Rooster Has Attacked Me. Now what?

[HUGEPurplePuppy]

I have 32 chickens: 8 pullets/1 cockerel (8 weeks) and 21 hens/2 roosters. The hens are of varying ages but the roosters are 1 year 3 months.

We’ve had 4 roosters before these ones, unfortunately losing them all to predators. I have never experienced rooster aggression towards me before.

I actually wasn’t even sure it was happening the first two times. Both times I had my back to the chickens and he ran into my leg. I honestly thought he just didn’t see me next to the 4x4 I had just walked past. Similar situation the second time. Both times I think I just continued doing what I was doing.

Today when I picking up the bottom half of a feeder (I had left on the ground while I filled the feeder) that the chicks wer

Chicks were pecking at the bottom half of the feeder that I had left while filling the top half. When I leaned down to pick it up, the rooster jumped at me and got a scratch on my arm. I don’t know if he was feeling protective over the juveniles or what.

I kind of just stared at him. I didn’t know what to do.

I still don’t. It didn’t hurt, but obviously I don’t want this behavior to continue.

My dad read to get a water bottle/squirt gun and spray them. I’m not so sure about that. Also, if he’s already backed away, should I be becoming “aggressive” (moving towards him, big arms…kicking?) or is that just escalating the situation?

Is he calming down because he thinks he won and I’m cowering?

 

[Barbours]

I have 32 chickens: 8 pullets/1 cockerel (8 weeks) and 21 hens/2 roosters. The hens are of varying ages but the roosters are 1 year 3 months.

We’ve had 4 roosters before these ones, unfortunately losing them all to predators. I have never experienced rooster aggression towards me before.

I actually wasn’t even sure it was happening the first two times. Both times I had my back to the chickens and he ran into my leg. I honestly thought he just didn’t see me next to the 4x4 I had just walked past. Similar situation the second time. Both times I think I just continued doing what I was doing.

Today when I picking up the bottom half of a feeder (I had left on the ground while I filled the feeder) that the chicks wer

Chicks were pecking at the bottom half of the feeder that I had left while filling the top half. When I leaned down to pick it up, the rooster jumped at me and got a scratch on my arm. I don’t know if he was feeling protective over the juveniles or what.

I kind of just stared at him. I didn’t know what to do.

I still don’t. It didn’t hurt, but obviously I don’t want this behavior to continue.

My dad read to get a water bottle/squirt gun and spray them. I’m not so sure about that. Also, if he’s already backed away, should I be becoming “aggressive” (moving towards him, big arms…kicking?) or is that just escalating the situation?

Is he calming down because he thinks he won and I’m cowering?

Sorry to tell you but if he is already attacking you it won't be a one time thing. He attacked you because you were messing with "his" stuff or near "his" hens. The squirt bottle will keep him away from you but won't correct his behavior. When he bumps into your leg and does other things like that he's testing you and when he attached he basically just proved to himself and the others that he's dominant over you. Different things work on different birds because they all have there own individual personalities. But, what works for mine is I pick him up and hold him around in front of the other birds. It helps to show your in control. If he's to bad, I hold him down on the ground so he can't move, this is a sign of dominance on your part. I just hold him there till he calms down. I also tend to wear gloves and jeans when doing this. But like I said before you need to try different things cause every bird is different. Good luck

 

[nuthatched]

Make Stew. There's no going back.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Soup worthy.

 

[Debbie292d]

This is Piper. When Piper was about 10 months old, we darned near gave up on him as he was horribly mean to anyone who went into the breeding pen. Of course, it was because he thought he was protecting his hens in there, but still, this behavior was dangerous, especially to me. I started going in there carrying a stainless steel pitcher in my right hand so when he'd come at me, he'd hit the can. That helped a lot as he'd walk away. When I'd enter, holding that pitcher, he'd keep his distance, watching my every move though.

