Newbie needs help! My sweet little roo is going nuts!

[PSJ]

Yes, l will try treating him a little more like a rooster, but please take this into account. Never, under any circumstances, is Guy going to be sold or killed. I took this animal into my home, and I will do what needs to be done to help him. I adopted him from an animal shelter, and I am bound to him for life. Even if I wasn't, I would NEVER "serve him on friday night". He is a much loved pet, and killing him would be like killing my dog. I understand that many of us on BYC may have different methods when dealing with an aggressive rooster, but "disposing" of him is not an option.

I understand where you are coming from about not wanting to get rid of him. If that is the case, you HAVE to get him in line. It is your only choice. You aren't being mean. Your sweet little rooster is now a man so to speak. He doesn't want to be a "pet".. your hens, yes. Him, no. To him, he has one job, it is to BE A ROOSTER. You can still love him, but you cant love ON him. You have to show him that you are the boss. Whether or not you realize it, he is trying to show you that HE is the boss. Don't walk around him..make it so that he has to move for you. If he is in your path, walk into him. He will learn to move for you. Do not let him breed the hens when you are around. Once again, he is doing that to show you his dominance. HE IS NOT DOMINANT.. YOU ARE. Don't think of it as being mean. It isn't. You are saving his life, which is what you promised to do when you adopted him.

 

[Muffin14143]

Thank you, I will try this. Do you think I should give him a treat? In the past, I used to give him worms, which he in turn would distribute to his hens. He seemed really calm then.

 

[PSJ]

Thank you, I will try this. Do you think I should give him a treat? In the past, I used to give him worms, which he in turn would distribute to his hens. He seemed really calm then.

I give my rooster treats. He has NEVER even looked at me cross ways tho. I did have a mean rooster at one time tho.. I was working with him.. He was getting better. Something got him just to clarify about the treats... A few of my girls will eat out of my hand.. I do not however, feed my rooster out of my hand. I throw the treats out and he his welcome to get them, give them to the girls, whatever he likes. In my opinion, that is part of his job.. To take care of the girls. I don't treat him like a pet. I'm not ugly to him, but i don't baby him either. He knows who is boss. My other rooster, the mean one, I babied him. Raised him from a chick. He turned out to be MEAN! I honestly believe its because of the way I treated him. My current Roo, TJ, has never been babied and I've never had a single problem out of him

 

[gimmie birdies]

It could depend on the chick RIR are known to be mean. but I have not had any problem with my roos.

 

[Muffin14143]

Hm, I will try both methods and see how he does. Thanks for the input, I am really grateful for it.

 

[nok13]

with many animals, mostly males, 'cruel to be kind' is the key; not talking about abuse but about what WE as humans think of as cruel:: for instance, we over feed our dogs because WE are hungry and we forget that dogs are carnivores and their stomachs and intenstines are built differently when it comes to digestion and feeding habits (and pooing habits also);
we make everyhting level in stalls but for goats, level is bad; they like being able to move on all terrain, it provides interest, wears donw their hooves, and keeps all their muscles in condition.
many a monster (human beast or bird) has been created by loving on (great term , to the poster who said that, my english doesnt always work appropriately any more)...it rather then loving it (him/her)... being cruel astucally should be written as 'being firm and in charge'... animals live within their own rigid social dynamics which is why it never helps to give more attention to a subordinate , it just makes it all worse; it never helps to back away from a threatening animal (if the animal isnt reacting in fear, in which case , give it room to maneouver or get away), but be assertive, firm, decisive, and most of all, know what makes the animal, breed, variety,species =what makes it tick.

and some poeple just have it better then others. i worked with monekys. i hate monkeys. they hate me. my duaghter worked with monkeys. they loved her. she worked with big, dangerous types (baboons). i worked with a vet that couldnt deal with many of the nut case dogs, that i could. i just seem to htink like a dog.

horses and chickens and goats are also not a problem. but geese?~~~ not me. had a gander that hated me and i was afraid of him, with or without broom in hand. and yet there was some young kid that could go in to the pond area no problem (same size as me in height. its just about attitude.)...

and the rule of thumb with ANY animal is : never give food before it is earned either by a special trick, or proper behavior . even ignoring u is proper behavior, rather then bullying u.
i was hit by an irate baby elephant in thailand when i made th etourist mistake of feeding it sugar cane; sugar cane , to elephants , is like drugs for many poeple. so he gots some, but wanted more, he smacked me right hard on the arm. forutnately for me he was very young, and small, or he could ahve done me more damage. and in the end, the same elephant may be labelled 'man hater' and have to be relocated or euthenized for being violent around people.

 

[Muffin14143]

Yikes, so glad that elephant was just a baby! Yes, I know what you mean. What you saying is that a CAN reward him, but only after he is good, not just to baby him. I watched an episode of the dog whisperer last night, where he had to "be the boss" of an extremely aggressive dog. After he did that, the dog was perfectly fine and became a great pet. I need to stay in control and put Guy in his place. I guess I was finding it hard because he is so small and cute, and was so loving as a baby. I will work with him today. I won't let him mess with me.

 

[nok13]

all this about behavior reminds me of a time many many years ago when a child on the kibbutz went in to the cage of athe caracals (like a small lynx); they were bottle raised but still wild; he used to put his hair up in a ponytail and then curl the tail in a ball like a bun; one day, one of the caracals attacked him as he was bending down to change their water (they ate baby chicks for food, among other things), and the cat jumped on his back, scratching him terribbly. half the kibbutz of course all said that the cat should be moved/put down/we shouldnt go in with them anymore. but many of us thought and thought and then we realized: the cat had seen siggy's pony tail with some hairs bouncing up and down when he bent down, and the bun with hairs sticking out looks just like a small bird (bobwhite/grouse) and the cat just thought yum yum here's a nice prey to play with; and lept. only the 'prey' was attached to a human.

so someitmes u have to see things thru the animal's eyes/ears/instincts, not thru ours. imve been working with animals for 30+ years and still my foofoo the lhasa does not have all apropriate behaviors... only now can i shower him without him biting growling freaking out /// (we are doing behavior shaping for going quietly in to the shower, then standing while i wash him with the douche head (we have no bathtub) using tiny tiny pieces of goat cheese forhis reward of coming in to the shower etc.

the only thing i cant seem to really get him to change is him attacking tall caucasian males. working on that one also. but had he been a larger dog like a boxer or rottie, for sure he would have been uethenized or i would have been required to give him up. thankfully, he is a small dog with a small bite and basically normal when not in his own territory. just imagine if your rooster was the size of an ostrich (and any one working with ostriches knows how dangerous they can be when in mating season, and they are just a big cute bird with a kick that can kill.)

so good for you; make some changes, remember to be consisisten; remember not to let anyone who cannot handle him , near him or he will learn who he can or cannot mess with;

 

[Muffin14143]

Will do. He is such a handsome little fellow. I really hope I can work with him and eliminate this bad behavior.

 

[jdyson]

You can do it! I have complete faith in you. Tough love I call it. I have one thing in common with my roo and that is to take care of the girls. He sees me walking and he starts running to me, he jumps the fence every day to patrol the perimeter, then we go together to the fence gate. I don't hold him, he doesn't ask for it.