Help! My Rooster tried to attack me!

[webbysmeme]

Have you ever watched a couple of roos fight? It's brutal! Usually..they do the stare down w ea other b4 one attacks. Put a day aside...Put on some good protection get some pans in your hands and whoop his ass! 1st thing..walk in the coop aggressive..hollar scream...walk around with them pans in ur hands..wave them..clang them together.. ..stare at him..chase him around..make him think he's gonna die! Keep at it untill he's cowering in a corner and tired.if he comes at u..use a pan to fend him off and go after him ..push him away forcefully..if you manage to wear him own.dont leave...sit there in the middle of his kingdom and give him the stare of death for awhile. Every time that sucker moves..go after him again. Keep making him think he's gonna die for tangling with you.

I swear ! Y'all are so funny. You know it's just about time to go for another visit with Mr. Red. And I'm dreading it all over again. That was my intentions yesterday, but when hubby drove up, I said to myself fooie on this I'm tired and I'm taking a break. And I walked away. That won't happen again. At least not today. I hope. Yesterday I took a big ol switch with me and my clicker/whistle. I had to use them all right off the bat. I stayed with him for more than an hour. He would walk away, but then he'd come right back. Everyone here had told me what to expect and what to do. So I went in pretty well armed for a battle.

 

[webbysmeme]

...when your in the pen. Call your hens over for some treats and keep him away. Keep doing it until he learns to stay away from you. Make him move as far away as possible when you enter the pen every time, no exceptions. Thats what another dominant bird would do so you have to do the same to him to be dominant

I don't know if you've read all my post or not, I can't just call the chickens and they come to me. One is blind, her sister is retarded and the big red one is his girlfriend. She won't leave his side.

 

[Mrs. K]

Keep having your husband feeding the chickens, and pretty soon he will attack him too. Roosters generally attack children first, then women and then men. As stated above they can be dangerous. I strongly recommend that people not have roosters, until they have had chickens a year. Roosters take some experience.

You have had your warnings. This will get worse. It always amazes me when people keep violent pets. You will not train him at this age. They have a brain the size of a walnut. Keeping him will not prove anything to either him or you.

Good luck, but really this will not get better at his age. Chicken keeping is a wonderful hobby, but roosters have ruined it for a lot of people. Roosters are rather a crap shoot, some are fantastic, some are rotten. If you love the crowing, contact your feed store and someone will have a nice rooster, so nice, they didn't cull him, yet really don't need, that is the rooster you want.

Mrs K

 

[JudysMuscovy]

I don't know if you've read all my post or not, I can't just call the chickens and they come to me. One is blind, her sister is retarded and the big red one is his girlfriend. She won't leave his side.

Good luck today with your Roo- I would have to always carry a take or shovel or stick in with me when I had a aggressive Roo- I ended up making soup out of one of them -. But the barred rock roosters were the best they new their place I never had to watch my back with them - but I had a silkie rooster was the pain- and it was kinda funny cause he was scared of everything. If his hen was on the nest he would never even go after me I could get right close to him but if she was by his side he would try to come after me. He was a little stinker

 

[AllenK RGV]

Where do you get your baby chicks? I think I'm going to order me some. I think the farm supply stores have sold all they had. Do you know of a good reputable hatchery?

This last batch I had ordered from Ideal Poultry. My first flock came from Meyers in Polk, OH. They were the young hormonal stinkers but were not heat tolerant for my environment so I would suggest something close to your home environment. That also minimizes shipping delays. The ohio chicks spent 3 days in the mail, my only 6 hour away Texas ones were here in 24 hours. Hope this helps.

 

[BantyChooks]

You've already gotten a lot of great advice, but I'll throw my experience into the mix just in case it helps. See post linked below.
Honestly, I don't know if he will ever be safe and he might well turn an enjoyable hobby into a chore if he's allowed to stay. Good luck!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/is-it-worth-it.1217178/page-13#post-19443949

 

[chickendreams24]

Cackle hatchery is a great hatchery

 

[chickendreams24]

