Rooster attacking aggressive Hen

[lynx04]

I've had almost exactly the same situation except my cockerel was 11 months old, yours is more like 9 months. And I had a dominant rooster with the flock that I removed when the cockerel was about 6 months old, trying to turn the flock over to him. Well, he wasn't ready. Some of the hens accepted him but not the dominant hen. If she saw him trying to mate with another hen she would knock him off to show she was the boss. She did not beat him up but would just knock him off.

At 11 months he finally matured enough to take over. Instead of running away from her he beat her up. For two days he would run her away from the rest of the flock if she got near, usually trying to peck her head where he could do the most damage. He was not trying to mate her, he was trying to show he was no longer to be messed with. It was vicious.

After two days of that she somehow signaled that she accepted his dominance. They actually became best buddies. I let them go because I did not see any blood. Your situation is different, you are seeing blood. I'd keep them separated for a while, until she heals. They may work it out or they may never. The personality of the cockerel is important but so is the personality of that hen. She may never be willing to accept his dominance so you may need to make a decision. It sounds like you know which one you'd keep so I won't go any further.

Good luck!

Thank you. I have locked him in a part of the run that he can't get out from. I had her in a crate in the garage while I nursed her wounds, but she seemed really depressed and her wounds do seem to be healing. So I put her out in the run with the girls. She made a b-line for the coop and is cowering in the corner. She was really traumatized by the whole event. Poor baby. I'll be checking on her throughout the day and if she still seems traumatized then I will bring her downstairs again for the night.

 

[lynx04]

I've had almost exactly the same situation except my cockerel was 11 months old, yours is more like 9 months. And I had a dominant rooster with the flock that I removed when the cockerel was about 6 months old, trying to turn the flock over to him. Well, he wasn't ready. Some of the hens accepted him but not the dominant hen. If she saw him trying to mate with another hen she would knock him off to show she was the boss. She did not beat him up but would just knock him off.

At 11 months he finally matured enough to take over. Instead of running away from her he beat her up. For two days he would run her away from the rest of the flock if she got near, usually trying to peck her head where he could do the most damage. He was not trying to mate her, he was trying to show he was no longer to be messed with. It was vicious.

After two days of that she somehow signaled that she accepted his dominance. They actually became best buddies. I let them go because I did not see any blood. Your situation is different, you are seeing blood. I'd keep them separated for a while, until she heals. They may work it out or they may never. The personality of the cockerel is important but so is the personality of that hen. She may never be willing to accept his dominance so you may need to make a decision. It sounds like you know which one you'd keep so I won't go any further.

Good luck!

Thank you.

 

[ChicNmom]

I don't know if this will help. The roo I rehomed developed several behavioral issues as he got older. He and I had quite the battle of wills before he understood I outranked him.

At one point I put him in a dog crate inside the run for a few days. I would put treats near him so he could make the "Good stuff here" call but he could not get on the girls. He was notorious for pretending there was something good in the yard then ambushing whatever hen fell for it. He was agitated at first but gradually calmed down. When he stayed calm he could come out. I suppose that could also make a rooster worse but it did help with him for a while. He was the best protective boy I've had. But the girls were just worn out from him.

I could tell not one of them missed him when he left. I think they were cheering.

Your hen may not ever accept him if she is that traumatized.

 

[Mtnboomer]

Aggressive roosters towards people or hens are not worth the trouble. We've had some beautiful gentle giants over the years but bad luck when it comes to roosters with our last one and our current.
The last one was an overbreeder. One hen in particular seemed to take the majority of his attention. We tried separating him etc. but i have short patience for something that is eating food and costing money. He made some very delicious soup.

Our current bird is very gentle with the ladies, very considerate and allows them to eat 1st when they get table scraps or scratch to eat and is a good protector, too good. He's attacked my legs when my back was turned twice and has followed me multiple times but got caught before he could act. He is slated for the butcher block but so far has been saved by the weather. Its no fun butchering when its 10 degrees in 6" of snow. But his days are numbered.

I have no patience for rambunctious roosters.

 

[Ridgerunner]

If you read my post carefully you may see that I'm saying the hen may be more of the problem than the cockerel. I know, I did not spell that out clearly, but the OP (lynx04) said they would choose the hen over the cockerel so I didn't see the need. I can't argue with that decision, it is perfectly valid.

 

[Mtnboomer]

If you read my post carefully you may see that I'm saying the hen may be more of the problem than the cockerel. I know, I did not spell that out clearly, but the OP (lynx04) said they would choose the hen over the cockerel so I didn't see the need. I can't argue with that decision, it is perfectly valid.

It would not matter to me. Does the hen fight with any if the other hens or only the rooster? If only the rooster, the rooster goes. If she frequently attacks other hens, she goes. Or they both do.

The point is, there is no place in my flock for any aggressive bird. The only aggressive birds I've had are roosters so those were the examples i gave.

