Help! Otherwise Sweet Rooster Hates One Specific Pair of Boots

[igorsMistress]

Really I think he's trying to tell me not to wear my good boots into the run! He doesn't quite have a good grasp on persuasion yet.

Could be! I had a rooster that HATED anything with bright colors or a busy pattern. Flip flips, shorts, shirts, didn't matter, he was ready to rumble

 

[The Angry Hen]

Hello, fellow Mainer! Don't see many of us on here!

I've had Australorp roosters in the past, and from my experience, they tend to be more aggressive toward your feet, possibly thinking of black shoes as competition toward who he thinks will steal his hens.

This has nothing to do with breeds though... more often than not, when any rooster sees something similar in resemblance of size, or color, it may be of issue for the owner.
I'd recommend wearing something your pant legs will go over- something rubber, possibly brown, or a dull black.

I wear, all year round, a pair of red rubber boots that were given to me. Any leather shoes don't go in the chicken coop. My rooster sits on the red ones, as do some of my hens. Only one hen dislikes what I wear on my feet. For a long time, I associated roosters with disliking red. But both my roosters will sit on my lap- when I'm wearing a red sweater. So that opinion changed. Chickens are always unpredictable, so never assume. ;P
There will always be that one thing, though, that a rooster sees as competition. It's very hard to break him out of this.
The best you can do is invest in something cheap from Ebay or Amazon- without buckles or shine. Before this, double check if you have different boots, before buying.

Best of luck, I hope this is helpful! Also, he's a handsome bird.

 

[Chickassan]

Girl, if you're wearing 400$ boots in with the chickens he's doing you a solid.

LOL I would if they weren't...expensive. I could buy him a $40 knockoff brand and see if it's the same, but I think maybe he's like "That $400 could have been spent on mealy worms"

 

[SEaton611]

Girl, if you're wearing 400$ boots in with the chickens he's doing you a solid.

In my defense, it's usually right when I come back from work so I can let them out. I'm not sloshing around in there. I'm not *that* dull.

 

[SEaton611]

Hello, fellow Mainer! Don't see many of us on here!

I've had Australorp roosters in the past, and from my experience, they tend to be more aggressive toward your feet, possibly thinking of black shoes as competition toward who he thinks will steal his hens.

This has nothing to do with breeds though... more often than not, when any rooster sees something similar in resemblance of size, or color, it may be of issue for the owner.
I'd recommend wearing something your pant legs will go over- something rubber, possibly brown, or a dull black.

I wear, all year round, a pair of red rubber boots that were given to me. Any leather shoes don't go in the chicken coop. My rooster sits on the red ones, as do some of my hens. Only one hen dislikes what I wear on my feet. For a long time, I associated roosters with disliking red. But both my roosters will sit on my lap- when I'm wearing a red sweater. So that opinion changed. Chickens are always unpredictable, so never assume. ;P
There will always be that one thing, though, that a rooster sees as competition. It's very hard to break him out of this.
The best you can do is invest in something cheap from Ebay or Amazon- without buckles or shine. Before this, double check if you have different boots, before buying.

Best of luck, I hope this is helpful! Also, he's a handsome bird.

Thank you! Also, YAY Fellow Mainer!!!

I usually wear an old pair of LL Bean muck boots in the coop. These ones I wear to work because they're pretty nice, but I've been in such a rush lately that I just run out in work clothes to let the flock into the bigger enclosure before I leave. I figured he saw them as competition, so it's a relief to hear that other folks are having that same experience with some of their birds too! If nothing else, it's motivation to change my shoes before going into the coop so he won't wreck the boots or my knee, or hurt himself!