Is this a bad rooster sign?

[MarlynChavez]

Hello I recently got some baby. Chicks (4) four months ago and sadly 2 of them got devoured but the 2 survivors ended up being a hen and a rooster and the rooster is a mottled Houdan and the hen is a mottled Java. After a month or so I decided to get 2 more which 1 died because a cat devoured it and the survivor is a Plymouth barred rock and is 3 months old. And then once again I decided to get 4 more baby chicks since I didn’t want my Plymouth Rock to be lonley sadly 2 died because one a hawk ate it and the other one the neighbor had killed it for what reason? I don’t know but the survivors are a blue laced Wyandotte, and a white leghorn. That means I currently have 5 chickens. 1 rooster and 4 hens. There would be no problem if my hens were more matured but since Java hens don’t mature until they are 8-9 months old and barred rocks until they are 4-5 months old and the same being for my babies who are 2 months old, there is a problem. My rooster is crowing now and he has been for a around 2 weeks meaning he is ready to reproduce the problem is he doesn’t have anyone to reproduce with meaning he may ask or give signs to my hens but them not caring/wanting a rooster at the moment they pay no attention to him which causes him to be stressed out. Yesterday I was going to throw away trash and all of a sudden I see him following me from behind very stealthy so I look at him thinking oh he’s probably just lost from the others I turned around and then all of a sudden he runs to my feet and flaps his wings and pecks me and then quickly runs away. So I’m very confused on what to do because I can’t try to hit him but he’s behind me so I can’t see him and sadly this happened twice yesterday so if anyone can help me please help me I really love this rooster and I don’t wanna kill him I will leave it as a last resort. Again he is 4 months old so please help me. Thank you.

 

[SulkyBantam]

the neighbor had killed it for what reason? I don’t know

I'm so sorry, I hope you can protect them in future. That must have been really sad, I would kill my neighbour if they did that. Well, not really but you get what I mean anyway. my condolences.

About the roo, aggressive roos of mine usually fly and try to spur at me. Interesting behaviour. Is he good around the hens?

 

[aart]

Short answer, yes, it's a bad sign.
Even if males have females to mount, they can still be human aggressive.
I can't tell you how to behave around an aggressive male bird that you say you love.

 

[humblehillsfarm]

Yep. Bad sign. He was flogging you. My guess is, this likely isn't happening because he doesn't have mature females. I've had a rooster turn out aggressive and he has plenty of ladies, and their lack of saddle feathers prove he's giving plenty of "love". Some say they can grow out of this behavior, and other's say they don't grow out of it. Since my rooster is actually a cockerel, about nine months old, I can't tell you my own experience of him "growing out of it," except to say he hasn't grown out of it. In my opinion based on reading stories on BYC, behavior management has mixed success.

Here are you options: 1) Attempt behavioral management, 2) rehome him 3) do nothing 4) dispatch him.

I chose to do nothing except watch my back since I paid a ton of money for a fancy breed rooster for breeding. I at least want babies so I can choose a hopefully more tame roo from the bunch. I'll likely dispatch of him after getting babies.

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

I would prob give him a ''teenage hormones" pass, but if he does it routinely then he might find himself in the freezer.

 

[gimmie birdies]

I DON'T offer roosters my foot to attack, and if they get near me I pick them up and pack them around, then they avoid me or like to be picked up, I like the roosters that come up for loving.

 

[SulkyBantam]

Short answer, yes, it's a bad sign.
Even if males have females to mount, they can still be human aggressive.
I can't tell you how to behave around an aggressive male bird that you say you love.

If they say they love him, they love him.
I know how they feel, and hope that it is just hormones.

I DON'T offer roosters my foot to attack, and if they get near me I pick them up and pack them around, then they avoid me or like to be picked up, I like the roosters that come up for loving.

^^^ Good advice.

 

[RebeccaRN]

I had 2 roosters, 1 had to go for that very reason. The other is so good to my girls and doesn't bother me at all...however when my adult son goes out there, which is very seldom, the rooster does not like him and tries to flog him. Since he doesn't bother me and is good to the girls I tell my son to just watch his back lol or don't go out there.

 

[NatJ]

My rooster is crowing now and he has been for a around 2 weeks meaning he is ready to reproduce

Crowing does not indicate that a cockerel is ready to reproduce. I've seen plenty of them crow before 2 months old, but they are typically not ready to reproduce at that age!

Yours at 4 months old might be wanting to mate, but I would judge that by his other behaviors, not by the crowing.

As for his behavior toward you--yes, it's a problem, but I don't know what advice to give.

 

[Winter Creek Coop]

This is just what I would do, but Im a little crazy. I would simply teach him a lesson. This will be taboo to many, but when I have one show aggression I attack back so to speak. There is a pecking order and I stay on top. I don’t do anything to cause injury really. When they come at me I do my best to let them get close enough to grab. Once grabbed I roughly hold the rooster, shake him around some, and generally make him wish he hadnt shown aggression. Then I set him and go one like nothing ever happened. I treat him nice like the rest of the chickens. If he tries it again I do it one more time. It usually only takes once. You are the boss. He needs to remember that. I think chickens are smarter than we think and they can sort out “Oh crap that human is big and strong. I better take my fight elsewhere. Back when I had smaller kids they ended up in the pot way quicker. You may have heard the saying “Life is too short to smoke bad weed” or “drink bad wine”. Well life is too short for persistently aggressive roosters.