bator once, as soon as she started to feather some, I put her in the nursery pen with that roo for company. He was being beat up by a younger roo, and she needed a friend. He took care of her. It was sweet.

 

[pondguy2004]

I've seen bantam roosters with just one hen actively care for their kids and the same rooster when you add another hen, completely change! Guess he got too busy! Tim

 

[racuda]

My D'anver feeds the cochin chicks and lets them snuggle under him on the roost.

 

[sparkles2307]

OK so why are Roos good fathers and ducks are Satan when it comes to babies???

 

[gabrielle1976]

You never know about dads in the animal world some make awsome dads and some kill there kids and some that are one way can change and become the other way .

 

[dancingbear]

I had some Khaki Campbells, the drakes would kill some of the babies, if left with them. I finally figured out they were killing the male ducklings. Even when my young males were pretty good size, the drakes were attacking them. I finally had to find homes for the young ones.

I guess I could have eaten them, but I just couldn't bring myself to butcher the ducks. I'd nurtured them, and protected them, and they hadn't been raised to be eaten...

Different story when I've raised something for meat. The males of some species are just murderous, when it comes to offspring. I don't think geese do that, do they?