How to RAISE a good rooster.

[LikeTurkeys]

So I've seen a lot of threads where people are asking for help with already adult, aggressive roosters. I have an approximately 7 1/2 week cockerel, and I really want him to turn out well-behaved. So, rather than wait till he's aggressive, is there a way to keep him from being aggressive ever in the first place? Thanks.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I raise all my roosters with a hands off approach. They grow up wary of me and they keep their distance. When I approach they go the other way. A young rooster shouldn't be too forward or invade your personal space. I make sure as they mature they run from me. When they are mature, after 2 years, I don't care as much, and they usually become more friendly with age. After 2 years my roosters can do as they please. They remain respectful to me.

I raise multiple roosters a year. They are all different breeds. None are aggressive with me. So either my technique works 100% of the time, or it's me.

 

[BantyChooks]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/a-viewpoint-on-raising-cockerels.74690/
I wrote this up a while ago. I don't claim and never will to be an expert, but I figure sharing my experience might help some people.

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

I raise all my roosters with a hands off approach. They grow up weary of me and they keep their distance. When I approach they go the other way. A young rooster shouldn't be too forward or invade your personal space. I make sure as they mature they run from me. When they are mature, after 2 years, I don't care as much, and they usually become more friendly with age. After 2 years my roosters can do as they please. They remain respectful to me.

I raise multiple roosters a year. They are all different breeds. None are aggressive with me. So either my technique works 100% of the time, or it's me.

I totally agree with this statement. I keep usually between 3-6 roosters (depending on hens) and I do not mess with them at all. They run from me when I come out and the older ones just ignore me. If I need to capture one for medical treatment I wear long sleeves since they like to bite and pull when grabbed. Less interaction the better. If one does become aggressive I will cull him because I will not stand for it.

 

[Roo5]

There really isn’t no amount of time you can spend working with a rooster, or no method you can use to raise a rooster to be right, aggressiveness is within its genetics, being a good care taker of his girls comes with good genetics and lots of times older flock members help tasing younger roosters.There are many people who rehabilitate roosters,though.Raising over at least 12 males and only ever having one be aggressive, but being that I didn’t raise it,they all have been extremely friendly, and do their duties well.
But I also watch for the little things.I catch any and all behavior directed towards me whether it’s aggressive or not.If it is,I usually shew the rooster with my hands, or step through it moving it out my way, but this is when the bird is extremely young,2 to 3 months.

 

[hmarg06]

I raise all my roosters with a hands off approach. They grow up weary of me and they keep their distance. When I approach they go the other way. A young rooster shouldn't be too forward or invade your personal space. I make sure as they mature they run from me. When they are mature, after 2 years, I don't care as much, and they usually become more friendly with age. After 2 years my roosters can do as they please. They remain respectful to me.

I raise multiple roosters a year. They are all different breeds. None are aggressive with me. So either my technique works 100% of the time, or it's me.

This is exactly what I do, I basically ignore them I guess. I don't hold any of my chickens as chicks really and I'm tripping over them daily when I go to feed them. They get as friendly as I care for them to be without anything extra. I have 5 roosters and they all just move out of my way and go about their business, and I go about mine.

This isn't to say that historically in my life I've never had a mean rooster, but there haven't been many.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I totally agree with this statement. I keep usually between 3-6 roosters (depending on hens) and I do not mess with them at all. They run from me when I come out and the older ones just ignore me. If I need to capture one for medical treatment I wear long sleeves since they like to bite and pull when grabbed. Less interaction the better. If one does become aggressive I will cull him because I will not stand for it.

I use a fishing net to catch birds. All my roosters know what that net means. Someone is getting rounded up. They all cackle in unison when they see it. It's kinda funny, but I don't mess around. I'm vaguely disabled, so the net gives me power.

Boys either behave or they are butchered. I give all my roosters a good long time to mature before any decisions are made. I like roosters so it's important to me they turn out right.

I'm not abusive, just assertive and decisive. No birds are kicked or hit. Just scooped up and penned as necessary. It works for me. The catching and penning teaches them to avoid me. I decided long ago I wasn't gonna be terrorized by roosters, and I would not put up with them harassing other birds.

Many of my younger roosters spend time in a pen as they get through their first adult spring. There's one penned currently because he's being too rough on the hens. I will release him here and there to see if he's calmed down or not.

I haven't had a single human aggressive rooster since I've raised them this way. I did when I used to handle and carry them around. Not all but enough that I needed to find a different way. Now I'm free to judge roosters on other behaviors.

 

[A_Fowl_Guy]

I use a fishing net to catch birds. All my roosters know what that net means. Someone is getting rounded up. They all cackle in unison when they see it. It's kinda funny, but I don't mess around. I'm vaguely disabled, so the net gives me power.

Boys either behave or they are butchered. I give all my roosters a good long time to mature before any decisions are made. I like roosters so it's important to me they turn out right.

I'm not abusive, just assertive and decisive. No birds are kicked or hit. Just scooped up and penned as necessary. It works for me. The catching and penning teaches them to avoid me. I decided long ago I wasn't gonna be terrorized by roosters, and I would not put up with them harassing other birds.

Many of my younger roosters spend time in a pen as they get through their first adult spring. There's one penned currently because he's being too rough on the hens. I will release him here and there to see if he's calmed down or not.

I haven't had a single human aggressive rooster since I've raised them this way. I did when I used to handle and carry them around. Not all but enough that I needed to find a different way. Now I'm free to judge roosters on other behaviors.

Exactly. When my chickens see my crook come out, they know someone is about to be caught. My hens run up to me so they are very easy. The roosters run in terror haha.

 

[Ms Clucky]

I have four roosters right now. Each one of them have different personalities. Red, which I raised in the house, is very sweet, comes to me like a little puppy and snuggles. Not a very good watch chicken for hawks. Pepper, which had a mother hen raise him in the coop, he is sweet don't come to me but isn't mean. Not nice to Red and gets beat up by Rusty. Prefers the white hens, but will take any. Not a very good watch chicken, but better then Red. Now Rusty, got raised by a mother hen in the coop, but I brought him in everyday and played with him. He don't like the other roosters but he will tolerate them if he cannot see them. Very sweet to me, comes to me but don't let me pick him up. Very good watch chicken and gathers the hens when it's time for bed. Took is my little man. He wasn't wanted as a little one. The hen that hatched him pecked his little head and I brought him in at an hour old. He really don't know much chicken things. He calls the hens but runs when they come up to him. Follows me around mostly. What I am saying is that it depends on if you baby them and what kind of personality they have. Also the breed, I think. That's just my experience though.

 

[roosterhavoc]

None of that is raising a friendly rooster. That’s raising a rooster you never touch and when you do it’s with a net.