Chickendreams24, what a beautiful letter. I can tell that you are a precious human being. Who else in this world would take the time to write such a long informative reply? Thank you so much for doing that for me. I see that you are in Wisconsin, I'm just south of Chicago. I think we will be close friends. Maybe you will sell me some good laying hens and a big pretty well behaved rooster?
The reason I bought a rooster is because I love the sound of the crowing! I have never heard a sound that I enjoy more. Not even music. I think it's the sweetest most relaxing sound there is.
I made the mistake and bought three hens and Mr. Red at an auction a few weeks ago. One of the hens has an eye that won't open and the other eye is cloudy like she is blind. Her sister, I say sister because they are both black with white spots. Anyways, her sister is retarded. She always sits on the side of her food and water dish. No matter how many times I move her. And you may be right about Mr. Red thinking that I am hurting her, she always fusses and cries when I pick her up.
The other hen is Mr. Reds girlfriend I'm thinking. She never leaves his side. Not even when he ran at me today, she ran to. Of course she didn't do it out of meanness, she was just following him. She may be the only one that I get eggs out of. Maybe not. I'm trying to remember all of the questions you ask so I can answer them. I do plan on free ranging one of these days. I can't let them out of the barn because one is blind and the other is retarded. Mr. Red would probably chase cars he's so mean. And if he does the girlfriend will to. I don't know though, she seems to be the only right one of the bunch! lol But, it's been really cold and windy, that's the reason they are in there. They have plenty of room, I put chicken wire up and made a space for them 8'x12'x8' approximately. Today was the first day they could have gone out, it was a nice 72 with a little breeze. But I couldn't get to the black and whites to carry them out. So, they have never been out to peck in the grass and do all the stuff they enjoy. He may have cabin fever, like we do when it's to bad to go outside. If I did let him out, I would never be able to get him back in. I took a switch I cut from a tree in there with me today. Had no intention of using it on him, just shoo him away so I could get my work done. But when he started crowing at me before I even went in, I knew I was going to have to hit him with it. Sure enough, I did. I didn't hurt him, I used a whistle that I think scared him. But after he got over the shock, here he came again! I couldn't believe it. And she was right by his side. We danced around in there for over an hour. When I heard my hubby drive up, I was outta there. I didn't want him to see me in there with my switch. He would've thought that was the funniest thing ever. And I really don't want him making fun of me. He hasn't seen any of this happen. He thinks I don't like Mr. Red. I do like him, I bought him.
My hubby is up now. He goes to work at 3:00ish. I have to get his breakfast cooked and his lunch made. I'll finish this after he leaves or in the a.m.
KH

Thank you very very much that's very kind of you.

Ok, I've done my wifely duties for the morning. Now we can talk about Mr. Red some more!
He did that tidbit ing thing with me today. I didn't know what he was doing at the time. but yea, he did it. I will give him a few more days. Maybe he will come around to my way of thinking. I sure hope so. It's supposed to be nice here again tomorrow, maybe I can get all the girls out and if he a bad boy, I will spend some time with him. One on one rooster training. That was my hopes for today, oh well. Tomorrow is another day. It's got to be better than today. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
Thanks again. Sleep well my friend.

Where do you get your baby chicks? I think I'm going to order me some. I think the farm supply stores have sold all they had. Do you know of a good reputable hatchery?

I posted above.

Now if you're interested my local feed store is getting in a batch of chicks this coming week. I'll call and check the day to be sure and PM you. How far south of Chicago are you? I also have a close friend in Chicago that I can introduce you to via byc that has beautiful wonderful birds. English Orpingtons in fact. I've gotten quite a bit of my stock from her.

@Faraday40

 

[4rbar]

Just joined up this morning and read your post. We've had free range chickens for years and numerous roosters. In all the years we have only had one barred rock rooster that would attack my wife, but only tried me one time. My wife being attacked the initial time actually shocked her and that was enough for the rooster to forever become dominate towards her. Eventually, the rooster disappeared (insert grin) since she could never go out back without a weapon of sorts. If she turned her back he would come a running. He was dangerous.

Good luck; however, be very cautious as an territorial rooster is a very dangerous animal.

We are also south of Chicago, outside of Champaign

 

[Faraday40]

Awww. Thanks. @chickendreams24

Yes we keep the gentle giants =Enlglish Orps. I have kids (as well as all their little visiting friends) running around through our backyard. We live in a neighborhood, so a relatively quiet and friendly roo is a must. We have the roos sleep in the garage at night so when they decide to crow at sunrise, no one can hear them. They get put back out around 8am when I let the flock free-range. By then, people are awake. They usually crow a few times when 1st put out, and then stay pretty quiet unless there's a predator or perceived threat - like a neighbor's new power tool or a scary plastic bag blowing across the yard.

As far as temperament, they're fantastic. I only had one that was unpredictable (not exactly mean, but he sometimes stood his ground until I was practically on top of him). I think by being the only rooster, he developed a god complex & wanted to test me. I didn't wait for him to attempt a fight. He went to freezer camp. Every other roo we had has been a perfect gentleman. I think it's because of a few factors:

1. Genetics. Some breeds are naturally more docile. Also any intelligent breeder will cull aggressive birds from his/her flock. By talking with the seller, you should be able to find this out.
2. Having more than one male. The cockerels will work out the pecking order in the brooder and work as a team. They share their duties as well as keep each other in line. (ie If a hen squawks, the offender will get pushed off by the protector. Not a fight, just a reminder to be kind.)
3. Regular human interaction. (but not cuddling) Each night we carry our roos to a cage inside the garage. They get used to being picked up 2xs a day as part of the normal routine. That way, if we ever need to pick them up, they do not run away from us. They'll take treats from our hands and won't panic if we pet them. It's not like they want to be held, but they don't object. Being picked up is not a stressful thing or punishment. However if two cockerels have hackles raised at each other, I can simply pick one up to stop them. (Hard to act macho when being carried.)

Here's our 5 yr old roo:

Because of their great size, our roosters MUST be gentle. There are so many great roosters out there, why try training an aggressive one? If someone ever needs a rooster, I'll gladly give them a good one. Sometimes we get attached and processing those favorites is hard - emotionally.

Recently, we gave away a little guy named "Dinner." He wasn't going to work out for breeding, but we were happy he did not end up as his name suggested. (He would give "hugs" when being held by resting his head on an arm or shoulder.)