rooster mean and aggressive to one hen

[lynnemabry]

My second, younger rooster wrote his death sentence last night. He fought the other one and then right after that he was bullying the hens. I don't want him to go for me next. The other rooster is a sweetheart.
Too bad the pretty one is the mean one.

 

[lauraj2]

This is a beautiful roo too. My first two were very mean to me, so they are gone. This one has a son who I found a home for luckily. I am really trying to find a home for him where he has lots of hens and more space. He is pretty rough. Some of the young girls are losing back feathers. Oh the dilemmas of having chickens! I love them all, even my Rooster!

 

[mulewagon]

I have my roosters in permanent isolation, until I'm ready for chicks. They're actually still in the familiar pen, just in smaller wire enclosures. They don't seem unhappy, since they can see the hens all around them. They aren't mean at all - just mating a bit too enthusiastically.

Since I'm keeping a closed flock to avoid bringing in disease, I'll have to keep these, even though it's more work. And I have to keep two, for genetic variation and backup.

 

[reereechickens]

Quote:
Do you put each roo in a small wire enclosure separately or can I have a roo only pen away from the hens and they won't fight?

 

[mulewagon]

Quote:
Do you put each roo in a small wire enclosure separately or can I have a roo only pen away from the hens and they won't fight?

It just depends on the roosters. Some people can put several in a pen (I presume it's a large pen!) I tried putting mine in the same pen, but Mr. Junior Rooster was so terrified of Mr. Big Rooster that he was leaping a six-foot fence, so I built him a small private pad.

So I guess you can try them in the same pen, but be prepared to make some more enclosures if necessary

 

[lauraj2]

Well, Rooster is still in Solitary, he can hear the hens, but can't see them. I think I'll put him back in with them and see how he acts.
I like the idea of keeping him separate, but I'll hafta move him out of greenhouse, maybe do the separate pen thing like mulewagon. My hens just seem so much calmer, stess and worry free without him in there. If he's mean to Red Bird and Snowball again.... out he goes!

 

[IndigoJaguar]

I had nearly the same issue as you, lauraj2. My rooster chased off only one of my hens and refused to let her anywhere near the rest of the flock. I let it go a week hoping they would work stuff out, and then one day when I went out to check on all them, he had torn her head open very badly. I took her from the flock, and separated him from them a few days, then culled him. My hens are completely different birds without him around....calm, friendly, and gentle, and the hen he attacked has integrated right back in to the flock with little trouble.

 

[BooBear]

A mean rooster is not worth keeping.

A good rooster would be gentle with his ladys and always looking out for them.
I have a really good rooster right now for my girls and they seem to adore him. He leads them to their favorite spots, calls them over for treats and lets them eat first, is protective of them, escorts them to the coop when the urge to lay hits and will come running if one of the girls wanders away and gets herself in trouble.
Lester started out a bit clumsy in the whoopie department, but has gotten better and gentler with the girls at.

Once you find that good rooster you will never want to put up with a bad one again. The bad ones are just not worth it.

 

[lauraj2]

I sneeked Rooster back in the hen house late last nite. All seemed well for awhile this morning, but now I don't think its going to work. Red acts all scared and paranoid again, Rooster chased Snowball away from the food and now he acts like he wants to attack me, so I didn't turn my back on him. I dont know for sure, I just got that feeling.... maybe he's mad at me for putting him in Solitary Confinement! I'm going to separate him again, just can't stand to see my hens stressed out. They are just so calm and gentle without him and they sure don't seem mind that he's gone. How does one "cull" a rooster? I've had him for two years, have been asking around if anyone wants him or needs a roo, so far no takers.

 

[BarredRockMom]

Sadly, I am having this problem, too. My oldest girl is so stressed because of the dominant rooster torturing her that she no longer lays eggs, which is awful. I hate for her to be so miserable, and I have spoken to him about consequences of his actions and how he's failing at his job of protecting the flock. (Crazy, yes...I know, but I was hoping that he'd understand an check himself.) I thought he'd gotten better, but I just witnessed him go after her before lights out. Apparently jumping on the perch is a crime in his mind. Last night he went after my little White Leghorn juvenile Roo, just because he was hungry and wanted to eat. Last night's aggression got him kicked him outside into the (enclosed) chicken yard. I intended to let him stay out all night even though I felt sorry for how freaked out and unsettled he was. I would've stuck to my guns but for a horrible storm, so he got to go back inside. His antics tonight got him kicked outside for the night. I'm inside trying to figure out how to cull him in the dark, if that's any indication of how I'm feeling toward him. I don't have a greenhouse and I'm not feeling particularly inclined to build him a separate enclosure. If he's not doing his job, I don't feel any need to keep him around.

After reading the thread here, I'm thinking that culling him is my best option. I realize that chickens, like people, have their own personalities and preferences, but how he could be so mean to her is beyond me. Her back has a bald spot and so does her bum. He is just not nice to her and he doesn't deserve this great flock. I was hoping to keep him and maintain a balance with the other boy, but it seems like too high a price if my girl has to pay the toll. Off with his head.