Ohhhhh...Good Roo...Uhhhhh....Be a Good Roo......

[noodleroo]

Just when you think you know 'em.....

Each night that I sit outside with my backyard chickens, 4 BO pullets and 1 SLW roo, there is a definate routine: The pullets sit and snuggle on me in perfect pecking order and the roo ends up on the bar on the top of the chair I sit in. He grooms my hair and makes little whistling noises in my ear but I don't touch him when he does this.

I never intended to keep a roo, but he's really pretty and I like hearing him and I think he does look out for the girls so I'm keeping him. Point is, I never tamed him. He isn't wild or anything, I just don't pet him or carry him around like the girls.

So tonight, same as always until................ he decides that he wants to cuddle under my chin like Lily does! He literally pushes Ruby, the alpha hen, out of the way and shoves Lily backwards into my lap. And there he was - a not tame 15 wk old roo - snuggled under my chin with his neck kind of wrapped around my neck....uhhh...right by my face! I wasn't sure what to do so I started petting him like I do the pullets and he apparently liked it. I guess he'd been watching me pet the girls for so long, he decided to get in on the action. I had to stand up with him and carry him to the coop at dark! Oh goodness, what have I done....

 

[Sandy16]

I love it!!!! That's an awesome story!

 

[gritsar]

Honestly, it sounds sweet but I wouldn't allow it. Soon he'll be thinking you are one of his hens. When you don't behave the way he thinks a hen should, he'll get more and more dominant/aggressive. Best to love on your hens and shoo the rooster away.
Just MHO.

 

[noodleroo]

Quote:
This is what I'm thinking too. It was just such surprising behavior, I wasn't sure what to do at the time. Next time, if he does it again, I'll be prepared and move him down, gently of course...

 

[bragabit]

How do you get your chickens to come up on your lap??? I give my lady hens treats all day long. I sit and watch them and talk to them. They never come sit on my lap

 

[raro]

I pick up mine and hold them on my lap so that they get used to it. They're getting used to the feeling of being held.
I don't have a roo so I don't know about the behavior, but I think it's so cute the way he acted!

 

[speckledhen]

My crippled rooster Zane is very affectionate. He likes to put his face next to mine and loves his earlobes stroked. He holds really still and closes his eyes. I'm amazed at how much I love my roosters. Isaac and Suede trust me completely, too, though they don't show the obvious affection that Zane does (he's almost 3 and has been crippled since 6 months old).

 

[noodleroo]

Quote:
I started taming from day one. You can look at my BYC page for what I do. The bottom line is that they want to be on my lap because they like the way it feels when I pet them. I didn't feed them from my hands when they were little so that they would know that "hands are for loving". Some people may not want them this tame; if I sit down in the back yard, I'm going to have at least one chicken on my lap. In the late evening, say 30 minutes before they go in for the night, I have all of them on my for cuddling and snuggling.

It was such a surprise to have my roo push his way in there, his beak less than 2 inches from my face and laying on my juggler vein! I did notice how soft his feathers were, however since I never touch him; different from the BOs' feathers. I guess you learn something new every day with chickens!

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

I have some snuggly roos. One is a RIR bantam, and he will run across the yard to sit and sleep on my lap or leg. He loves his wattles to be rubbed and like to be petted like a cat or dog. He is a year and a half old.

My other is Marilyn - my EE roo. Mar-Mar was a single chick for 4 weeks so spent alot of time with me, even when his friends moved in with him, he continued to be a people bird.

 

[Yazzo]

HAHA Oh, that's classic!

The hens may follow the roosters around, but the roosters learn alot from the hens....second best way to tame your rooster: just have tame hens!

Oh, and feel free to allow it: if you want a nice, tame rooster, you don't have to keep him at a distance, just so he respects you and knows you're the lead rooster. It'll actually help if you pet him just as much as your hens....trust me, I've done it more times than I can count!

I wrote a whole long thread about 'rooster behavior' (how to deal with an aggressive rooster), if you would like you learn more about it....just sayin.