Hens killed the rooster??? Need answers.

[silkiechicken]

I agree with the breaking his own neck. Hen crazed boys are prone to just not paying attention and it would not be out of the ordinary for him to run into a wall or even have a heart attack. If it was the hens, there would be picking wounds or some indication of a fight. Sounds like the poor guy did himself in on accident or had an aneurysm on his own.

 

[Mahonri]

I once watched a big black star hen beat the baloney out of a China Game roo. I couldn't believe it!... it was when he was introduced to the flock, she was the head hen and just tore into him... he was bleeding and bloody before she was through with him. If she could have killed him, I think she would have.

 

[Akane]

Generally if all the chickens run very quickly the same direction something spooked them. I would bet more on something actually went after your chickens and broke the roos neck or in his panic he did something dumb rather than the hens doing anything. Especially while free ranging and especially with no injuries. If someone gets too rough while loose in a big area the other can usually get away. If the other doesn't try to get away.. well... go look up some pics of rooster fights on here. Chicken fights don't result in just broken necks with no beak or claw marks. I've seen more blood from chickens that fought than bodies I've found left behind by dogs and other predators. I had around a dozen chickens killed by a dog and at least 5 had no marks. Small dog and big chickens so all it did was break necks or in the case of 3 of them stress them to death. Feathers hide small teeth doing a grab and shake quite well and would probably require plucking to find the injuries. I also had 2 bantams killed by a cat and it took much inspecting very close up with an eye for detail to see the tiny pin pricks of blood on their heads. If my chickens all scatter or I see a group of them go running behind the building I make sure to get out there. Every time I ignore it I find dead chickens later. Today I looked out to see why the smaller dog was whining and saw 2 chickens run as fast as they could across the yard to the barn and then my 3 bantams took off the other way behind the garage to the grapevines. I opened the door and yelled to have my dog appear and come running back to the house. Apparently she opened the basement door (she can open any door in the house and turn most bolt locks) and jumped the 6' fence so she could go have a run in the field. Luckily she doesn't purposely try to harm chickens but occasionally can't resist scaring them.

 

[Buffamania]

It's too late for my poor RIR roo... or else I would have posted this in emergencies. Now I just need some answers. I think my 5 hens broke the neck of my rooster. Here's what happened:

The flock is all 5 months old and in the past several weeks the rooster has been getting increasingly frisky with the hens- grabbing them on the back of the neck, chasing them, etc. I chalked it up to him wanting the mate with them and decided this was normal and they would all work things out and finally let him do what he wanted to do. Whenever this happened the hens always let out a squeal.

This morning I let them out of the coop to free-range since we'll be home. I heard a noise and saw the rooster chasing one hen who ran to the back of the house with the rest of the hens in pursuit (looking back, this was unusual- usually is the roo want after one of them the rest didn't care and if the hen ran away he didn't put much effort into chasing them). I heard more squealing from the back of the house, but ignored it. I continued to go walk the dog and when I got back 3-5 minutes later there were 2 hens in front of the house. I went around back to see where the rest of them were and that is when I saw the Roo (we called him Lil' Jerry) lying on the ground, not breathing.

I frantically roused my husband, who inspected Lil' Jerry and found no wounds. We can only guess that the hens broke his neck.

Has anyone ever heard of this happening? Was the rooster's behavior normal or was he being too aggressive? Should I be concerned about the hens turning on each other at some point?

Thanks everyone and RIP Lil' Jerry.

My rooster suddenly fell to the ground, flaying around. He was rough on the hens and although not completely sure believe one of the hens attacked him. Broken neck! I am sad for him and for the girls. I guess this happens when the roo is too aggressive and rough. Thanks for your story.

 

[SamLockwood]

It's too late for my poor RIR roo... or else I would have posted this in emergencies. Now I just need some answers. I think my 5 hens broke the neck of my rooster. Here's what happened:

The flock is all 5 months old and in the past several weeks the rooster has been getting increasingly frisky with the hens- grabbing them on the back of the neck, chasing them, etc. I chalked it up to him wanting the mate with them and decided this was normal and they would all work things out and finally let him do what he wanted to do. Whenever this happened the hens always let out a squeal.

This morning I let them out of the coop to free-range since we'll be home. I heard a noise and saw the rooster chasing one hen who ran to the back of the house with the rest of the hens in pursuit (looking back, this was unusual- usually is the roo want after one of them the rest didn't care and if the hen ran away he didn't put much effort into chasing them). I heard more squealing from the back of the house, but ignored it. I continued to go walk the dog and when I got back 3-5 minutes later there were 2 hens in front of the house. I went around back to see where the rest of them were and that is when I saw the Roo (we called him Lil' Jerry) lying on the ground, not breathing.

I frantically roused my husband, who inspected Lil' Jerry and found no wounds. We can only guess that the hens broke his neck.

Has anyone ever heard of this happening? Was the rooster's behavior normal or was he being too aggressive? Should I be concerned about the hens turning on each other at some point?

Thanks everyone and RIP Lil' Jerry.

It's rare but I've seen hens gang up and kill.a rooster if they don't like him.