Merle the Rooster Suddenly HATES me!

[donrae]

I know you're not going to want to hear this, but I think you need to get rid of the rooster. Neither of you seems comfortable asserting your dominance over him and at this point I'm pretty sure he thinks he's the boss of you. It's not going to get better, chickens spend much of their time defending their spot in the social order and he's not just going to decide to be nice to you because he grows up. He doesn't understand being nice to him or bringing him treats. As you stated, he's not a dog and does not think like one. He's intact male livestock and needs to be treated with respect and also needs to understand he's not dominant to you. From what you've said, I'm not sure you're going to be able to assert your dominance and he's going to hurt one of you.

Until you decide to get rid of him, please keep any small children away from him. You can make informed consent to possibly get hurt, a child can't and a rooster can do severe damage to a child.

 

[phalenbeck]

I have put my recent Roo in Jail a few times, but he seems to not want to stop being a jerk. He was a good boy for a long time, but crossed over to mean to me and the hens. Tomorrow he is becoming soup. I tried and he failed. I have used my isolation pen successfully seveal times, but not this guy, so he is gone. There will me a new Roo or 5 in my new batch. No reason to put up with a mean Roo.

 

[Reurra]

I know you're not going to want to hear this, but I think you need to get rid of the rooster. Neither of you seems comfortable asserting your dominance over him and at this point I'm pretty sure he thinks he's the boss of you. It's not going to get better, chickens spend much of their time defending their spot in the social order and he's not just going to decide to be nice to you because he grows up. He doesn't understand being nice to him or bringing him treats. As you stated, he's not a dog and does not think like one. He's intact male livestock and needs to be treated with respect and also needs to understand he's not dominant to you. From what you've said, I'm not sure you're going to be able to assert your dominance and he's going to hurt one of you.

Until you decide to get rid of him, please keep any small children away from him. You can make informed consent to possibly get hurt, a child can't and a rooster can do severe damage to a child.

I have put my recent Roo in Jail a few times, but he seems to not want to stop being a jerk. He was a good boy for a long time, but crossed over to mean to me and the hens. Tomorrow he is becoming soup. I tried and he failed. I have used my isolation pen successfully seveal times, but not this guy, so he is gone. There will me a new Roo or 5 in my new batch. No reason to put up with a mean Roo.

This is very good advice. Sometimes, we just cant fix a broken bird. You definitely dont want those genes passed on to your young birds either. If all else fails and he wont tame down for you, I suggest making a decision for his future.

Remember, he is not a pet, he is an "intact male livestock" Which means you have to separate your mind from "pet owner" to "Care manager of an animate object" basically, detach and sever all emotional ties with the animal. Care for its needs, but never think of it again as something you would be affectionate toward. Its just a bird. I know it sounds harsh, but roosters can be very dangerous. People who handle bulls, stallions, rams and even tom turkeys will tell you, they are driven by hormones, not logic. Sadly, this makes them unable to be reasoned with. As such, these animals need to be given a hard stance. Thats why farmers use cattle prods.

You will have to decide in the end, firm up and take no crap, or remove him from the equation. If you choose to give him away, please make sure you let the new owner know he has a bad temperment. Otherwise, you could be in for some trouble later down the line legally. If you choose to cull him, but cant do it yourself, perhaps someone on here that is near by can do the deed for you. I have had to put down many birds since I first started chickens last year and its never easy, but Ive learned to detach my emotions. Some of those birds were ones I hand raised, others were given to me. So I know how hard it is to make the decision.

 

[JRsMom]

I have a blue orpington rooster that has become very aggressive also. I was going to cull him on Weds. but we had a dog attack that day. The dog was chasing my favorite hen, Daisy, and that rooster went all Rambo on the dog. Saved her life, and his also. He has a reprieve for now, but if I can't get him to change his behavior, he's going to have to go.

 

[humphrey farms]

My rooster "Paul" does this dance as I walk to my coop ect about a foot from my legs. I know its a dominance dance but I totally ignore him and say" Come any closer and you are lunch!" The other day he was ****** because I overslept and they werent released to free range until 7:45am instead of the usual 5am..well he came right at me!! I stood my ground and said not a word. He challenged me by blocking my steps. We must of stood like that facing each other with just inches between him and my bare legs when "Paul" finally submitted to my authority and headed back to the hens. WHEW!!!

 

[sunnyvista50]

Hmmmm! Such great feedback. I sure appreciate it! I was late feeding my little brood this morning and Merle went for me after a few days reprieve. We used to have a free range flock a few years ago and the rooster never charged us. We all kept a respectful distance and enjoyed eachother. Maybe his being penned up tho its quite roomy makes a difference. He's a good protector - even too good! I would almost give him away but I have a horror of him ending up in a cockfighting ring. It's not all that uncommon here in Florida. He needs free range space that we just can't give him here.

 

[harleyflames]

I don't think he hates you he just wants u to conform and fall in line..

 

[SillyCityGirl]

This thread is really hitting a note with me. Yesterday morning my three year old marans roo officially lost his brain and bloodied and bruised my legs. He tried it again last night and I started my attack and was joined by my head gander. If he doesn't adjust his attitude right quick I will be having him for dinner. I have never dispatched a chicken before but I have never had a 12+ lb rooster try to sink his spurs into me either. This is the first time I have ever had one of my hand raised babies turn on me like this. Now I know the warning signs and I should have kicked his tail feathers off a few weeks ago when he started dancing and fluffing up at me instead of turning to him and asking him what he was thinking. Not letting the fact that he has been sweet for the last couple of years let me think that he wouldn't do what he did to me.

Remember, he is not a pet, he is an "intact male livestock" Which means you have to separate your mind from "pet owner" to "Care manager of an animate object" basically, detach and sever all emotional ties with the animal. Care for its needs, but never think of it again as something you would be affectionate toward. Its just a bird. I know it sounds harsh, but roosters can be very dangerous. People who handle bulls, stallions, rams and even tom turkeys will tell you, they are driven by hormones, not logic. Sadly, this makes them unable to be reasoned with. As such, these animals need to be given a hard stance. Thats why farmers use cattle prods.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This is something that I will definitely be keeping in mind. Especially over the next few days when I will find out if he will accept my position as being dominant and that he can be third in command. I have no problem exerting my alpha position with a rooster, or any other animal for that matter. [/FONT]