Indoor Chicken

Hey there ladychicken&Ducklover, I actually have a suggestion that might work well for you.  Like you, I had a rooster who I hand raised who did not get the idea  that I was boss for very long even when I caught him and tried to communicate my dominance. Like you I did not raise my birds for meat so culling was not considered. He was in a large aviary with the swans so fortunately he could not follow me around the whole property kicking my butt.  At first when this started happening, I made a point of wearing rubber boots and jeans when taking care of the birds.  I also carried the feed bucket strategically to block kicks.  But finally we devised a net to put over him that I kept near the door.  We zip tied avian netting to a little hula hoop, and I would pick it up when I entered.  Then when he came at me, I would place the net over him and go about my work.  Of course he was miffed, but it did not hurt him, and I just picked the net off him when I was done.  The attempted ambushes became less frequent, but I kept the net around.  The handsome rooster was killed by a hawk who found a whole in the aviary top netting.  

If I recall correctly from a thread you posted, was it your rooster (or cockerel at that time) Phil who alerted your son after you collapsed?  That was one of the most amazing chicken stories ever, and I came across it largely by chance more than a month after you had posted.  I'm glad the story had a happy ending.

By the way Margalo, just to reassure you some, I do have hand raised roosters who have NEVER been aggressive toward a human.  My 3 year old Rascal rooster will pick fights with the hens' rooster  across the wire of their run when he is free ranging, but he is a sweet rooster who will likes to be picked up.  However, it is true that a rooster's temperament is not fully developed until after he reaches sexual maturity around a year old.

I also want to add, don't wear red around your rooster - it can rile him up.


I forgot to mention that YES, I am the one who collapsed while in the run from n Anaphalaxis ( Sp)? Attack that left me unconscious with a rapidly closing throat.

It indeed was Phil that alerted my son that something was wrong with me..

I make sure I dont wear red out to him, and Its always been either just myself or my son alone in the run, never the 2 of us at the same time.

I bring treats to them because his girls are ALWAYS wanting their mealies or scraps.

It almost seems like Phil NEVER thinks his girls get enough to eat..lol..
 
Styling gel for Polish Roosters? It wouldn't hurt to try. I have read about trimming their feathers, too. But I am not sure why he would consider your legs to be killer, and your son's or husband's legs to be non threatening.

He certainly is a persistent rooster. My rooster who I put in the time out net, loved to sneak up on me when i was bending over - uncool.
 
Styling gel for Polish Roosters?  It wouldn't hurt to try.  I have read about trimming their feathers, too.  But I am not sure why he would consider your legs to be killer, and your son's or husband's legs to be non threatening.  

He certainly is a persistent rooster.  My rooster who I put in the time out net, loved to sneak up on me when i was bending over - uncool.


I am looking forward to trying the " time out net ", tomorrow for morning kisses of everyone

Oh yea, Phil is definitely a sneak up artist. He circles me while I am walking and gets in a kick or 2 when my guard is down.

Trimming his feathers sounds a little better than the rooster gel , but how would I clip them without hurting him accidentally?
 
Well I don't have experience with this considering that I don't have a Polish chicken, but it would of course require some one to hold Phil and another to trim. If the person holding the rooster can put a hand over Phil's face and kind of raise the feathers off the face at the same time while keeping him still, then the eyes would be protected. I don't know if you would need to cut the feathers off at the base or not to get them out of his eyes. If you have blunt tip scissors that would be great, but blunt tip scissors may only be sharp enough to cut construction paper. I wonder if putting a little tape over the tips of the scissors and trying to cut with the base of the scissors would help prevent any jabs.

I suppose blunting Phil's spurs, like others have said, would be a good idea, too. I really should do that with my 3 year old Ruby Roo who is in my avatar. He doesn't kick often, but he sometimes gets riled up when he sees me carrying the red based waterer or feeder. I could use a dremmel (sp?) but I think I might try using the Pedi Paw thing. Just clipping off the tip with a pruner might be faster though.

Anyhow, I'm curious how the time out net will work. I hope he doesn't struggle too much and get tangled.
 
Just a question...do you feed the roo after he acts like this? If you are feeding Phil after he acts like this, he might have it in his head that this is how he gets treats. If your husband and son do not feed him treats or anything like it, it may be that Phil feels that you, as the treat giver, will only give out treats when he acts like that. Just a thought, I could be wrong.
 

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