Do I rescue the stray or let him live his life?

[b0ckb0ckg0rl]

We had an extreme cold spell in January, during which I found a little Dutch (?) bantam rooster in a patch of brambles and trees. He looked freezing and I worried he might not survive because of food scarcity and predators, so I tried to catch him, but he's a smart little bugger and just refused to be caught. He was clearly used to people, though, so either he escaped or was dumped, as happens with surplus roosters over here. I have a soft heart, so I just fed him through the cold spell that lasted a little over a week, with the intention of still trying to catch him and rehome him to somewhere warm and safe, but not getting too attached... Yeah, four months later and I've befriended him. I visit him more or less every day with some scratch and he hops up onto my knee when I sit down and eats from my hand. Since recently, I can just stick out my hand while standing and with a bit of coaxing, he flies up and perches on my arm like a mighty eagle. He also asks for more food when he's still hungry (hops down and pecks at my shoe or my trousers). He's such a character!

But yeah, I'm in a bit of a pickle now. He lives in this patch of trees where most of the ground is covered with near-impenetrable brambles and sleeps high up in a holly bush. He really picked his territory well, as he can run for safety pretty much anywhere and only small/slinky creatures can get through the brambles. He also seems pretty happy scratching around the forest floor. On the other hand, lots of people walk their dogs there, often off the lead, and I worry that one day a dog will be faster than Woodchook (yeah that's his name) or maybe even a cat might get him. He's also always covered in ticks and though there's definitely food to be found, I don't know how much, as he definitely gained weight since I started feeding him. I'm leaving th country for a short while soon, but in August I'm leaving for an indefinite time. I won't be there to feed him anymore (or to keep him company, if he cares about that all... Does he like me or am I projecting?)

We can't keep him as our roo is a tiny hooligan who will fight any other rooster (or duck, he doesn't discriminate), regardless of size, so If I were to rehome him, he'd go to our neighbour. Though he isn't as meticulous in his bird keeping as I am, he has a band of misfit birds who follow him around the yard and they lead a pretty good life there. They can roam freely and if Woodchook decided he didn't want to live with the flock, he could escape if he wanted to. There are a fair few 'wild' chickens living in our neighbourhood. The only concern I have is that if he did escape, he wouldn't get back to his patch of brambly woods and probably wouldn't find as great a place, though there wouldn't be any dogs to catch him.

I shouldn't have gotten myself into this in the first place, as I know that I am a complete weakling and will bond with anything, but here I am now. What would you people do in this situation?

 

[the_peanut_coop]

I would try to catch him and give him to the neigbors.

 

[Peas4Ducks]

I would try to catch him and give him to the neigbors.

Agreed!

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

He’s a still a domestic animal, whether he acts like one or not. Despite you feeding him, it doesn’t really sound like he’s doing so well, with the ticks and the lack of protection from the elements. Since you have the opportunity to help him, you should.