Rooster getting mean ??

[HBarker]

I have 10 hens and HAD 2 roosters,, one we noticed was getting meaner than a snake,, sooo
now we have only one rooster,
Problem being now he has decided he is the alphs roo an dhas become mean, the hens even get near him , POW he hammers them with his beak, and sometimes even holds them with one foot as he pecks on them and makes them scream ,,
does this rooster also need a date with smith & wesson >>or can he be straitened out?
i have just notced this one also does a little dance when the hens get near him,, usualy befor he hammers them ,,

 

[ChickenToes]

I have the exact same problem. My rooster isn't too terrible with the hens though, but he attacked me the other day.

Some people say you can break a rooster of this behavior, others say it's not possible.

As for myself, if my rooster attacks me again, I am going to attack him right back and force him into a corner of the pen and keep him there. I am going to try and show him that I'm the alpha rooster.

If that doesn't work, well, he'll have a date with an axe.

Maybe someone else will have some suggestions for us!

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
Is he actually pecking them with his beak or is he trying to hold them still by grabbing them on the neck? You don't say how old your chickens are, but that type of behavior is the rooster trying to mate and the hens are screaming cuz they're not ready yet.
If he's not trying to mate, which it sounds to me like he is, then yeah sometimes the behavior can be corrected. It's all about showing the rooster who's alpha. Check out rooster-red's homepage for some hints about that.
I'd hate to see a rooster get culled if all he's doing is what comes naturally to him.

 

[HBarker]

Actualy those 2 roosters came from 12 hens i ordered,, 2 wound up being roosters,
they are all 4 months old,, i got them 5-15-08

this little dance is kinda cute

i forget to mention, We are concerned mostly about his behavior because we have 10 more hens to soon be added to this flock,
they are allmost 2 months old , and all are hens this time,
i dont want my rooster turning into a hen-petafile. what do you guys reccomend ??

 

[gritsar]

REALLY sounds to me like your young rooster is practicing his mating skills. It's not fun to watch at first, cuz it does seem like the pullets hate it; but it does get easier on both of them. When the pullets are ready to lay they will submit to it without all that hoopla. Sometimes my roos mate a hen right behind me and I barely realize it's happening anymore. All I hear is a "oomph" as he gets on then it's over just as fast.
Every rooster I've ever known is good to his hens, after the teenage awkwardness. They're his bread and butter so to speak.

 

[Fudgie]

the little dance is his way of showing the chicks how danged cute he is...."who wouldn't want to breed with me, I'm so hot!"

I am thinking he has a little James Dean in him! Let him be unless he hurts you!

 

[gritsar]

I agree with JMajors. Let him be unless he starts thinking he's the alpha over YOU. That's when it's time for a little one on one 'tude adjustment.

 

[HBarker]

how will i keep him from trying to breed my young hens when i add them to the flock?

 

[gritsar]

You won't, unless you keep them seperate. If he's not doing any real harm other than the pullets losing a few neck feathers, then I wouldn't worry about it; but that's MHO.
I have one hen that I try to protect from the boys as much as possible; but she's very tiny and my little baby. The others haven't suffered any lasting harm from it.