More Aggressive Roo

[ChickenIsRwar]

So I got a pretty Cochin Too and he has been pretty tame. However we noticed this week that he is starting to get aggressive. He pecked at my shoe but clawed and pecked my 3 year old. Nothing went through the clothing but this his behavior is evolving.

Anyway to get him to calm down?

~Chicken

 

[azygous]

How old is this rooster? Or is it a cockerel?

Has he been doing a little dance as he approaches you?

When he clawed and pecked your child, did he fly at the child with his claws out? Or was the action more like a cat pawing at a leg and an inquisitive peck? These actions have much different meanings.

With any rooster that shows any aggression at all, a small child absolutely needs to be kept safely away from him or risk some very serious injury to the child.

Knowing the age of this rooster or cockerel will determine my advice.

 

[sourland]

Kids should come first. Either relocate the rooster or keep him separated from the child. If he is a cockerel, he may settle down as he matures. If mature, his behavior may very well escalate.

 

[Folly's place]

I agree with what's already been said here. Your child's safety in the most important thing.
If you are hand feeding, stop, and have your three year old on the other side of the fence, at least. Children need to learn how to behave out there; no hand feeding or running around, or yelling. If the bird really went after your child, that's bad!
Mary

 

[ChickenIsRwar]

He is almost 5 months. Already started crowing a good bit for the past month. I was told that Cochins develop slower and wouldn't crow until 9-12 months.

He has been doing a side stepping jig towards me for the past month and slowly been getting closer. This morning was the first time he actually touch my leg and then he just pecked my shoe.

As for the child incident, we were walking towards the coop with him behind us, she was quite and walking normal and he did like a drop kicking motion twice on her and pecked her leg once. The peck pas similar to the one I received this morning.

Hopefully I got everything.

~Chicken

 

[chickenlittle21]

He is almost 5 months. Already started crowing a good bit for the past month. I was told that Cochins develop slower and wouldn't crow until 9-12 months.

He has been doing a side stepping jig towards me for the past month and slowly been getting closer. This morning was the first time he actually touch my leg and then he just pecked my shoe.

As for the child incident, we were walking towards the coop with him behind us, she was quite and walking normal and he did like a drop kicking motion twice on her and pecked her leg once. The peck pas similar to the one I received this morning.

Hopefully I got everything.

~Chicken

He may be starting to mate. Do you have any hens or is it just him? He should calm down depending once he is about a year or less (maybe 8 months old)

 

[Folly's place]

He's growing up, and that action towards your child sounds bad to me, if I understand what you mean by the 'drop kick' behavior.
He can easily reach her face!!!
Mary
To add to this; she was being polite, and he wasn't.

 

[ChickenIsRwar]

I have 4 hens with him. But they haven't started producing eggs yet.

The drop kick didn't have force in it and my girl is pretty tall for her age. She said she wasn't hurt, but we shall take precautions.

 

[azygous]

Cochins are a pretty mild breed, but you shouldn't assume this individual cockerel will grow up polite without any training and discipline. He's already demonstrated a lack of natural respect for both you and your child so this is a red warning flag, and you should take the warning seriously.

I had a male friend that ended up in the ER getting 30 stitches on his leg from being spurred by his roo. Imagine if your child was spurred in the face, which is a real danger being close to the ground and half the size of an adult. Do not take the chance this won't happen.

A cockerel that has natural respect for humans will voluntarily remove himself from your vicinity, never approaching with a dance, never pecking you, always moving away from you and never toward you. Think of a magnet approaching a magnet with opposite magnetic poles, they actually move away from each other, never toward.

You need to examine your motives for keeping him. Is it important enough to you that you will commit yourself and your time to discipline and training over the next six months in order to have a rooster you won't need to worry about? If not, it would be best to just rehome or sell him now.

 

[ChickenIsRwar]

And how would one retrain him?