Quote:
Oi vey, if I had met you about a year ago I would have ageed with you in every way. We would have had very much to talk about.
I have had a number of roosters in the past few years that I have tried to work with, so, so very hard. I cannot put it into words. Let me try to list the ways...
1.) Hold down said roo until he submits
2.) Grab by the tail/body/etc as he goes to attack
3.) Fight back with feet, hacky-sac style
4.) Chase down until he flees
5.) Grab rooster firmly and walk around with him until he calms down
6.) Running away (not one of my most glorious hours...)
7.) 'Mating with hens' (Having them squat for me, obviously)
8.) Kicking roosters off hens when they go to mate
9.) Water guns
10.) Threaten with 'the stick'
You might find flaws or things I have missed, but I can say with much confidence and experience that none of them would have made any difference for these particular roosters. I owned one that was so bad, he attacked my young brother. There was no hope for him, and trust me, I loved him very much. Raised him from chickhood. The others were lucky. They were given to a good friend who free-ranged them for life. I had inflicted very much on these roosters, so much, that they withstood it all only to leave me with but one option: to part with them forever. It did break my heart, though some of the methods I had met them with sound cruel (and they were) but I tried to 'reason' with them, so they could continue leading a nice life. I am not proud of being physical with an animal; and to this day I tell anyone who would listen that being aggressive will usually not work, and will, most likely, make the issue worse. Sometimes I think I did the most damage by showing them they had the right to fight back. Other times I think that they wouldn't have stopped. I did not kill these roosters, but someone else may have. And I accept that. Think of it as giving up if you must, but I think of it as trying my vey best to cope with the roosters, only to have been met, long after I gave them up, with a small bantam rooster with no owner. I took this rooster in, and now I have a proper roo, one who has never dared to threaten me or my hens. And for that, he is deserving of my home and my respect. I hope he stays with me for a long time.
Oi vey, if I had met you about a year ago I would have ageed with you in every way. We would have had very much to talk about.
1.) Hold down said roo until he submits
2.) Grab by the tail/body/etc as he goes to attack
3.) Fight back with feet, hacky-sac style
4.) Chase down until he flees
5.) Grab rooster firmly and walk around with him until he calms down
6.) Running away (not one of my most glorious hours...)
7.) 'Mating with hens' (Having them squat for me, obviously)
8.) Kicking roosters off hens when they go to mate
9.) Water guns
10.) Threaten with 'the stick'
You might find flaws or things I have missed, but I can say with much confidence and experience that none of them would have made any difference for these particular roosters. I owned one that was so bad, he attacked my young brother. There was no hope for him, and trust me, I loved him very much. Raised him from chickhood. The others were lucky. They were given to a good friend who free-ranged them for life. I had inflicted very much on these roosters, so much, that they withstood it all only to leave me with but one option: to part with them forever. It did break my heart, though some of the methods I had met them with sound cruel (and they were) but I tried to 'reason' with them, so they could continue leading a nice life. I am not proud of being physical with an animal; and to this day I tell anyone who would listen that being aggressive will usually not work, and will, most likely, make the issue worse. Sometimes I think I did the most damage by showing them they had the right to fight back. Other times I think that they wouldn't have stopped. I did not kill these roosters, but someone else may have. And I accept that. Think of it as giving up if you must, but I think of it as trying my vey best to cope with the roosters, only to have been met, long after I gave them up, with a small bantam rooster with no owner. I took this rooster in, and now I have a proper roo, one who has never dared to threaten me or my hens. And for that, he is deserving of my home and my respect. I hope he stays with me for a long time.
