Rooster pecking a female chick.

[bigslappyy]

I keep chickens as pets and I started a hen and a rooster. They had babies, but the hen died and we sold the babies. It's now just the rooster, but we just got a new chick and he can hear her chirping and he gets really excited. I showed him the baby a few times so far but just now I put the chick on the floor next to him and he came over and picked her up with his beak.I intervened immediately and took the chick back inside. Is it normal for a rooster to be so excited around a baby. And what does it mean when he picked her up.

 

[debid]

He mistook the chick for food. I'd suggest getting your chick friends its own age.

 

[Colonel-Sanders]

I would highly recommend keeping the rooster and pullet (baby hen) separate until the pullet is a few months old. Please do not put them both together until she can safely, "fend for herself!!!" As the rooster can get so excited that he may inadvertently kill the baby. As far as for him picking her up I would say that it was simply an odd phenomena or he may have been trying to decide whether she was food or not, it seems weird I know, but I have found my chickens feasting on a frog before. In summary, PLEASE do not put them together until the chick is adult sized!

 

[bigslappyy]

I would highly recommend keeping the rooster and pullet (baby hen) separate until the pullet is a few months old. Please do not put them both together until she can safely, "fend for herself!!!" As the rooster can get so excited that he may inadvertently kill the baby. As far as for him picking her up I would say that it was simply an odd phenomena or he may have been trying to decide whether she was food or not, it seems weird I know, but I have found my chickens feasting on a frog before. In summary, PLEASE do not put them together until the chick is adult sized!

I understand now. I keep them separate already, but I'll stop letting them interact until she is older.

 

[chickens really]

Adult Birds do not usually take to young Chicks that are not their own and still peeping.....He was not happy or excited...He was going to kill it...

 

[aart]

A good and mature cockbird would not attack a chick.....
....but you have an odd situation where you have one male and are bringing in a single pullet chick.
Agrees chick should have same age/gender buddies,
and maybe get rid of male if he can't act his age.

 

[centrarchid]

If interested in getting successful introduction quicker, then make so immature bird is partitioned in close proximity to the rooster. They need to be able to see an hear each other. That should get rooster to relax. Periodically give the rooster something like a meal worm or other insect to promote tidbit calling. I like to see immature bird try to get to rooster when he does it.

Many times I have had mature roosters adopt single chicks, irrespective of sex. No hens involved. Rooster sometimes a little rough at first. Things going well when rooster puts his head down close to chick and holds it there as he watches and listens to chick.