Normal Brahma Behavior...?

[WoofyGator]

Our Brahmas, that we ordered from Ideal Poultry, are going to be 1 year old this month. One of the main reasons we got Brahmas is because they're supposed to be so laid back and peaceful. We started with 6 3-day-old pullets and 3 cockerels. We re-homed one male almost as soon as we realized that we had so many...we had ordered 7 female chicks and 2 males, but one of the girls turned out to be a boy. So during the winter the two remaining boys started fighting. And I mean REALLY fighting...where both ended up torn and bloody and laying in corners panting if we didn't catch them and separate them soon enough. When we did separate them they would fight through the chain-link fence for hours, non-stop. Almost obsessively. "Dick" was obviously the alpha male, and "Red", who was much smaller, wanted to take over. So we re-homed Red as well. We assumed the problems would be over, and it was nice not to have all the fighting going on. However, the remaining male has taken a dislike to ME. He doesn't bother my "better half", but he flies into me, feet first, without provocation at least every other week. Today Woofy was on the deck holding the rooster, and as soon as I walked out the door this bird bristled all up like a dog raising it's hackles. I am offended.

This isn't the way we read Brahmas are supposed to act! Did we get bad information before we bought as to the temperament of these birds or did we just somehow get particularly blood-thirsty beasts? The only explanation we can come up with is that maybe it's because they were hatchery chicks rather than from a professional breeder. Any thoughts or ideas? Thanks in advance for any input...

 

[Mahonri]

If he attacks you, you should get another roo.

We had a brahma broody when I was a kid that hatched out 30 chicks! No kidding.. and she was the best momma.

I couldn't believe she could cover that many eggs but she did!

 

[WoofyGator]

That's another thing I liked about the Brahma's...that they would go broody. But that's also when we were still under the impression that Brahma roosters were generally so friendly and mild-mannered. In fact one of our girls just went through a phase for about 2 weeks when she was in the nesting box every day and back in 10 minutes after we evicted her from it. But if a rooster's bad attitude is something that can be passed down to his offspring, these are NOT critters that I want to have multiplying. What I'm wondering is, when these birds go to the Big Coop in the Sky someday, if buying Brahmas from a hatchery again is really a wise idea, even if we don't plan on showing them. I wonder if hatchery chicks are predisposed to straying from their breed's behavioral norm like puppy mill puppies aren't usually typical of their breed...

 

[Mahonri]

I would find a good breeder here on BYC, buy some hatching eggs and incubate them.

Seems I remember someone on here who was selling some Silver Laced Brahmas a while back....

 

[big medicine]

I would say you got your hands on some non typical Brahmas. Normally roosters raised together have these things worked out fairly early, operating under a sort of understanding of rank, still always looking for opportunity to improve their status. Some breeds are more game than others, and are much less tolerant of other males in their territory. In my experience, Brahmas are as laid back as any breed I have ever seen. I've got 9 adult males running loose in the yard together, with the girls, and the youngsters. When I put together my breeding pens, I often have more than one male in the breeding group without trouble. Now when they are in the breeding pens it is not uncommon for one of the males in one pen to talk a little smack to a male in the neighboring pen through the wire. Over the course of the breeding season these neighborly rivalries can get pretty intense, with the security of the wire between them keeing them from having to back up all their big talk. When I am done keeping eggs, everybody goes back into general population together. I keep an eye on them for the first half hour or so after turning them out, till the boys get it worked out again. They might square up and go at for a few minutes to re-establish position, then they fall into rank, and life is back to normal. I suspect their are not a lot of breeds you could get away with this.

There are way to many nice gentle Brahmas out there to put up with an aggressive one. Be it toward other roosters, or more importantly the people who feed him. I would get rid of him in a heartbeat. I think you will be quite pleased with some good, typical, Brahmas.

 

[Tim63]

I agree with everything Big M said. I find it especially unusual for brahma males that were raised together to be that aggrssive to one another. Get rid of him! Definatly not the norm for Brahmas.

 

[vetgirl00us]

Until you get rid of him, smack him a good one when he does it. When he learns he gets his A** kicked for doing that and that you are bigger and won't tolerate rude behavior, he will stop.

 

[Tim63]

That might take care of it on a temporary basis. I believe truculence is an inherited trait, I would want it removed from the gene pool. Big M can correct me if that is inaccurate.

 

[Montana-Hens]

Hind sight is 20/20, but think you should have kept Red and gotten rid of this boy. Sounds like you have a "bad seed"

If he is attacking you....call him dinner. Then look for someone who is trying to rehome a Brahma roo, or post it on Craig's list. You can pick and choose that way.

My experiences with Brahmas have made them my fav....good luck.

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

Quote:
I disagree. I went through this for 2 years with a Brahma named Diablo. Knocked him for a loop every time I went into the pen (sometimes 4x a day). He would get back up and come after me again each time. I hatched sons from him that never even considered hitting me.

As soon as those boys looked like boys, Diablo was dinner. Evil jerk...he tasted DARN good though!