New roo seems to have brought peace to my flock

[FunnyBunny89]

I just wanted to give a little update: Roger the roo is now finding food for his ladies, and trying to mate with them. Thankfully, he isn't causing them damage, and when some of them panic, he lets them go. He was going to bed early for a long time, but he now joins them for their nightly seed treats so they all go to bed together. As of yet, I have seen zero aggression from him of any kind! Fingers crossed it stays this way he growled at me once when I was in the coop while he was roosting, but I moved carefully and talked to him and he didn't do anything.
I don't plan on ever trying to hold him unless I have to. He seems to be fine with me walking up to him and around him, and I don't want him to feel like I'm invading his personal space.

I know a lot of people talk about holding their roos, but unless he shows signs of aggression, I just don't see a need to. Maybe I'm wrong? Idk. Time will tell.

Either way, my hens are so much more relaxed these days and some of them let me pet them now when before they would jump away, so it still has turned out to be a really good thing. Thanks everyone for the encouragement! I think someday, I'll be able to breed some really awesome chicks out of him.

 

[FunnyBunny89]

He needs to learn the first rule of hens: No matter how much you beg, bribe and plead with them, they won't lay an egg one minute before they're good and ready

We finally got our first egg a couple days ago! And in the nest he was constantly laying in too.

Also, thankfully no diseases spread with his introduction! We had a couple days of random sneezing from different chickens, but it's all done now and everyone is happy and healthy.

 

[Hungry Chicken]

Thanks for the update! Congrats on the eggs! Personally I don't think there's a need to hold roos, some chickens like hugs and others don't. It's so great he's not being aggressive!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

This is wonderful, thank you for sharing! I've heard it said that you don't need a rooster unless you plan to hatch eggs, but I've seen the difference a good rooster makes in my flock. The hens are calmer and happier with a rooster. They're a more cohesive group. They get along better and stay together better. I understand that in many cases it's just not an option; people are limited to a handful of hens. But here in a rural setting, wuth 10, 15, 20 hens - a rooster is a must. And a good one is worth his weight in platinum.

 

[FunnyBunny89]

This is wonderful, thank you for sharing! I've heard it said that you don't need a rooster unless you plan to hatch eggs, but I've seen the difference a good rooster makes in my flock. The hens are calmer and happier with a rooster. They're a more cohesive group. They get along better and stay together better. I understand that in many cases it's just not an option; people are limited to a handful of hens. But here in a rural setting, wuth 10, 15, 20 hens - a rooster is a must. And a good one is worth his weight in platinum.

Yes indeed!

 

[Chickie YumYum]

Thanks for the update! Congrats on the eggs! Personally I don't think there's a need to hold roos, some chickens like hugs and others don't. It's so great he's not being aggressive!

I just wanted to say I was blessed with a fantastic rooster also. He takes good care of my girls and he and I get along great. Had to pick home up the other night because he was up a tree, the hen had blocked him on a limb. So I had to try to pick him up, no problem. Held him like a football. He was fine as long as he could prop his feet in my hand. He was fine until l let him go into the coop.
Happy as a lark when I did so.
I love Roo and the ladies almost as much as my dog. I
I'm like you tho,I hope he never changes.

 

[Mrs. K]

How old are your kids? Because even though he is very nice, you need to be aware how he is acting around them. If he changes, and he might, might not, they tend to attack children first. So just be aware.

 

[FunnyBunny89]

I just wanted to say I was blessed with a fantastic rooster also. He takes good care of my girls and he and I get along great. Had to pick home up the other night because he was up a tree, the hen had blocked him on a limb. So I had to try to pick him up, no problem. Held him like a football. He was fine as long as he could prop his feet in my hand. He was fine until l let him go into the coop.
Happy as a lark when I did so.
I love Roo and the ladies almost as much as my dog. I
I'm like you tho,I hope he never changes.

That's great! I love to watch him find food for them. They just come running from everywhere so fast! Lol

How old are your kids? Because even though he is very nice, you need to be aware how he is acting around them. If he changes, and he might, might not, they tend to attack children first. So just be aware.

Yeah, they're young and as such, I have done a lot of reading on roo behavior. I am a very vigilant person around all animals, of all kinds. He has shown zero hint of aggression to me, my kids, my dogs, my mom, and the guy who house sits for us. I set a clear understanding with him so far, and I intend to keep it that way. If I had a roo that showed even a hint of aggression to my kids, he would be gone within a week.

 

[FunnyBunny89]

That's great! I love to watch him find food for them. They just come running from everywhere so fast! Lol

Yeah, they're young and as such, I have done a lot of reading on roo behavior. I am a very vigilant person around all animals, of all kinds. He has shown zero hint of aggression to me, my kids, my dogs, my mom, and the guy who house sits for us. I set a clear understanding with him so far, and I intend to keep it that way. If I had a roo that showed even a hint of aggression to my kids, he would be gone within a week.

I also watched youtube videos of real time interactions with roos to see what that behavior would look like.

 

[Mrs. K]

I have had good roosters with my grandchildren, they do exist, I just wanted to make sure that you were aware.