Rooster breeds and behavioral differences

[Dona Worry]

I heard the other day that Buff Orpington and RiR roosters are famous for being human aggressive. This just got me wondering, how consistent is this? What other breeds are more aggressive vrs docile? Which are best or more gentlemanly with their hens?
I currently have a 7 months ish Polish crested who I have zero complaints with, and a very docile EE at almost 5 months, but I see cockerels of comparable ages on Facebook all the time, with owners desperate to be rid of them because they are attacking their dog, kids, legs, hens, etc... Seems a lot of them are RiR or BOs!
So what are your thoughts?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

All are individuals to me.

Some it matters how they were raised (NO LAP BOYS EVER AGAIN here). Others are Stew Pidasso's from very early on.

I tend to not judge by breed per say... it's really no difference than judging according to race... while many will fit the profile... not all are guilty by association.

 

[Mrs. K]

Space is a key issue, people with large flocks generally have had chickens for a long time period, have a large space set ups and seldom have trouble with roosters. Smaller and medium set ups, can have more problems. Roosters just raised with flock mates, tend to be more of a bully than not.

However, to me and my experience, roosters are a crap shoot, and what color they is the least of it. I have had several good ones, 2 outstanding ones, and a couple that were just asked to diner.

If you are going to have a rooster, have a plan B set up and ready to go.

Mrs K

 

[Cheyenne97]

My dad has a RIR roo who is aggressive but he doesn’t charge at us. He just buffs up and tries to charge when we mess with his ladies. I have a Salmon Faverolle roo who is very sweet. He is very shy around the ladies and is scared of them. (Smart boy)

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I currently have a 7 months ish Polish crested who I have zero complaints with, and a very docile EE at almost 5 months,

Let's be clear... cockerels and roosters are two completely different animals.

Most cockerels will be raging with hormones that make them as awful as any other teenager. They don't yet know their boundaries and will test to find them. Hormones will hit different boys at different times. And when they try to mate ladies may still be clumsy and possibly still learning their manners.

Knowing how to conduct YOURSELF around a cockerel from early on can be key.

He just buffs up and tries to charge when we mess with his ladies.

That's just protective... not aggressive. If a boy won't at least try to be protective (once mature cockerels don't count) then he is of no use to me or my flock.

Aggressive cocks will often charge you at the fence, pretend to be busy near you until your back is turned and then maybe a quick attack and retreat, crow AT you when they see you... come from across the pasture to attack a dog playing Frisbee nowhere near the hens and so on.

 

[centrarchid]

Those able to crow, well they crow and it has little to do with me. I do not punt them through time or space. I am not the boss, nor am I am subordinate. I am a slow moving benign giant that sometimes delivers food and always talks a lot. They trust me so much they sleep when I walk by at night and do not even budge when dust bathing as I walk by.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have tried many breeds of roosters, some said to be always aggressive like Rhode island red and hatchery barred rocks. I personally see no human aggression out of any of those that I try. I think it has more to do with the individual raising them, and the manner in which they are raised, and possibly kept. My birds are all free range with a large shed so it's never me versus a penned energetic rooster that's feeling his oats, or feeling cornered.

The smaller your set up, and the less experience you have seems to be a bigger factor than the breed. I adore my buff Orpington roosters, and my Rhode island red was a perfect bird. Breeding probably plays somewhat into it as well.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I just got a 7 month Wyandotte cockerel. When would you see aggressive behaviors? So far except for normal roo type stuff (crowing, mating, etc) he is not demonstrating any aggression towards me. He kind of grabs the hens, but I suspect he will become a ladies man sooner than later - he's got a lot of new peck marks on his comb. Other than that he alerts them to treats and such.
His father was pretty mellow too.

Usually aggression shows up at 4-7 months as the hormones are surging. Thankfully the decreasing light this time of year tempers down those hormones.

Since your rooster is new to you I would watch him, and see. If he was aggressive at his last home he may start that behavior after he feels more comfortable.

He should generally give you his back or side and never stand square and face you. He should move away and should keep a respectful distance of 5-10 feet away from you.

I don't usually stare at them but I do watch them out of the corner of my eyes. Most of mine have learned to run from me, so I generally don't have to worry about the young ones.

Don't turn your back on him until you are comfortable and know him more, just in case.

 

[Biddybot]

I think the different breeds and even strains within breeds still have their basic reputations when it comes to dispositions, but the individuality within those seems through the roof now! I started with purebreds, a few of those, a couple of these....mostly dual purpose and the common, easy bantams. I had good luck and the different breeds pretty much acted the way they were 'supposed' to. Barred Plymouth Rocks had a great reputation then and I wound up with the perfect rooster in the one I got...assertive, confident and dominant enough to rule as the chief rooster for eight years, yet so docile and friendly with people that I used to take him along to do pet visitations at seniors' homes. Ditto the chief banty rooster I wound up with, a tiny black-breasted red Old English game who bossed around all the bantams, yet he was also perfect for pet visitations...the nurses in particular used to love him because he'd strut around at their station, flap, and crow his little heart out while at the same time gratefully accepting bits of their sandwiches and donuts. On the OTHER hand, I also wound up with the one and only human-aggressive chicken I've yet had to date, a Cornish game cockeral, and he revealed that he was going to be a bad one long before he developed spurs so it wasn't a real problem. I just enjoyed an extra home-raised chicken dinner a few days after his fatal transgression. The Cornish game hen I wound up with and kept was fine, by the way, not overly aggressive at all. So individual variety even there within that first batch...

Personally, I make pets out of all my breeding roosters as a sort of 'test' of their personalities. Ideally, and strictly in my opinion, one ought to be able to walk out to any flock rooster at any time and be able to pick them up and instantly have them go limp in one's arms. Even better is if they shut their eyes, lay their heads against your shoulder, and even 'smack their lips', that mandible shifting thing they do, because it tells me that whatever bird I'm holding is really enjoying the attention in addition to simply accepting it. Never have I had a rooster that's become a pet go 'mean' on me. At the very worst, a subordinate rooster might come racing up to me for help if he's being chased by a dominant one, but so what? I'll just catch him in my arms if the subordinate's panicky enough to fly up and shoo the dominate one away and that's pretty much the end of it. Dominate goes off in a huff and subordinate gets a minute of petting to calm him down and I set him down and he toddles off and peace in the yard is restored. That's pretty much the way it's been between the two old dude roosters I currently still have for some time now...both staunch flock guardians...both lovable pets. Don't know about the seven new cockerals I have in residence right now. Still working with those guys yet! The two buff orpingtons both seem like dopes and immature babies yet...the five olive eggers run the full scale, from outrageously saucy and loving being handled to likewise babyish and scared to death. So it goes.

 

[sourland]

Nature or nurture or a combination of both ? In my experience under my husbandry methods human aggression seems to be a genetic trait. Because of the fact that it has been stringently culled against, game fowl are the least human aggressive birds.