Does anyone have a NICE adult rooster?

[NYRIR]

I am so worried my rir roos will end up mean...the more I read on here...argh!

I want at least 3 roos for protection of the flock and because they are beautiful...and thirdly because I want fertile eggs. So...what are my chances of having 3 out of four nice roos from my RIR's? They are 3 1/2 months old right now and friendly...not even any fighting between each other,just some posturing so far.Am I crazy? Or do I have a chance? How old are they before you know if they will get mean? I'm confused because my friend has like 6 roosters with a total of 35 chickens(which I think is way too many roos) and her roos don't fight and have never attacked anyone. I don't believe she has a RIR but she has all different kinds.I guess what I want to know is...do people just generally post about the bad roos? Is that why it seems so hopeless? Any input from experienced roo owners is greatly appreciated

 

[easttxchick]

I have the most AWESOME rooster and he is about a year old(not an RIR though)-he dropped a wing on me once when he was pretty young and nothing since.
I can pick him up, he loves treats and he is beautiful.

Oh, and he is a great flock protector.
I guess you're right, we do tend to post mostly the problems we have with our boys, but there are some wonderful roosters out there and hopefully some of them will be yours.

 

[tnchickenut]

I have a couple nice older roosters. I have had some that "turned" too... but it was always my fault. If you don't interact with them and keep them knowing you are the boss (picking them up daily and NEVER running from them if they do want to "bump" you), you should be able to keep them calm. They may not be "sweet" but they won't be aggressive either (if it works).

basicly, what you are asking is "is there hope?" and the answer is YES! lol.

I don't know about RIR personally, but I'm sure they are not a overly aggressive breed given their purpose and history. Just work with them and NEVER RUN!!! EVER!

 

[redhen]

I have 2 decent respectful roos.. and one little butthead..

 

[backwoodsman4life]

I have read that the RIR are a more aggressive bird to begin with.

I suggest you go to websittes such as www.ideal-poultry.com or www.efoul.com and read the brief descriptions they give for each breed that is what i did and I ended up getting silver laced wyandotte pullets since this is my first flock of birds. I got them from ideal poultry and inhierited 10 of what I think are buff orphington chicks as packing peanuts.

I know I got a bit of the topic with that last lil' bit.

 

[herefordlovinglady]

i have a 4 year old Dominique and a 1 year old x-bred that are both wonderful. they have never came at me, but have had the pecking order thingy going on. of course the 4 year old is still the king of the hill around here (eta) besides me of course.

 

[Indiana hens]

The RIR roos in general are mean. They eat well though. After u get a few scabs on your hands from em pecking u you will understand. Black Jersey Giants are sweet and dominate. White Rock has been my #1 roo for 5 years , he just lost a eye to the 1 yr-old Giant-dethroned! Buff orpington is #2 roo. The sweetest i ever has was a Salmon Faverolle and very prolific. My front rooster is 1/2 Ameraucana and 1/2 Buff Orpington he is sweet and great protector- Handsome

 

[Lbrad7]

Through the years I have owned hundreds of roos and of all of them I have only had three that were nasty and one Barred Rock that came straight from the pits of hell!!! My parents were building a house (split level) and he flew up on the basement foundation wall then flew down on my little brothers head laying him wide open!

Now comes the honesty..that rooster was mean but I was a 12 year old that loved to tease them and get em going. They never hurt me so I thought it was fun. After I matured a little and left them alone, I have never had any trouble with them flogging me or anyone else. They will sometimes posture at strangers but I step in between them and they go on about their business.

The advice you have been given from the others is pretty much right on the money..spend time with them, hold them and pet them every day if possible and NEVER TEASE and NEVER RUN from them. None of these things will be a guarantee that they won't turn on you but it sure as heck increases your chance of having a "people" friendly bird. I have 15 or so now and they all live in harmony. There is a pecking order for sure, one will dominate the others but there has never been any blood drawn. It's usually a little chasing for 10 ft or so then it's over. They have never fought.

Good Luck!!!!!

 

[NYRIR]

Ok..so there IS hope! I don't pick them all up daily but my kids pick them up quite a bit.I am usually busy tending to the animals

I DO pick them up when necessary though and they have NEVER tried to peck me.I do have one little roo (from a hatch,not the ones I am referring to previously) and he's about 5 weeks..THAT little butthead started pecking me at 2 weeks old!I pick him up and carry him around every time he does try to peck...he has seemed to get better...but he's probably one for the pot. I named him Rowdy....but am planning on eating him...

So can anyone tell me what age does this generally show up? is it a year? Five years? at what point can you be pretty confident they are going to be nice?

 

[Indiana hens]

save or soup at puberty.