A few months of this went by, then we put a new rooster in there, and he went out to the yard. We had a few weeks of him chasing after hubby mostly, not me so much anymore. Hubby had a few stand-downs with him, challenging him, yelling and shaking his fist at him, and he'd run away. They don't understand our words, or most of them, so I think it's the anger hubby physically expresses that scares him.


Now, he's calm as can be. He's about a year and four months. It's not always permanent and he's an example. You'll either have to figure it out like we did, or pen him up for a couple of months to let his hormones settle down. I like the water bottle idea. My stainless steel pitcher worked well. It's for candle making but I stopped so use it to haul feed around.

 

[LoveChickens27]

I used to have a rooster about a year ago, he was the best, but he sometimes attacked, so we would kick him then hold him for a while, about 30 or so minutes. But, as was already said, it does depend on the chicken. He was an Isa Brown. Hope that helped. Good luck!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

A rooster can do you - or another person, or especially a child - a serious or even permanent injury. Ask me how I know. There are good roosters out there. I happen to have one at the moment so I know that from experience, too. But when it comes to rooster aggression, I now have a "one strike, you're dead" policy.

 

[perrypogue]

I have 32 chickens: 8 pullets/1 cockerel (8 weeks) and 21 hens/2 roosters. The hens are of varying ages but the roosters are 1 year 3 months.

We’ve had 4 roosters before these ones, unfortunately losing them all to predators. I have never experienced rooster aggression towards me before.

I actually wasn’t even sure it was happening the first two times. Both times I had my back to the chickens and he ran into my leg. I honestly thought he just didn’t see me next to the 4x4 I had just walked past. Similar situation the second time. Both times I think I just continued doing what I was doing.

Today when I picking up the bottom half of a feeder (I had left on the ground while I filled the feeder) that the chicks wer

Chicks were pecking at the bottom half of the feeder that I had left while filling the top half. When I leaned down to pick it up, the rooster jumped at me and got a scratch on my arm. I don’t know if he was feeling protective over the juveniles or what.

I kind of just stared at him. I didn’t know what to do.

I still don’t. It didn’t hurt, but obviously I don’t want this behavior to continue.

My dad read to get a water bottle/squirt gun and spray them. I’m not so sure about that. Also, if he’s already backed away, should I be becoming “aggressive” (moving towards him, big arms…kicking?) or is that just escalating the situation?

Is he calming down because he thinks he won and I’m cowering?

I have 32 chickens: 8 pullets/1 cockerel (8 weeks) and 21 hens/2 roosters. The hens are of varying ages but the roosters are 1 year 3 months.

We’ve had 4 roosters before these ones, unfortunately losing them all to predators. I have never experienced rooster aggression towards me before.

I actually wasn’t even sure it was happening the first two times. Both times I had my back to the chickens and he ran into my leg. I honestly thought he just didn’t see me next to the 4x4 I had just walked past. Similar situation the second time. Both times I think I just continued doing what I was doing.

Today when I picking up the bottom half of a feeder (I had left on the ground while I filled the feeder) that the chicks wer

Chicks were pecking at the bottom half of the feeder that I had left while filling the top half. When I leaned down to pick it up, the rooster jumped at me and got a scratch on my arm. I don’t know if he was feeling protective over the juveniles or what.

I kind of just stared at him. I didn’t know what to do.

I still don’t. It didn’t hurt, but obviously I don’t want this behavior to continue.

My dad read to get a water bottle/squirt gun and spray them. I’m not so sure about that. Also, if he’s already backed away, should I be becoming “aggressive” (moving towards him, big arms…kicking?) or is that just escalating the situation?

Is he calming down because he thinks he won and I’m cowering?

 

[perrypogue]

I would rehome him. Heaven would be his next roost

 

[ChicNmom]

I have also been able to teach one not to attack by holding them or holding them down on the ground.

He was the only one I ever had a problem with. We called a truce and worked it out until he got old and cranky with the hens and got rehomed.

But some just have a mean streak which should not be tolerated.