My rooster has bitten me!

[Folly's place]

I'm with Mrs. K! Mary

 

[evitachu]

So I have a rooster too. He was injured severely by the hens pecking on him mercilessly, so I separated him. He has been separated for 2 weeks in a big dog cage.
But when i get up in the morning, i guess his food is gone and he is hungry, he pecked me on the hand as i brought the food down. Not hard, my skin didn't even peel or scratched, but he went bananas over the food. Is this a sign of agressive behavior? After his stomach is full, he is back to being a darling!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Some rooster aggression starts with pecking during feeding and quickly escalates to attacks, I always get worried when I hear a rooster is sweet, that means he's being handled and petted which in my opinion is the main reason roosters become aggressive. A rooster should have a slight fear of humans, not from any abuse, but from not becoming too familiar. Only time will tell if your rooster is just hungry or if he's pecking you to make you give him his food.

 

[donrae]

So I have a rooster too. He was injured severely by the hens pecking on him mercilessly, so I separated him. He has been separated for 2 weeks in a big dog cage.
But when i get up in the morning, i guess his food is gone and he is hungry, he pecked me on the hand as i brought the food down. Not hard, my skin didn't even peel or scratched, but he went bananas over the food. Is this a sign of agressive behavior? After his stomach is full, he is back to being a darling!

Yes, it is. Animals are well able to tell what they're putting in their mouth. If my dog bit me while I was feeding it, it would be a sign of aggression. Same with any other animal. Aggression at feeding time is not tolerated here one bit. One of my animals are horses and since they heavily outweigh me, I've got to insist on manners from the start or I'll get seriously hurt. Everyone knows to wait patiently for the feed to be dispensed, then they can approach and eat.

 

[Folly's place]

I agree with the above, and also wonder why he's out of food. How about a bigger dish? He shouldn't bite you , though. Mary

 

[evitachu]

I have the normal upside down feeder I bought online. But Sunday we go to church, family time etc, and by the time we get home, everything is upside down and spilled, only water stood still. I guess he was just hungry and went bananas when he saw food. I tried a few more times on regular feeding, even tried to pinch his beak, he did nothing. He may peck me by mistake or just was going greedy when he saw food. All good!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

... After his stomach is full, he is back to being a darling!

When the crop is empty, they feel hunger. When it's full, they don't. The stomach (proventriculus) gets a steady stream of food from the crop. It gets digestive fluids added there and then the food goes to the gizzard or mechanical stomach where it is ground.

I have the normal upside down feeder I bought online. But Sunday we go to church, family time etc, and by the time we get home, everything is upside down and spilled, only water stood still. I guess he was just hungry and went bananas when he saw food. I tried a few more times on regular feeding, even tried to pinch his beak, he did nothing. He may peck me by mistake or just was going greedy when he saw food. All good!

This is a great type of hanging feeder that can't be dumped over if you hang it and the fins in the trough prevent billing out of feed.
http://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/harris-farms-hanging-feeder-10-lb-capacity
They come in a 7 lb. capacity size if you are only feeding one bird.

Chickens are ravenous eaters and should have access to feed during all daylight hours. If not, they'll eat bedding, feces or whatever is available.

 

[feather13]

I'm with Mrs. K, too. We've only had two roosters. Neither was aggressive. One was a silkie and didn't mind being held (although as he got older, I wouldn't let anyone hold him for fear he'd do something aggressive). The other was a large light brahma. He was always skittish, so I never tried to pet him and tried not to pet or bother "his" hens so I wouldn't trigger his protective instincts. Even when I caught him to give him away (we can't have roosters), he didn't fight me or try to bite. I would immediately put down any bird that was aggressive to people. Same with a dog.