help with rooster

[Joellen71]

usually there's no grabbing...just jumping and kind of hitting each other

 

[Kev]

Yeah that is just play.

When a cockerel is starting to feel the urge, they often start grabbing at another bird by the head, neck or back and holding on for a little bit. They either just stand there looking surprised/confused.. but there can be attempts to literally climb onto the other bird at the same time.

 

[lkyoder]

Hi, Joellen. Although I'm new here, I've been living with chickens--mostly roos (long story)--for over ten years. I have a few questions for you, and some tips.

My first question is whether your roo was hand-raised (incubated, purchased chick, etc.) or hen-raised. I have both kinds of roos, and it's typically the hand-raised that show more "boundary issues"--makes perfect sense when you consider that "mom" wasn't constantly around to keep them in line.

That said, hand-raised roos can make perfect pets. I'll explain more below.

You may have gathered from the responses you've received thus far that attitudes towards chickens, roos in particular, can range from the "omg, I've found my soulmate" to "it's livestock." So what are you hoping for from your birds? Do you see them more as companion animals, or are they strictly an "asset" to be kept or eliminated based on circumstances? (And yes, I realize there are a range of in-between responses.) If you're new to keeping chickens, you may not even be sure yet; that's okay. You'll get advice that will want to push you in all sorts of directions, but ultimately you get to decide. (Yay!)

The first thing I'd like to point out is that roosters are as individual as any other animal we encounter (including people). One person's experience is just that, and there are a lot of variables that come into play, especially with backyard flocks. So I would take with a grain of a salt any advice that immediately declares your roo a problem.

The second thing is that growing roos (like growing children) change over time. In my experience, most roos will go through a "difficult" period that may range from mild to severe. (If you've raised a teenager, you know what I mean.) The behavior during that period is not indicative of how the roo (nor teens, thank gawd!) will ultimately turn out.

If your rooster's nipping bothers you, then you'll want to address it. Behavioral principles apply: reinforce good behavior; ignore bad behavior. (Punishment has been shown to be a lousy behavior shaper, and birds are especially sensitive to being ignored.) I have one roo who became a problem as he got older. (It used to be the case that he didn't like certain outfits, but now just about anything will set him off.) So when's he out, I carry a small broom. I don't hit him with it. I just place the broom between him and me if it looks like he's charging. So if he's being as ***, I can display the broom, but if he's being good, I can pick him up, carry him around, pet him, and give him kisses, etc.

I have another roo who will get impatient if I don't pick him up while he's out. In his case, I just endure the occasional nip or two. (He's over nine years old and a sweetie 99% of the time.)

As for the posts suggesting sexual stuff? Birds are pretty smart and can tell the difference between a human and a hen. That said, they can sometimes express excitement (the general kind) sexually. It's not a big deal and not an indicator of the decline of western civilization.

I hope some of this helps! (Obviously, I'm not in the "livestock" camp, but my sense is that you aren't either.) Enjoy your roo.

 

[Joellen71]

I bought him from a feed store when he was a couple of days old. I raised him with 2 others, and a couple of months later added a few more.

I see my chickens as pets that lay eggs. lol

lol your roo had a problem with certain fashions?

I don't really have a problem with his nipping...I'm just worried about where it might lead. the last roo was such a nightmare!

Thank you for your advice!

 

[enola]

I have a pink pair of crocs that are my barn shoes. One of my roosters insisted on flogging my shoes every time I entered the coop. I finally tied one of them to his leg and 'let it chase him" around the coop for a few minutes........ Now I can wear them with no problem.

 

[Joellen71]

I have a pink pair of crocs that are my barn shoes. One of my roosters insisted on flogging my shoes every time I entered the coop. I finally tied one of them to his leg and 'let it chase him" around the coop for a few minutes........ Now I can wear them with no problem.

funny!


the barred rock roo we had didn't respond well to discipline at all...someone told us to tie a balloon to his leg to keep him from attacking us...the results were hilarious...I felt sorry for him as he ran from it all around the yard...but he quickly got used to it and attacked us anyway

 

[lkyoder]

Oh yeah, the Fashion Police. One roo hated my fur-trimmed slippers. The one I'm talking about though started off hating any pants that were floppy, shin-length (eye-level for him), and dark colored. It was like waving a red cape at a bull! So I'd roll up the pants, and he'd be fine. Then it generalized to any dark shorts, and now he's just kind of a pill. But if I carry around the broom (and this is a short lobby-style broom with hardly any bristles left), he's good. You can almost see him sigh, "Dang. She's got the broom." Hahahahahaha. And the minute I pick him up, he's a sweetie. It's as though he doesn't know my legs are connected to *me*.

Anyway, in my experience, physical discipline just doesn't work with roos: they see it as a throw-down to fight. Deny them your attention though--that bums them out.

Leslie

 

[Joellen71]

the last roo really didn't care about us at all...he didn't want our attention....he only paid attention to us if he felt like attacking...I really think there might have been something wrong with him...he once crossed the yard in a slow sneaky way toward my daughter, who was standing on a bench. He sidled up to her, then suddenly jumped 3 feet in the air and scratched her legs up. Why? She was nowhere near him, and she was in no way threatening. It got to be that the only way to be safe was to pick up a rock and threaten him with it. He would back off then but he would wait until your back was turned, and sneak up on you.