How do you get a good rooster????

[kurby22]

They both came from a hatchery. One was an Easter egger, a little brute. But the other one, who was left, is an Ameraucana. He was always so good to his pullets but we can't let him go after our kids. Perhaps hatchery cockerels run a higher risk of human aggression? Or maybe I should just wait on trying my hand at a rooster until my kids are older.

I haven’t had a ton of experience but I do think that you can increase your odds at a nice rooster if you a) choose breeds known for being good boys and b) get from a breeder who looks at temperament more than colors and SOP. I got 4 chicks and 3 were boys…all three were wonderful boys that were very good with my kids. I also spend about an hour a day sitting outside with them and handling them, and have since they were a few days old. Mine were lavender Orpingtons and Blue Laced Red Wyandottes. The Orps are amazing and I highly recommend them if you can find a good local breeder. I think Hatchery Orps are a bit more hit or miss but probably still pretty great. You can see both of my boys are well loved by my kids haha. We had to rehome the one Lavender and one of the BLRW boys since we don’t have a ton of space for good ratios, and it was very hard for us because they were such good chickens. I hope you are able to try again and have good luck! They are so fun when they’re good boys.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

It's luck of the draw, but aggressive males will not make sweet sons

 

[BigBlueHen53]

What has worked best for me so far is to let an adult rooster and a flock of mature hens raise a cockerel. There is nobody, IME, better qualified to teach a young whippersnapper good manners than a well-established flock. And don't send your children out to do chicken chores; do them yourself. If a cockerel intimidates a child and the child backs down or runs away, the cockerel will certainly become human aggressive. Once he learns that he can intimidate little humans, then he will attempt to intimidate big humans, and I can tell you from personal experience that a rooster can hurt you. But they do make good soup.

 

[Isadora]

Is it possible that roosters raised by a mother hen versus chicks bought from a hatchery will turn out boys with better manners? I had a cockerel turned into dinner because he started acting aggressive, and he was a hatchery chick we got early this year. We also have a cockerel given to us by a friend that they hatched using a broody, and he is a perfect boy (so far). Nice to his ladies, wary of us and looks to get out of the way. It makes logical sense, as far as growing up with chickens who are already adults would help teach them manners. I wonder how much of a difference it makes.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Another piece of advice I will share is to start young. My last batch of chicks from a hatchery included a BJG* cockerel. Starting at about a week and a half old, when I would clean their brooder, while the other chicks would huddle far away from me, he would run up and chest-bump my hand. About the third day he did this, I bumped him back, not hard. He ran at my hand and did it again, harder. I thumped him again. I didn't want to hurt him. This time he stepped back and charged at me, hard! Feeling I needed to nip this in the bud, and the sooner the better, I reluctantly thumped him back, convincingly. I didn't want this to continue. This time, he backed up and looked at my hand thoughtfully for a minute, and then walked away. The next day he charged me again, and I thumped him, hard. He backed off. The third day he ran toward me, and I thought we were going to have another repeat, but he stopped himself and just looked at my hand, then walked away. He is over a year old now and has never shown another sign of aggression.

*Black Jersey Giant. The rooster that hurt me was a barnyard mix of primarily EE extraction. I knew George would be much bigger when grown, and I certainly didn't want any aggression issues with him once he reached full size.

 

[JustBabyMargo]

Is it possible that roosters raised by a mother hen versus chicks bought from a hatchery will turn out boys with better manners? I had a cockerel turned into dinner because he started acting aggressive, and he was a hatchery chick we got early this year. We also have a cockerel given to us by a friend that they hatched using a broody, and he is a perfect boy (so far). Nice to his ladies, wary of us and looks to get out of the way. It makes logical sense, as far as growing up with chickens who are already adults would help teach them manners. I wonder how much of a difference it makes.

I find that helps! But we’ll see how mine acts once he gets to that bad age. So far he’s been the nicest rooster I’ve had! He’s kind of scared of people and gets disciplined by the older girls so he’s been good so far. Blue the (almost) 5 month old cockerel (see below). He came as an egg from our neighbor. He is a mix between either a barred rock (dad) x a blue maran (mom) or a blue maran (dad) x a cuckoo maran (mom)! All I know is he came in a maran egg so... He is very trusting of people and doesn’t believe to be the protector because he is not more dominant than my australorp old ladies!

 

[JustBabyMargo]

My boys from Alchemist Farms are pretty sweet too (so far). But one is just a hen with big wattles and a comb! Just the biggest baby and acts like a total girl! They are a breeder hatchery that breeds based on temperament as well as pattern! And I have been so pleased with all those chicks that came to me! I would totally recommend finding a good breeder like them!

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

I have had and do own a lot of Roosters.
I've noticed some breeds have nicer/ well mannered roosters. I love all the chicks the same. I don't have time to cuddle chickens so they are treated nicely but with more independence.
I have roosters that just are aggressive from the get go, especially if his hens like me more than him. I grab them, hang them upside down and they get a couple slaps to the head and I drop them. It works for a while. If they attack any kids or I get tired of it I cull them.
My Aggressive Roosters have been: Buff Orpingtons, Black Copper Marans, Ayam Cemani, Pita Pintas, Leghorns, Cream Crested Legbar.
My Best Non-Aggressive Roosters: Bielefelder, Blue Marans, Phoenix, Barnevelder, Large Cochins.
Ones that learned their lesson: Bantam Cochins.

 

[OzarkChooks]

What has worked best for me so far is to let an adult rooster and a flock of mature hens raise a cockerel. There is nobody, IME, better qualified to teach a young whippersnapper good manners than a well-established flock. And don't send your children out to do chicken chores; do them yourself. If a cockerel intimidates a child and the child backs down or runs away, the cockerel will certainly become human aggressive. Once he learns that he can intimidate little humans, then he will attempt to intimidate big humans, and I can tell you from personal experience that a rooster can hurt you. But they do make good soup.

Hmm perhaps you are right. I had a baby about 3 months ago and my oldest son has been taking care of all the animal chores for me. This has been extremely helpful to me....but he is the one who keeps getting attacked. So I will take over the chores again. Luckily the cockerel doesn't have spurs yet so he hasn't been able to successfully injure anyone.

 

[OzarkChooks]

My boys from Alchemist Farms are pretty sweet too (so far). But one is just a hen with big wattles and a comb! Just the biggest baby and acts like a total girl! They are a breeder hatchery that breeds based on temperament as well as pattern! And I have been so pleased with all those chicks that came to me! I would totally recommend finding a good breeder like them!

That sounds wonderful. I might wait until my pullets are mature and then try to find a good breeder for a rooster.