Rooster Question

[ClareScifi]

That is very interesting. Cemtrarchid. I have a theory. I raised Baby in the house in an elevated solarium. When I fed him and checked on his temperature, we were at eye level with each other. Do you suppose since we had eye level contact, he thought I was a chicken? When he got older he tried to mate with the top of my hand, I think, a couple of times, which I discouraged.

I took him outside, safely protected in a cage, many times when he was little o try to get the other chickens to accept him and to help him have safe socialization. When I put him outside of the cage, if StepMama was near, she tried to kill him. It took ages for the StepMama hen to be won over by him-- not until his hormones hit and sometime after.

He would play-fight with his brothers, trying to peck them through the mesh fencing. When I let him out with them, the Alpha Rooster nearly killed him.

Perhaps I overprotected Baby, but I figured overprotected was better than dead.

Or do you suppose he sees me as a threat because he was never able to subdue and mate with me, if he believes I am a giant hen??? It's all so fascinating to me. In that case he might see me as a superior?

I can't imagine why he'd see me as a threat to his hens.

I suppose he could view me as an inferior, since I don't have feathers and wings? He used to fly up and perch on top of my head when he was little and trill like a songbird, full of joy and fun. If he did that now, he would crush my skull. He turned into a fine big roo.

What is your best guess as to how his amazing little brain perceives me? Superior, Inferior, or Threat? I would love to know how he thinks!

 

[centrarchid]

Yes, chicks can imprint on you but that usually must occur right at hatch and involves two-way communication. As a kid I raised multiple groups where I clucked to the little guys and did best job I could to act like a hen. My parents allowed time investment which was dawn to dusk with chicks sleeping next to bed. Such reared chicks tended to be a little over buddy-ish in long-term and somehow I could keep even game roosters pushing a year old in juvenile mode. That in end was not productive. Since, intensive interaction is not started until a good 24 hours post-hatch whether chicks are brooder or hen reared.

Much of what you are seeing in an artifact of confinement. I deal with that all the time in aquaculture as well as with poultry. The animals need space to carry out a given set of behaviors. They also tend to be clannish and that operates even with chicks and juveniles. Maybe especially so. Normally groups of relatives move about and try to secure resources such as food and cover from rival groups. Stakes are high in nature since being a looser group / individual increases odds you will not have a happy family life later. Our chickens are not wild but they do not know that. They attempt in many way behave in a manner that is appropriate for wild fowl and when we do not manage properly we can make so such interactions can result in serious immediate harm.

 

[ClareScifi]

Well, I did rescue him right after he had hatched. He was the last one out of his shell and had one eye stuck shut. I took him in the house probably within an hour after he hatched and had him sleep on my bare belly for an hour until help arrived. (I knew he needed to keep warm).

When I let him free-range, he attacked a visitor, so he does have to be confined. Do you think if he were on a big farm free-ranging he would become tame, although he might get eaten by a fox?

When you say an artifact of confinement, do you mean he's rebelling against having been cooped up inside the house so long? I kept him in from late September to March, with frequent visits outside to play and socialize.

 

[centrarchid]

Well, I did rescue him right after he had hatched. He was the last one out of his shell and had one eye stuck shut. I took him in the house probably within an hour after he hatched and had him sleep on my bare belly for an hour until help arrived. (I knew he needed to keep warm).

When I let him free-range, he attacked a visitor, so he does have to be confined. Do you think if he were on a big farm free-ranging he would become tame, although he might get eaten by a fox? NO and makes no difference.

When you say an artifact of confinement, do you mean he's rebelling against having been cooped up inside the house so long? I kept him in from late September to March, with frequent visits outside to play and socialize.

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NO



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Makes no difference



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It is kind of like you being stuck in a car seat. You can move about but do not have enough or type of space to walk, run or do other important activities like sleep laying horizontally. Such restrictions over time mess up you abilites to do other activities. You can go nuts.

 

[ClareScifi]

Yes, I understand, but do you feel his behavior is an artifact of confinement based on having been cooped up as a juvenile in the house, or is it a more current reaction to being cooped up in the coop/run outside, or both?

 

[ClareScifi]

Of course, he wasn't aggressive when he was in the house. That didn't start until he went outside, except for a couple of instances of trying to mate with my hand inside the house. And that wasn't what I would call aggressive, really. It was more instinctive, I believe. Hormones at work. But once he started fraternizing with the hens, that is when his aggression toward me set in. But he's actually aggressive toward anyone, and if I wear a skirt that blows in the wind, that really sets him off, or any sort of big bag I might carry. Now, those, I'm sure are threats to him.

He's sure an interesting little boy. Has brought a lot of fascination to my life.

 

[centrarchid]

Yes, I understand, but do you feel his behavior is an artifact of confinement based on having been cooped up as a juvenile in the house, or is it a more current reaction to being cooped up in the coop/run outside, or both?

Both. I would effort to get outside of his social order which is going to be difficult since he appears imprinted on you. My method would require having him expend himself trying to drive you off and not allowing it to happen while not fighting with him or responding as indicating in earlier posts. If works he will do all natural behaviors as if you are not even there.

 

[ClareScifi]

I tried that earlier, and it did not work. I let him try to drive me off, but I did not budge, and I did not attack him. I just stood there passively, showing no fear. He is relentless. LOL. Very persistent boy. Good perseverance and determination. I am impressed that I raised such a fine animal.

The other night he accidentally got out of the run (boy, can he run fast at me, or trying to get to the compost pile-- I'm not sure which?), and I thought for sure he'd peck me. I had on my flaring skirt. But I did manage to catch him and put him back in the pen before he got me. There's no way I could have stood there in my bare ankles and just taken it. He would have killed me. No, not really. I'm being dramatic.

If I try your approach again, I'll have to buy a suit of armor. Does anyone know where I could buy one? I'll bet I could find nice heavy boots at the thrift store.

What is the likelihood your method will work with a rooster like mine? Percentage of success, I mean? Is there a chance it won't work? What percentage of chance that it won't work?

I'm willing to try again, especially with winter coming on. I'll have to wear very heavy clothing, which would be hot in the summer, to protect myself. I already have enough scars. HAHA. It would be so nice to be able to take him to the vet easily if he got sick.

I can pick him up. It's when he's on the ground that he pecks and flogs. I haven't picked him up for quite some time except the other night when he escaped. I thought it best not to mess with him, but maybe I should attempt to tame him again.

I want what is best for my boy. I have no children, so if I seem goofy over him, I hope you'll understand. I wanted children, but it did not work out.

 

[ClareScifi]

Oh, and what makes you think he is imprinted on me, Centrarchid? What is the key sign of him being imprinted on me?

 

[centrarchid]

Based on all said I recommend rehoming him and getting another rooster. At least one party will be happier. Next run you can limit early interactions a bit.