Heya all -
My rooster, George, and his alpha Hen are a cute pair. BUT... the other day I found them both behind the feed can (a large trash can) he was making a nest area for her. She is laying her eggs back there, now, which makes them difficult to get to, but I know where to look, at least.
She is a black leghorn, and is definately not broody, but whenever I go in to get HER eggs, George follows me inside the coop and watches me closely, making worried noises. It almost seems like he wants me to leave her eggs alone. He doesn't do this with any of the other hens' eggs.
Now, I thought this behavior might be because I recently took two other roosters out of the coop (they were tearing up the poor hens' back feathers). George was upset by the change at the time, and he watched me for a couple of days to make sure I didn't take out any of his hens, LOL. But this seems a bit strange.
So, my question is - Has anyone else ever experienced this, or is it just my imagination? Can a rooster and hen be so attatched to each other that he feels I am "stealing his family" by taking her eggs? Do roosters even have that much intelligence to figure those things out? Or am I just the "enemy" right now for upsetting the coop and he doesn't want me around "Her" nest?
I have watched when she lays eggs, (in the nest box, before this) and he will stand guard outside the box and make cooing sounds to her while she is in there - it is very sweet to watch him take care of her. He likes the other hens, and watches over them all, but it is nothing compared to how he takes care of Oprah (his alpha hen).
Peace -
Meriah
My rooster, George, and his alpha Hen are a cute pair. BUT... the other day I found them both behind the feed can (a large trash can) he was making a nest area for her. She is laying her eggs back there, now, which makes them difficult to get to, but I know where to look, at least.
She is a black leghorn, and is definately not broody, but whenever I go in to get HER eggs, George follows me inside the coop and watches me closely, making worried noises. It almost seems like he wants me to leave her eggs alone. He doesn't do this with any of the other hens' eggs.
Now, I thought this behavior might be because I recently took two other roosters out of the coop (they were tearing up the poor hens' back feathers). George was upset by the change at the time, and he watched me for a couple of days to make sure I didn't take out any of his hens, LOL. But this seems a bit strange.
So, my question is - Has anyone else ever experienced this, or is it just my imagination? Can a rooster and hen be so attatched to each other that he feels I am "stealing his family" by taking her eggs? Do roosters even have that much intelligence to figure those things out? Or am I just the "enemy" right now for upsetting the coop and he doesn't want me around "Her" nest?
I have watched when she lays eggs, (in the nest box, before this) and he will stand guard outside the box and make cooing sounds to her while she is in there - it is very sweet to watch him take care of her. He likes the other hens, and watches over them all, but it is nothing compared to how he takes care of Oprah (his alpha hen).
Peace -
Meriah
