Rooster help

[CindyKrauser]

I have a young rooster that I raised from a chick. So far, he's been a good boy and protective of the hens. However; our one older girl would not allow him to mate with her and now he has become rather obsessed with her. He bit half her comb off and now she runs away from him and is very stressed. We free range but only have 5 hens because Foxes keep getting them if I'm not vigilant (and sometimes even when I am). Should I rehome rooster? I would like to keep him and I have been keeping the wounded hen by herself for the past couple of weeks. She has healed but he still goes after her.. Today he threw himself at the fence separating them!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

@aart

 

[JustAChickenLoverOverHere]

I have a young rooster that I raised from a chick. So far, he's been a good boy and protective of the hens. However; our one older girl would not allow him to mate with her and now he has become rather obsessed with her. He bit half her comb off and now she runs away from him and is very stressed. We free range but only have 5 hens because Foxes keep getting them if I'm not vigilant (and sometimes even when I am). Should I rehome rooster? I would like to keep him and I have been keeping the wounded hen by herself for the past couple of weeks. She has healed but he still goes after her.. Today he threw himself at the fence separating them!

How old is the rooster? Does he attack you?

 

[BGcoop]

I personally wouldn’t keep a boy that is hurting my hens instead of protecting them. I don’t know if this behavior can be fixed. How old is he? I guess there is a chance that it is just hormones and he COULD settle down with age.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hi, Cindy, welcome to the forum. Glad you joined.

I have a young rooster that I raised from a chick.

How old is he and how old are the girls?

our one older girl would not allow him to mate with her and now he has become rather obsessed with her.

This actually sounds pretty familiar if their ages are close to what I think they are. Mature hens often want a mate that would make a good father to their potential children. Immature brattish cockerels don't meet those standards. In those circumstances I've seen three different things happen.

1. The hen beats the snot out of the boy. He may be injured or killed.

2. When he matures to a certain point she accepts him. No real drama.

3. When he matures enough to want to take over he stands up to her bullying and fights back. Usually by then he is sufficiently bigger than her and sufficiently motivated that he wins that fight. She still doesn't accept him so he starts beating her up to force her to accept his dominance. I think this is what is happening with yours.

I've only seen that last one once. What happened is that for two days he'd attack her any time she came near the flock. By attack, I mean try to peck her on the head where he could do serious damage. After two days she signaled to him that she accepted his dominance, all violence ceased, and they became best buddies.

Your situation is different in that he drew blood. She was injured. So it's more serious than what I had. After she heals you can try to put them back together. He may have matured to the point that she will accept his dominance and they will be OK. Or they may continue to fight. I don't know what will happen.

Should I rehome rooster? I would like to keep him and I have been keeping the wounded hen by herself for the past couple of weeks. She has healed but he still goes after her.. Today he threw himself at the fence separating them!

What are your goals with chickens and how does having a rooster fit into those goals. The only reason you need a rooster is if you want fertile eggs. Anything else is personal preference. Nothing wrong with personal preferences, I have a few myself. But those are a choice, not a need.

I always solve for the peace of the flock. I don't have individual chickens, I have a flock that has replaceable parts. If one chicken is destroying the peace of the flock they can be removed and eventually replaced. I've removed the girl, not the boy, when I determined she was the problem instead of him. To me it's not always a case of blame the boy. I have recipes for both boys and girls.

So what are your options after you decide what your goals are.

You can leave her isolated a while longer and try again. See how they act. They may be able to coexist.

You can isolate him for a month or so after she is healed and added back to the flock. His maturity level will have increased, she may accept his dominance and he may accept her as one of his hens.

They may not be able to work it out so you'll have to choose between the two.

Get rid of that boy and, after she is reestablished in the flock, bring in a mature rooster, not a snotty immature brat. A mature rooster may be able to win her over with his magnificence. Most of the time they can.

If she can't accept any rooster, you will need to decide between having a rooster with the flock or having that hen in the flock. A common saying on here is that there are too many good roosters out there to keep a bad one. I very much believe that. I also believe there are too many good hens out there to keep a bad hen.

I don't now your goals and I don't know how any of these will work out. Each chicken, male and female, is an individual so you don't know how any will react. What you describe isn't that unusual but since they are individuals it's not always easy to solve.

Good luck and again

 

[CindyKrauser]

Oh wow, thank you Ridgerunner! Those are excellent questions and great information! The rooster is young / not quite a year yet and the hen is several years old. In the past, she would challenge his authority when he got "in her face" so to speak. Then one day, he bit her and the dynamic completely changed. She was terrified of him then. He chases her if he can so I keep her separated in the coop. Not fair to her at all but I've been hoping that with time and healing, they might co-exist peacefully. Not sure they will since he is an immature boy. We have not always had a rooster so this is a bit foreign to her I think. The other girls are just fine with him and I do like that he protects them. However, He is certainly not protecting the older girl. Since our flock is so small, we may eventually have to find him a home because I understand he probably needs more hens to mate with. I will take your advice and give them a bit more time to sort things out. Hoping for peace to reign! Thanks to everyone who weighed in! I am so grateful!