Feisty Rooster

[HeatherlyHash]

We went through this with our surprise, too. Beastie started doing this to my partner. We found that if he just carried a stick with him, swinging it a few times, Beastie stays away from him. It also worked for a few friends that watched them when we went on vacation. No need to actually hit him... He has only been aggressive with me a couple of times, when his hens were about to lay, I usually pick him up and carry him around for awhile so he realizes that I'm alpha. Usually works.

Well the stick thing did not work at all. I could tell he was feisty before letting them out of the coop today, so I grabbed my stick and sure enough he came straight after me. I began flailing my stick around to no avail. I ended up swatting him a few times and fell backwards - and when I fell he finally backed off. I also haven't been able to get my hands on him since he's had this change-of-heart that came with puberty even though he was the only one that would let you pick him up as a chick.

 

[ToniTalley]

I use a wide leaf rake as a barrier between me and the evil roo. I’ve had some bad injuries from him when I forget to keep my eyes on him. Rushed, pecked, scratched, spurred, flogged, etc. a fiesty boy is nothing to fool around with, but he was a great protector, never lost a hen to the hawks when the flock was out of the coop. Keep your tetanus vac up to date!

 

[greggooo]

Well the stick thing did not work at all. I could tell he was feisty before letting them out of the coop today, so I grabbed my stick and sure enough he came straight after me. I began flailing my stick around to no avail. I ended up swatting him a few times and fell backwards - and when I fell he finally backed off. I also haven't been able to get my hands on him since he's had this change-of-heart that came with puberty even though he was the only one that would let you pick him up as a chick.

Oh no!!! Mine actually didn't budge yesterday. I think his hormones spike when his ladies are about to lay. It ended with me picking up a chair that I have in the yard. That worked. Anything strange like that folding chair picked up freaks him out and he started screaming and running away. Later at night, I went into the coop (I had to get little Sweetums because she needed an antibiotic pill) and gave them some treats, he ate out of my hands and closed his eyes. He doesn't hate me, just being a hormonal teenage rooster.

 

[wild chick]

I had a rooster like @HeatherlyHash and read all the articles and tried every trick in the book. He attacked my 77 year old housemate when she bent over to to pick up something off the ground. He didn't even have spurs yet, but his claws raked her face and arm (yes he was going at her feet first). We carried sticks everywhere we went and if he attacked I'd run him down and catch him and carry him around with me for an hour. He'd be good for a day or 3 then it would all start over. I advanced to beating him with the stick and his good behavior might last 4 or 5 days, then he'd be back to stalking. I have 7 acres of free range and if we came out to hang laundry, water the garden or split wood he would leave the hens and come stalk us. I finally put him in the freezer. I kept one of his sons that was about 4 months old and I dreaded that he would be just like his daddy but he turned out to be a star. He is now going on 2 years old and has never even given a stink-eye, much less a stalk or attack. I will never, ever, ever put up with even one attack again.

 

[Criticalicious]

Roos seem to be most feisty first thing in the morning. Mine acts OK during the day but first thing in the morning he rushes out of the coop ready to attack anything that moves - even the first pullet out the door. He stops after a few minutes, once he starts eating. Sometimes I wonder if he gets "hangry" or the testosterone builds up overnight.

 

[333113]

This is one of the more popular articles on controlling aggressive roosters:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/beekisseds-rooster-speak.73664/

This is one of those hot topics where you will get a very wide range of opinions on what to do with this guy. Lots will tell you to put him in the freezer. If you have small children around, I am one of them.
Otherwise, you can try to rehabilitate him.
Good luck.

Yes, I have read beekisseds-rooster-speak's method, and it might work for you.
However, there is more than just one way to train a rooster to behave.
I show chickens, and this method would not work for me at all.
When the judge picks up my bird from the show cage, I want the bird to be cooperative and quiet. The judge is going to turn the bird in all directions to get a good look at him, and I don't want my bird to fight the judge or break feathers trying to get away. As the old timers say, a rooster who acts like a number 2 will never be a number 1.
To prep my birds for show, I bathe them and groom them, trim their nails, and handle them like a judge would handle them. I also give them treats (cat treats work great). I spend time stroking their combs and wattles with a cloth that has a little oil on it, to make the comb and wattles look red. Chickens know when they are being groomed, and they know it's friendly. I carry them around for some of my chores, and I wrap my arms around them if they are scared by something. I know that when I carry them onto the show floor for the first time, the noise from all those other chickens and people will scare them, so I practice with them and say the same things to them that I will use to calm them down at the show. (I use just a few phrases with them so they will sort of recognize them, like "You are my chickie." My dad used to say, "Don't worry, nobody else will eat you but me.")
For a rooster or cockerel who can't seem to get it that I am on his side, I put him in a smaller cage by himself at my shoulder or eye-level, and make a point of talking to him at least daily. I open his pen to replace his food and water, and offer him food by hand before I pour it in his feeder. If he still reacts badly by biting or trying to use his spurs, I take him out of his cage and hold him snugly in my arms while walking him around. If he is still fighting, I gently push his head down, and hold it there for a few seconds. When he raises his head, if he still tries to bite or fight, I hold his head down a few more seconds.
Keep in mind that physical discomfort can make a roo cranky. Spurs that are too long and make it hard for him to walk or mate can be annoying, as can bits of string wound around his foot or a chunk of dirt in his feathers that he can't easily get out. Also, at dusk and dawn roos are naturally more defensive, even a roo who might normally ignore you. Also, most roos who have a flock of hens will appreciate it if you take them aside and give them the food first, so they can call the hens themselves. Even if you first offer the food bucket to the roo for him to sample, then pour it out for all, the roo will see himself as the provider, and notify the hens accordingly.
There will still be a few roos that stay mean and sometimes sneaky, too. If they are good breeders I may still keep them, but in a more restricted cage, so they can't hurt me or anyone else.