My roo jumped on my 2yo Son Today

[PineLaneFarms]

thanks everyone i just dont want anyone to think i would choose a chicken over my son. im just new to raising them and wanted a second opinion and see others experiences

 

[speckledhen]

I keep saying this because I keep seeing the same situation coming up over and over lately: Toddlers do not belong around any rooster because of the way young kids move. They make sudden and jerky movements and make roosters nervous. Think of them as a stallion or bull in a smaller package. I wouldn't even allow my very docile, calm, non-human-aggressive roosters around small children because it only takes one time for a child to lose his eyesight from a rooster attack, just once.

It doesn't matter if you raise a rooster from a chick. Some are just going to be human aggressive--it's an inherited trait and will pass down from sire to progeny if you keep breeding a human aggressive rooster. Sometimes, the friendliest cockerels as youngsters turn out to be the most aggressive--they see you as someone they are on even par with and they will take you on if you have babied them up till their hormones begin to rage, if it's in their nature already to be that way. BUT, even a non human aggressive rooster will not react the same around a loud, overactive toddler that he will around an adult most of the time.


I saw it this weekend with my own very sweet rooster, Isaac, in my avatar. He adores me. I can get up in his face, mess with his wattles and comb, scratch his chest, call him and he comes running, but the neighbor's grandkids were screaming and making all sorts of noise about 300 ft away through the trees and he was extremely nervous at all their kid noise.

 

[PineLaneFarms]

thanks speckledhen you seem the most familar with my situation what would you do if this happend i have no problem at all with getting rid of him i just wanted another opinion like ive said before.

 

[speckledhen]

You're welcome. If you keep a barrier between your rooster and your small child until the child is older, as long as the rooster isn't aggressive toward adults, then maybe later on, things can work out. Of course, your child always comes first.

 

[sourland]

The flip side to that is why keep a human aggressive rooster and allow his genes to be carried on when there are plenty of non human aggressive roosters who "do what they are supposed to do?" We are talking about the potential for serious damage to a child. Human aggressive roosters produce human aggressive sons. Non human aggressiveness in chickens is a trait that can be bred for. Game fowl are among the least human aggressive roosters because this trait has been stringently weeded out of the breeding program.

 

[littlestars17]

My son is the same age(18 months) and our cochin roo wouldnt dream of even crowing wioth him nearby(so far, knock on wood) same for my silkie roos- If they did they would ahev to leave...I can only keep roos who are good around my children...cause my children are Always around

 

[PineLaneFarms]

yea hes gone back to my grandfathers farm where we got him from.

 

[bburn]

Quote:
No one thinks that. Everyone is just trying to warn you! Read on here about roosters. They are not sweet. They have a job. Their job is to breed and protect their hens. Think about how scared they are of new situations. That too is their nature.

We have all gone through this in one way or the other. My sweetest chicken ever.....a Barred Cochin Rooster!!! That was sweet and non agressive until I gave him five hens that were for him and then it started!! Never turn your back on one. I carry a piece of tin into the run. It is as simple as putting something between myself and him....plus I think I look really big to him with that piece of tin. But last year I stopped letting my grandgirls go into the coops and they are 9 and 10 and good size girls.

My DH is outside right now starting my THIRD coop and run. This one will have all hens. If I want fertile eggs I will put a rooster in with them for a few weeks. But I want the girls to be able to go in and feed, water and gather eggs. That will be the one run they can go into. I also plan to take the roosters out of the other two runs for two weeks every once in a while and give the girls a break. Feathers are getting kinda thin.

BUT.....in defense of a good roo. I have a Buff Orpington over one flock that I just added my first hatch too after a racoon attack where they were. It had to be done and they are only a little over two months old. My DH did it and I worried but we gave them lots of places to hide and run under and it has gone quite well.....thanks to the rooster. He put himself between the hens and the new ones. When we threw treats he would do the same thing and call the little ones over to eat. He has kept the peace and kept the hens from picking on the new ones. Not that there are not efforts on the hens part to show who is boss.....but the rooster sets them down! They have a job and will do it if we will let them!

 

[PineLaneFarms]

thanks bburn thats the way i felt about it although i was very upset about my son getting hurt i knew that the rooster was resorting to primal insticts anyway the roos gone now

 

[MobyQuail]

my friend has a 3 year old daughter at the farm. She only comes out to the chicken yard when multiple eyes are on her.

we had a beautiful black araucana roo for about a month, he went after her, I hackey-sacked him and he was off to grandmas's house to fatten up, lucky for him, grandma's neighbor liked him and saved him, this is after we saved him, I swear he was half cat and had 4.5 lives. he is prolly attacking something now.

now, we have a Splash Ameraucana Roo that leads the Blue flock and we have an Easter Egger Roo that leads the Mongrel horde, they are still young but show very little aggression so far, Splash is more standoffish and always has an "outta here-option" for he and the girls, Matty the EE Roo would rather hang with the ladies and let Splash do any real dirty work- Splash seems the one that Alarms the most, Matty seems to like to hear himself crow...

I know you care about your kid first and just want to do right thing for Mr. Rooski.

Good advice to keep kids eyeballs away from sharp objects with bad intentions...

listen to experience, before you experience- something my grandpa woulda hinted at...