My hen was attacking my new rooster

[chickenphile]

Is this normal? He is in a isolation pen since I just got him. One of my hens went up to him and challenged him. She fluffed up and started pecking him. He defended himself and pecked her and made her bleed. The hens are free ranging and none of the other ladies paid him any notice. He is a Silkie mix I think and I don't know his age. I just adopted him from someone who did not want him.

She started it and was very aggressive. I don't think she is the queen of the roost either. I got him to breed with the older hens of her pen but am concerned now.

thanks
Chris

 

[Chirpy]

Yes, I went through the exact same thing when I brought home Silkie roo. Several of my girls viciously attacked him. My boy only half heartedly fought back and ended up at the bottom of the pecking order very quickly. I had to house him in a separate area at night as the girls literally picked out feathers and drew blood on him his first night in the coop.

After a couple of weeks of him sneaking around the sides of the run so they wouldn't attack him I had to take him back to his previous home. Thankfully she was willing and able to take him back.

I hope yours can defend himself and set himself up as 'top dog' (or Roo as the case is) and take charge of your flock.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Hens almost always attack my younger cockerals when I introduce them to the
flock. It settle down in a week.

The hen is giving him some abuse for all the abuse he is gonna give her later on.

 

[fivebigreds]

They want to make sure that he is man enough to sire their babys. If he can't whip a hen what good would he be against a preditor.

 

[chickenphile]

Oh I have no doubt he could take her on. He drew first blood thru his isolation pen's chicken wire. She is the only one that seems to care about him so far. If you call puffing herself out and pecking him. Is it because he is different with the hair doo and such? I plan on keeping him separate for awhile and then slowly introducing him if my neighbors don't complain about the crowing first. He has such a strange crow. Kinda of like tarzan.

Chris

 

[greenapple]

guess I don't have to start a new thread. I was going to ask about my young roo. He has been kept in a smaller pen, and does his call and the wing drop when the free range girls come by. I wanted to let him go, or at least stay in the big tractor with the EE girls, but I was concerned about him. We keep him in a doggie playpen during the day, I opened the playpen and he took two steps out, paced about four steps along the side, and went back in the playpen. Instead of putting him in his dog crate for the night, I was going to have him stay in the big tractor, but he seemed scared of the girls. He is a big "man" as long as there is a fence between him and them, but he is a scaredy-roo when he is forced out in the yard with the girls. Guess I just need to sit outside and watch my chickens all day

, like I really need a reason to do that

, and make sure they don't hurt him too bad.

 

[fivebigreds]

They will work it out among themselves.

 

[greenapple]

How long will it take for my scaredy-roo to quit running for cover when he sees the girls? He loves being out, and the girls listen when he gives a warning call, but they still pick on him and he runs away. Thinking of giving him the nickname of Sir Robin of Monty Python

I want my girls to sit on fertile eggs, but my little foo foo man won't stand up to them

Just incase you are not familiar with the Sir Robin reference follow the link below

edited to fix llink