Hi, Just joined so that I can ask some advice about my cockerel. I 'inherited' some Gold Crested Wyndottes, a few years ago. One of my neighbours used to breed them and when he died, his widow gave them all away as she was going to live with her daughter. I have kept ex-battery hens before, so I thought it would be fine, and it has been until I got Alan. I love the girls, very easy going, only three out of the four lay, but that is more than enough eggs for me. Then last June, I decided that I would like to get a cockerel, as my girls free range and I live surrounded by woodland and have foxes breeding not too far away. So I looked around and found two advertised by the same lady and went to see them. This beautiful looking Partridge Bantum was strutting his stuff around the garden and I decided that he would be ideal, I was told he was around 18 months old. It was only as I was about to leave with Alan in his crate, when the lady of the house let slip that he was fine with everyone else in the house, husband and kids, but he attacked her, she felt he didn't like women. To be honest, I didn't take much notice, I have been around livestock a lot in my life and have been bitten by dogs whilst working in kennels and kicked by a cow whilst milking, so I wasn't overly worried about Alan as I am normally confident around animals. To start with, Alan was fine, he settled in well with the girls and all seemed to be well. Then one day as I was rushing to go to work, and just climbing into my car, he tried to flog me. It caught me unawares and I had my hands full of bags and coat etc. What concerned me was that I had bare legs and certainly didn't want to have claw and spur rakes all over, I flapped my coat at him and he stopped. It seemed to have been a one off for a while and then he started again and hasn't stopped. If I turn my back on him, or am walking swiftly away from him, he will attack. I must admit that I have become very wary of him and always have one eye on him at all times and never turn my back, even when cleaning the pen out. What is strange is that he doesn't always attack, I sometimes catch him giving me a 'look' where he seems to be calculating his chances, but he doesn't go for it and he never attacks the dogs, who wander around him with impunity. I have grand kids and I am concerned that the girls might run over to see the chickens and run back again, turning their backs on him and he takes that as an opportunity. He also chases my car down the drive and yes, it is funny to watch him in the mirrors hustling after the car. Also when I stop to open or close the gate, I have seen him attack the car tyres. Friends have advised me to 'retire' him and part of me does want to, as I would take any dog of mine to the Vet if it bit me or any family member in the vicious, unprovoked way that he attacks me. But part of me accepts that he is doing exactly what I got him for, to protect his girls. However, I found a grey squirrel trapped in the pen the other morning, I have no idea how it got in, but Alan was terrified of it, ditto the pigeons and pheasants that come into the pen and steal the corn and other treats I put out. He has never attacked the male pheasants that come into the garden trying their chances with the girls! So it appears that the only living thing that Alan attacks is me. Honestly, I don't know what to do. I carry a walking stick when I walk the dogs as I have arthritis and new knees, so don't want to run the risk of slipping and falling/twisting, and I do wave my stick at him warning him off if he starts, but he can dodge quite well and until the other week, I never caught him with it. When I did accidentally catch him, I caught him on the back of the head with an audible crack and he went down on one knee, staggered a bit and then ran under a tree. I thought that after I had walked the dogs I would come back to a dead cockerel, as it was a heck of a crack, but no, he was up and about crowing his head off. Part of me felt guilty, but the other part thought that he might now afford me a bit of respect, sadly not true.
In a nutshell, Alan attacks me and my car and nothing else; he knows I feed them and gives them treats, and I have clouted him one but this makes no difference to his behaviour towards me. Therefore my question is, do I try the cuddling, (which I honestly don't feel inclined to do); do I hope he will grow out of it or do I 'retire' him next time my son visits, as he will have to do the killing as he is far more proficient at it than I am.
Many thanks in advance .