 

[lynx04]

She gets broody and will often peck at me. As the dominant hen in the yard, she will peck at the other hens. But she has never attacked anyone. When the rooster would get aggressive with her, she would stand her own ground and he would back off. I thought he was fine because of that. However, in the past few weeks, he's gotten a little aggressive with my husband and then with me. I did the "walk through" him method. He attacked me (not too bad), but I told him firmly "no. Don't do that." He's been an absolute gentleman ever since. However, he's also locked away from the ladies so he is out of sorts a bit.
I noticed tonight that he injured himself on some chicken wire in his "jail." He was really sweet when I put Neosporin on it.
He's only 10 months old and this is his first spring. I'm thinking that has something to do with it. But the jury is out as to what we will ultimately do with him. Most likely I'm going to have to kill him. I don't think anyone will take him.
Now, I'm worried about my hen's injury. It is looking really bad. But her spirits seem to be improving.

 

[azygous]

@Ridgerunner and I have had similar experiences with a young rooster that tried to overcome an older hen who refused to permit him to mate her. In my case, the rooster nearly killed the hen, and in all likelihood would have succeeded if I hadn't heard the altercation and intervened to rescue the hen.

The rooster was between one and two years old. The hen was aged eight. She had fled into the coop where he had her trapped. He was in the process of tearing her comb from her scalp. She was drenched in blood.

She recovered, but the two were kept in separate runs and coops. When this fellow would free range, he would attack the fence separating the hen from him, trying to get at her. The run was protected with hot wire, but when he got shocked, it enraged him all the more, and he attacked the hot wire, getting a shock over and over. That should tell you how intense his rage was. It went far beyond dominance and the urge to mate.

Some months later the hen died of a reproductive infection, and this rooster's rage completely disappeared. He's now as docile and sweet as can be, the complete opposite of the demon possessed roo he was with this hen.

So, yes, a rooster is capable of killing a hen. Yours has that potential.

 

[Mtnboomer]

She gets broody and will often peck at me. As the dominant hen in the yard, she will peck at the other hens. But she has never attacked anyone. When the rooster would get aggressive with her, she would stand her own ground and he would back off. I thought he was fine because of that. However, in the past few weeks, he's gotten a little aggressive with my husband and then with me. I did the "walk through" him method. He attacked me (not too bad), but I told him firmly "no. Don't do that." He's been an absolute gentleman ever since. However, he's also locked away from the ladies so he is out of sorts a bit.
I noticed tonight that he injured himself on some chicken wire in his "jail." He was really sweet when I put Neosporin on it.
He's only 10 months old and this is his first spring. I'm thinking that has something to do with it. But the jury is out as to what we will ultimately do with him. Most likely I'm going to have to kill him. I don't think anyone will take him.
Now, I'm worried about my hen's injury. It is looking really bad. But her spirits seem to be improving.

The hen pecking others as described sounds like normal, reminding everyone that "im the boss" pecking order stuff. Thats normal and fine so long as its not excessive. Her "standing her ground" to the rooster would be ok with me. But the rooster's increasing aggression is a problem.
His age is a contributing factor as he reaches sexual maturity his territorial instincts increase. The desire to protect his flock and drive off intruders is something that we find useful. These are also "normal" behaviors but when they become excessive to the point he is causing injuries or demonstrating towards people, its unacceptable, IMO.
Since roosters offer little benefit and are unnecessary in most backyard flocks, hes the expendable piece of the puzzle.

 

[ChicNmom]

I've noticed most roosters get a little crazy when puberty sets in. Since my first rooster which was the one I mentioned in my post I have worked to socialize any that hatch out and have had good success so I could easily rehome them. I've had no problems finding homes for roosters that will eat out of your hand.

Even with that boy I was able to teach him not to attack us. This is how I did it incase someone has a rooster they mostly like for protection but is starting to show aggression to people. It may work for people that want to put the time into it.

I had one hen that this rooster saved from a hawk. He was always very protective of her after that. One day I squatted down to hand her a treat and he attacked my back> I had spur bruises for weeks! Anyway, I caught him and put him in a cage in the yard. All the girls were outside eating grass and looking at him like " Ohhh You're in trouble!!"

I was working in the yard and would occasionally go over and put my body over the cage to show him I out ranked him. I would occasionally reach in the cage and hold him down on the ground. He still had an attitude. Then it started getting dark and all the girls went in. I walked by the cage. He was all excited thinking I was going to let him out. I walked right by and went into the house. I still laugh when I remember the scream of despair he let out. He was sure I was going to leave him out all night.

I went back out and took him out of the cage and put him on my lap. He pinched my hand so I pinched his comb. I put my hand out and he pinched again. So I pinched his comb harder. I put my hand out again and he looked away and hung his head. I knew he got the message.

He never attacked us after that. He just needed to understand the rules. If we had enough hens to keep him busy we would have kept him because of his protective abilities.

It's hard to get the right balance in a rooster.