On the subject of behavior; what's the friendliest breed of rooster?

[sherriesmith84]

My friend has a small flock of 4 which used to be 6. 2 of her girls were killed by either a fox or raccoon. She has been thinking about getting a rooster to help protect her remaining girls. She has small children though and wants one that is least likely to be aggressive. So what breeds do you prefer for roosters?

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

Your friend's flock is too small to add a rooster. You really need 10+ hens to have a viable flock. With too few hens, the hens become over-mated, barebacked, and stressed.

I would not recommend any rooster at all for a free-range flock around small children. Just as children can't be left alone with even the friendliest dog when very young, the same goes with a rooster, no matter how "safe." A rooster is a potentially dangerous animal, and it's not always possible to tell when they are young which ones will become human-aggressive. You may be setting your friend and their kids up for heartbreak because they might raise a rooster and then have to cull him. Also, a flogging rooster is terrifying to children. I have a friend with a scar next to his eye (he's lucky he didn't lose the eye) from a rooster flogging him when he was five years old. He also HATES chickens.

Your friend is better off making a predator proof run, which will make their flock much safer in the meantime than introducing a rooster (not all of which will fight off predators, anyway. I have had many, many roosters and NOT ONE has ever given up their life to save a hen. And I've lost lots of hens to predators).

If your friend is bound and determined to have a rooster, almost any breed will do. There are good and bad members of all breeds. I've had a wonderful Rhode Island Red (rumored to be "bad roosters") and a terrible Buff Orpington (rumored to be "good roosters"). The main thing is to treat them like a chicken. Mostly ignore them. Don't pet them, or try to tame them. Definitely no lap time or on the shoulder. That only tells them in chicken language you're subordinate to them, so that when they hit maturity they decide to enforce flock order and go after you. Better that they're always a bit skittish around you and don't want to be held. They need a healthy respect, and to move away when you walk towards them.

But as I said, I would not recommend this course of action.

Just my two cents, as a person who's had many, many roosters--and a person who gets a little tired of reading sad stories of people whose hand-fed, best-friend, shoulder-riding rooster is suddenly attacking them.

 

[sherriesmith84]

Thank you! I will pass this on to her. We just found out 1 of our 6 chickens who were all supposed to be pullets is a cockerel. I'm scared of roosters so haven't been touching him at all and he seems afraid of us. I'm glad to hear that this is a good sign. Do you know if it's possible to trim or remove the spurs humanely?

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

With the small flock you have, you might want to think about culling him. Culling does NOT have to mean killing--yes, I kill some roosters but I can often get rid of them on Craigslist instead. Yes, the Craigslist person might be taking them for eating, but I honestly don't ask questions. You'd be surprised about how you can get rid of roosters sometimes. When I bought a group of straight run chicks this year, I talked to a man at the feed store who wanted a rooster but didnt' want to buy straight run. We worked out a deal then and there that he'd call me and come get one of the roosters from my straight run batch when they were old enough to see their true feather patterns (we had the others processed with our meat birds). And I've taken free roosters from people here on BYC that needed to cull their flocks for whatever reason. Culling without you personally killing them can be done.

You can't really remove the spurs, but you can remove the spur cap if it gets too long or sharp and he accidentally cuts a hen. Removing the spur cap will make the spurs duller and shorter. You use a pair of pliers to twist and remove the hard sheath over the spur. There is very little blood and the rooster doesn't even flinch.

I am of the opinion, however, that there is no need to do this on a good rooster unless his spurs grow so long that he accidentally cuts a hen. A rooster that is rough with the hens (so that a cut under the wings is common) or is aggressive towards people should be culled. A rooster that isn't people aggressive and is sweet with his hens can keep his spurs.

I do get a little nervous when I have to catch one of our roosters--they are so much bigger than the hens, and they do have those long spurs! But the key is to always remember that YOU are the alpha rooster. YOU are the boss of him. Don't flinch. Walk towards him and through him if he doesn't get out of the way. If he shows aggression towards you, chase him down. This is NOT flogging or flying at you with spurs out--he'll test you first by coming towards you (often they sneak up behind you) with their head held low to the ground and their hackles up. If that happens, chase him around the yard flapping your arms and squawking your fool head off (great entertainment for neighbors). If you can catch him, pin him to the ground until he gives in. That will fix many young roosters' problems right there--they were just seeing if you would back down. If he does it again after that, on our place he would be culled. As I said earlier, I have two small kids and I don't tolerate aggressive roosters--two strikes, and he's out. Also, we keep roosters for breeding and aggression is a genetic trait, so I especially don't want to breed that aggression into the flock.

Good luck!

 

[sherriesmith84]

Thank you so much for all the advice! This is our firstgo at having chickens so we're on a major learning curve!

 

[heronz]

I agree-I have had great luck finding roosters homes on craigslist-especially if pics are included.

 

[sherriesmith84]

Well my rooster went after my son yesterday. We had our son chase him down after to show him who's boss and he became afraid but I don't know of we're going to keep him. So sad

 

[Eggcessive]

I have all different breeds and sizes of chickens, and my favorite roosters are the salmon faverolles and the heritage Rhode Island red. Not any Rhode Island red which are actually usually a crossbreed that comes from a hatchery, but the breeder raised real old fashioned HRIR. Both are very gentle non-aggressive roosters. There will always be the exception, but if you buy chicks or eggs from a breeder they can tell you about their temperament.