I hit my rooster in the head what do I do

[boyswillbeboys]

When you put your hand down to their head level, they are more likely to take that as a challenge. If you watch two cocks face off you will know what I mean. Stay above them. Children can be spastic if you don't tell them to calm down and respect the flock. I walk through the yard and coops regularly and have a particularly protective and territorial California Gray rooster. He follows me close, but generally doesn't spur me. If he does I laugh at him since I wear boots and jeans. His spurs are rounded so he can't prick me. Sometimes I tell him he's being stupid, and when he flies at me, I catch him, and pick him up, supporting his body. I may carry him around doing other one-handed chores, and eventually put him down. In that case I won the role of dominance. I notice that he keeps his distance after I set him back on the ground. I will offer him hand treats to show I am the hand that feeds. Usually, if you walk calmly, carry yourself with authority as if you don't mind what the rooster is doing, he will not hassle you too much. Following closely is not worthy of being caught. He's just establishing his domain. If he attacks, reach out and pick him up. You would appreciate this type of rooster if a predator was in pursuit of his hens. Roosters are supposed to be tough. We have to allow it and be in control also in the yard, when it comes to our interaction with the flock. The rooster is boss of the flock.

I had a rooster that went after a bobcat. Luckily I was there, and the rooster survived. I loved that rooster and he had my respect.

yeah, I'm good with his behaviour to me, and if he's not on edge, the kids can go in, ignore him and collect the eggs, but if the dog is outside the run, he gets on edge, and sees the kids as a threat, because the dog showed up with them, he knows I am in charge of the dog, the kids not so much, working on that too. Also as I usually go in with the kids, I either stop him from jumping on them, or knock him back after, which is what i figure a dominant roo would do if a fight was getting out of hand. I mostly treat him with indifference, and the occasional stare down, when he's feeling jumpy. I've caught him twice, in the coop, when I needed to medicate him, as soon as he knew he was caught he submitted to me, I handle and check the girls over regularly, but decided catching him was a lot of stress on both of us, and the girls, so I leave him be, and he leaves me for the most part.

 

[Sonya9]

I have yet to see one of my dominant roos carrying any of the other roos around to teach them a lesson. I guess maybe I need to pay more attention. Whoda thunk it! LOL

Uhhh...I am pretty sure roosters KNOW we are not another rooster, we may be a challenge or a threat, but they can obviously see we are NOT a rooster!

Then again a lot of folks actually believe that their own dogs see them as the "alpha dog" and that dogs can't tell the difference between humans and canines. LOL.

 

[birdman02891]

Well this rooster just bit a huge chunk out of my sisters leg yesterday so I didn't want the same thing to happen to me

 

[birdman02891]

Its time to put him pot before he gets to the kids

 

[casportpony]

Quote: Mine know I'm not a dog, horse, rooster, whatever, but they do know that I am the alpha, that is a fact.

-Kathy

 

[centrarchid]

My birds do not appear to consider me a higher ranking member of the flock. They also do not cause the troubles many of you relate with respect to your birds.

 

[Triple Willow]

Uhhh...I am pretty sure roosters KNOW we are not another rooster, we may be a challenge or a threat, but they can obviously see we are NOT a rooster!

Then again a lot of folks actually believe that their own dogs see them as the "alpha dog" and that dogs can't tell the difference between humans and canines. LOL.

True ha! The whole making animals equal with people movement is VERY disturbing to me. It gets worse all the time. A whole lot of people care more about dogs and cats than they do kids and the elderly -probably their own! You don't see "rescue kids" rescued from an orphanage or "rescue elderly folks" rescued from a nursing home. Nobody seems to give them much thought at all but let's "save all the dogs and cats" and start a "rooster rescue" for every village. Ohhh me...huge eye roll.

 

[LoneStarHen]

I had a group of New Hampshire Red roosters that I received from a hatchery one year. They were the meanest darn roosters that I have ever owned. They would be looking for you when you walked out the door. They were young and didn't have nice spurs on them, but they would bite and scratch like crazy. It hurt, and they left injuries on you when they came after you. If they'd had spurs then they would have been really dangerous. I read about "how to rehabilitate mean roosters' everywhere that I could. I tried several techniques. Nothing. Then one day they attacked my kid. That was it. No more. I culled every single one of those roosters and started over. It was at that point I decided that I would not tolerate this kind of behavior in my flock. Super aggressive roosters are culled and cooked. Mean rooster pot pie is a specialty at our house.

I've been pretty harsh about culling roosters for their behavior problems. I've kept roosters who had the traits I want. They protect their girls without being overly aggressive. I've even got several game roosters in my flock. I've had roosters that I've lost because they were standing up to a dog to protect their ladies, but they would follow my family around at our feet with no problems. It took me about four years of this culling process to really see how well it was affecting my flock. Right now I've got about 8 roosters who are all very well behaved. They free range together, they have their set pecking order, and I have had no problems with any of them being aggressive.

I think with careful selection, you can have roosters with the behavior traits that you want. I know that there are some people out there who have a hard time culling birds. But this has worked very well for me. For the time you put into trying to change a rooster's behavior, the process is unpredictable and the success rate is variable. Breeding good behavior traits seems to have much more of a success rate for me.

 

[Triple Willow]

@LoneStarHen... Very wise. I've got eight roosters right now and none of them have ever been a problem at all except one (Australorp). I could not break that sucker from attacking. I finally put him in the roo pen and he soon decided that fighting wasn't really all that much fun. Now he doesn't give me any problem. I don't know what he would do taken out of the roo pen. All but a couple are destined for a Mason jar anyhow. I need to get that job done.

 

[Sonya9]

True ha! The whole making animals equal with people movement is VERY disturbing to me. It gets worse all the time. A whole lot of people care more about dogs and cats than they do kids and the elderly -probably their own! You don't see "rescue kids" rescued from an orphanage or "rescue elderly folks" rescued from a nursing home. Nobody seems to give them much thought at all but let's "save all the dogs and cats" and start a "rooster rescue" for every village. Ohhh me...huge eye roll.

Uhhh...we don't have government run "euthanasia facilities" that kill millions of unwanted kids or elderly people each year because they are homeless, yet that happens to animals which is WHY there are so many private animal rescues. The TAXPAYER covers the cost of supporting orphaned children, and even covers pregnant women as they carry babies they can't afford to feed.

I don't have a choice regarding where MY tax dollars go but I do have a choice when it comes to donating to charities and I only donate to animal related charities.

And yes. I definitely consider MY DOGS to be a higher priority than other people's children.