Little Rooster won't stop crowing if he can't see me.

[jessim]

I hatched four chicks from two different farms at the end of April. They were a week apart and my first hatched chicks acted like normal chicks and still do. The last two are both very attached to humans, to the point where they prefer to be out of the brooder and held, cuddled, napped with. I have younger kids so that's easily done and they get tons of attention, BUT...the roo of this pair is particularly fond of me. He has always just wanted to be able to visually see me and would "call out" for me as soon as he can't see me. He would chirp until he seemed to wear himself out. I have never had chicks who acted like this, and had them checked out to make sure they were ok. Physically they are perfectly fine. My problem is that now my chicks are beyond the age to be moved outside to the big coop, but my little roo has started crowing (that squeaky crowing that sounds like they are hitting puberty) and will now crow as loud as possible when I leave him. I have tried to take him outside to our smaller coop and sit with him. He's fine until I leave and then he runs around crowing like crazy to the point where I have to bring him back in. Even when he's out there with his sister. He's a silkie and I am completely willing to build him something inside to be near us so he's comfortable, but if I can get him to be ok with being outside with other chickens, I know that's healthier for him. Does anyone have any experience with something like this and "fixed" it, do they eventually grow out of it?...or am I just going to have a house rooster?

 

[NatJ]

I have tried to take him outside to our smaller coop and sit with him. He's fine until I leave and then he runs around crowing like crazy to the point where I have to bring him back in.

Why do you have to bring him back in?
What happens if you just leave him out?

When he is in the house, is he also noisy when you go out of sight? Is he different in the day vs. at night?

I've never heard of this before, and have no experience, so I'm not sure what to advise.

 

[Aapomp831]

Stop spoiling him and send him outside where he belongs.

 

[Grandmas Coop]

Why do you have to bring him back in?
What happens if you just leave him out?

When he is in the house, is he also noisy when you go out of sight? Is he different in the day vs. at night?

I've never heard of this before, and have no experience, so I'm not sure what to advise.

Ditto

 

[jessim]

Why do you have to bring him back in?
What happens if you just leave him out?

When he is in the house, is he also noisy when you go out of sight? Is he different in the day vs. at night?

I've never heard of this before, and have no experience, so I'm not sure what to advise.

I haven’t tried just leaving him out for too long. Because he will crow and just make all kinds of noises. We have neighbors who aren’t fans of his noises. Mainly because it’s not just one or two crows….he sounds like someone is trying to kill him between the crows. He runs around and kicks, flaps his wings. until he’s breathing pretty hard and panting almost. I haven’t tried leaving him beyond that because he just looks so stressed. He is also kind of noisy inside when he can’t see me. He starts crowing for me as soon as he hears my coffee maker in the morning, but he stops if I don’t come see him on about the tenth crow. He doesn’t crow at night inside , but he will still run laps and act like he’s mad when it’s time for bed and I leave. I have never experienced this. I have been raising chicks for about ten years. I’ve had friendly hens who like people but never a rooster and not to this extreme. I have searched and searched and haven’t found any advice regarding anything even comparable to what he does. I’m just hoping maybe he’ll grow out of it once he becomes more interested in my hens.

 

[NatJ]

Maybe you could put him in the coop, in the dark, so he wakes up there in the morning. You might need to wake up really early to monitor what he does, but try not to let him see you for a bit. He might look around, have some breakfast, and decide life isn't so bad. (You might be able to watch him through a window, or set up a camera to record what he does.)

Or, since noise is a concern, you might just have to keep him as a house rooster, or else rehome him. If you would have to rehome him anyway, it could be better to do it sooner rather than later. I am assuming you don't want to butcher him-- that is another way to "solve" many chicken problems, but I know it's not for everyone.

If you try making him a cage inside, I suggest making it big enough that he can have at least one other chicken for company. Then make a point of leaving the two of them in the cage with you OUT of the room. That way he can get used to one thing (you absent) while in the familar house, rather than two (you absent + outdoors.)

 

[Huntmaster]

I say 3 choices,1. Stop spoiling him and put him outside and see if he gets over it. 2. Rehome him and spare the neighbors. 3. Invite him to dinner.

 

[Coops Dad]

That little rooster has you completely trained. 100%.

 

[K0k0shka]

That sounds adorable, even if inconvenient! He'll probably grow out of it. With growing things, human or animal, it seems like everything is a phase - they change so much as they grow and develop - until they even out after passing puberty and settling into adulthood. Don't just dump him outside right away - he'll stress himself out and annoy the neighbors. Start weaning him gradually while still in the house. Leave the room for longer and longer stretches so he can practice getting over it. I imagine you've done this already - to go to the bathroom at least, or to leave the house for errands or anything (unless you haven't left the house since he hatched). Keep stretching the time you are away until he can survive a full day. Then start taking him outside. By then he should be better able to handle it. If he can't do a full day outside quite yet, do the gradual extinction method outside as well. Eventually, he'll get used to it. Chickens are very adaptable. You just need to be comfortable with letting him stress for a bit in order to get there. But he'll be fine. Good luck!

 

[FrappcinoObsession]

I say 3 choices,1. Stop spoiling him and put him outside and see if he gets over it. 2. Rehome him and spare the neighbors. 3. Invite him to dinner.

Why would you kill a chicken that’s attached to you to loves you it seems to wrong I had a bantam buff laced Japanese rooster do the same and he still is attached to till this day but he doesn’t make weird noises.