Is my rooster going to mellow out?

[juniperz]

I saw a recent thread about someone’s young rooster who was getting beat up by the hens. I have the opposite problem! He is a 6 month old Black Australorp, twice the size my any of my hens. He was raised with a batch of broiler chicks and I needed a new rooster so I kept him and integrated him into my layer flock at 10-11 weeks old. Lately I have seen him aggressively chasing the girls down, especially my Black Australorp hen. He pulled some feathers off the side of her head in the process of catching her and holding her down to mate. Should I give him more time to mature and settle down, or should I go ahead and cull him and try out another roo?

Other details:
There are 10 hens. They have a large enclosed pen but lately I have been letting them into my big garden area to disturb the growing weeds.
There is also a 10 month old Blue Cochin rooster in the flock. He is slower in his movements and I have not seen him being as aggressive when mating, though he has pounced on some girls without warning. When he does grab a hen and she squawks, the BA roo will run over and peck at him to stop. He also doesn’t alert the girls to food or predators like the BA does. I was keeping him around just to be pretty but could cull him if needed.

 

[sylviethecochin]

If I said Cochin boy sounds absolutely worthless, would you be upset? I like my roosters to be the mediators and watchdogs; he sounds like a freeloader. No wing-dance? No calling for treats? No alarms? What a jerk.

Your BA is being a cockerel. They do that, especially if they grow up in a flock without any boss hens or roosters who will show them how to behave. It sounds like he has good instincts--but also far too much testosterone. That should settle as he ages, but do you want to deal with the behaviour in the meantime? I wouldn't.

If you want to keep him, maybe a see-but-don't-touch cage/side-pen. That way, he's not too lonely, but he's not beating up your poor girls. They don't deserve that, and by the morality of numbers, one unhappy cockerel is better than ten unhappy hens. When he matures a bit, let him back in with them.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Many roosters go through a teenage phase that first year or two where they are hormonal and just acting on those urges. I personally will pen them separately through their first adult season if they are acting that way. Most will grow out of it and mellow out by age 2.

I personally prefer to let them mature and see how they do. Removing them also keeps them from developing bad behaviors and habits.

I pen mine where they can interact through a fence with hens so they can learn better manners. Generally I keep mine penned for a few months, and release towards fall to see how they are doing.

 

[juniperz]

If I said Cochin boy sounds absolutely worthless, would you be upset?

Haha, no, maybe I should get rid of him! He is quite the freeloader at the moment.

I'm going to take your advice and pen the BA roo in a smaller enclosure within the run to see if he matures out of it. Thanks for your advice!

 

[Mosey2003]

Cockerels generally suck. I'd pen both him and the Cochin separately until 18 months, or until you decide you don't want the Cochin.

 

[juniperz]

Until 18 months! That's longer than I'm willing to house them without any benefit. If they don't shape up by late summer or fall, I'll dispatch them. Maybe I'd have more success with finding an adult rooster someone is looking to rehome, or raising a chick within the laying flock rather than separately with broilers.

 

[Mosey2003]

Until 18 months! That's longer than I'm willing to house them without any benefit. If they don't shape up by late summer or fall, I'll dispatch them. Maybe I'd have more success with finding an adult rooster someone is looking to rehome, or raising a chick within the laying flock rather than separately with broilers.

I always recommend getting one elsewhere that's at least a year old, if not 18 months, if possible. That first season's hormone rush can be really crappy. By all means, give him however much time you're comfortable with, I have no problem butchering roosters or others doing so. And he might calm down before then, but I usually go by around 18 months. A second year rooster is often a completely different beast from a first year cockerel.

 

[Mosey2003]

Of course, on the flip side, I'm basically being forced to use a cockerel myself right now and I gotta say, I'm impressed with him. It's nice to see his temperament as a young male with the hens, and I couldn't ask for better if I tried; he has just enough spunk to beat them back when they tried to bully him and is getting them bred, but it doesn't seem like he's overdoing it either. Really glad that he seems to be worth the money I spent on him. Now if his chicks are good too, I'll really count my blessings.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I'm having a similar problem with my cockerel. He's been pretty good up until the last month. I purchased a "bachelor pad" for him which arrived today. However I can't put it together until the ice melts enough to place it next to the main coop. I think a time out will help until his hormones level off. Time will tell.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Currently under increasing daylight hormones are surging in birds. It may be temporary for many. Generally when it starts to warm up in your area and birds have to deal with the heat most settle down. After June daylight begins to decrease and hormones start to wane. Usually by the following spring roosters are seasoned enough to not get so crazy from the hormones.