Rooster attacked chicks, what do i do now?

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I clearly didn't include necessary details i apologize i wrote this on my way to a viewing, i only have one bantam chick, my mother ordered them and wouldn't change it despite my warnings. My d'uccle is the one bantam the rest are standards. Rooster himself is bigger then average he has some jersey giant in him and Brahma, his father was a brahma and his mother a mixed breed (mostly barred rock).
They lived outside for three days when they were almost four weeks but it's been raining every day here and dropping the temperature to sixty sometimes lower, then i was going to move them outside but they got coccidiosis and i wanted to finish the corid before i moved them back out. They are now out there full time, i think the girls remember them from before and i think i overreacted when rooster went after Deb. The chicks don't have a mom, they're alone.
he's acting pretty okay now, he's not staring at them or attacking them. I let them out under my supervision again and rooster didn't bother them, he came over and looked, then walked away but it might've just been because i was watching him like a hawk.
i genuinely think he just didn't know what they were, or I'm hoping anyway, he used to attack small birds in the yard so maybe he was confused? I don't know, I'm preparing an area to separate him into just in case, he's not the smartest boy he wasn't raised well and i spoiled him, he's always been like the dog I've never had he was here when my grandmother passed just staring up at me with his goofy face, he helped me deal with things so i don't think i would ever be able to give him away and i would NEVER be able to cull him.
He really always has been the perfect rooster, he was aggressive as a four month old but when i started holding him he changed, he doesn't aggressively mate with the girls he's constantly finding them food and making sure they're okay, once my Rosie inhaled some food, and was wheezing and gaping she sounded like she was going to die, and he wouldn't leave her for nothing he would bring her food and bugs and everything she could've wanted. He protects them from predators and sings the girls egg songs with them.
I'm gonna give him some time, he's leaving the chicks alone now. I do think i overreacted Debra is my little baby she's just the sweetest and Rooster is also my little boy so seeing him go after her just terrified me. i do think that if rooster wanted to hurt or kill Deb he would've done it she didn't see it coming at all.
she is the first white chick or chicken he's seen (besides his brother whom has been gone for a pretty long time).
I'm going to give him another chance, but as i said i am preparing a separate area for him if this becomes a habit i understand the big chickens are going to assert their dominance but this seemed very extreme.
I'm going to give the chicks a week or so in the cage and then let them out with rooster and the girls again and see what happens. I'm letting them out with the girls while rooster is locked in the coop as well since they all seem to be getting along. If this plan is flawed please tell me this is my first time with chicks and i don't want to make any horrible mistakes.
 
It sounds like the dynamic changed. The rooster doesn't seem "bad". Still relatively young himself, and given a new situation. Wasn't sure how to respond to the stimulus, and went with first instinct. Since it sounds like things have begun to settle down from your recent post I would keep a close eye on how they're interaction continues. Getting that separation area ready is still a good idea, but hopefully it won't need use. Have you tried placing the cage in the run so they can see each other without actual contact?
 
True Patriot said:
It sounds like the dynamic changed. The rooster doesn't seem "bad". Still relatively young himself, and given a new situation. Wasn't sure how to respond to the stimulus, and went with first instinct. Since it sounds like things have begun to settle down from your recent post I would keep a close eye on how they're interaction continues. Getting that separation area ready is still a good idea, but hopefully it won't need use. Have you tried placing the cage in the run so they can see each other without actual contact?
Click to expand...
Yeah they're in a dog cage that's inside the run, i put them on the floor of the coop at night so they learn where home is hopefully. I really hope Roo bird isn't going to be a problem he'd be so stressed if i need to move him away from the girls.
 
With the new information... I take back the majority of what I said and completely agree with @centrarchid that this was NO big deal. Just a part of integration.

My apologies for my misunderstanding or possible assumptions. :oops:

The young rooster totally gets a pass on this one and I would expect nothing less from my own flock. :confused:
 
So earlier i had been holding rooster while the chicks were out with the girls. My dark cornish chick Ginger hopped onto roosters back and before i could do anything he turned around and pecked her. She flew away and was fine, a moment later Debra jumped onto my lap and rooster tried to peck her but she flew away before he got her.
i locked him in the cage and the chicks spent most of the day in the run, he tried to peck them through the bars a few times so i finished cleaning out the separation area, i am going to go out and finish predator proofing it tomorrow.
I had some issues with one of the hens as well which was very surprising, Rosie is an Amereucana and she is on the bottom of the pecking order. Similar to what rooster was doing yesterday she went after the chicks and pecked a few, she pulled out some of Deb's feathers as well. I gave her a few minutes since Rosie is normally a pretty docile hen and she calmed down eventually, whenever the chicks would walk up to her she would puff out the feathers on her neck and as long as the chicks run away she'd leave them alone. It's weird how the sweetest hen in my flock has so far been the most aggressive, meanwhile my usually very aggressive hen Eyowen is the one bringing them treats occasionally it boggles my mind because Eyo is always going after Rosie but she doesn't mind having the chicks around.
I feel like i am going to need to separate Rooster, I'm giving him time anyway but he wasn't raised well, his old owner was hardly around and admittedly didn't provide adequate care by any means. They kept nineteen chickens in my little coop, and i felt so bad because of the assortment of illnesses they had all developed in their previous owners care i spoiled him rotten and i suspect that's where his bad behavior is stemming from. I've always kind of seen us as friends sort of he's never been aggressive he liked to be pet, he didn't crow until he was nine months old so he was always like a special boy to me before now i couldn't ask for a better roo.
I'll continue to do what I'm doing now i think everything is working well except for rooster, the chicks are loving life outside, Ginger has dug three holes to dust bathe in today and I'm sure many more are coming, it's only a matter of time before I'm training them to come when i call, i am unfortunately pretty sure my porcelain d'uccle is a cockerel though, I'll see soon enough i suppose.
I'll update this thread if his behavior gets worse or better, and i want to say thanks to everybody for putting up with my scatterbrained questions and answering them so thoroughly.
 

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