rooster still fighting need ideas?

[scooby]

OK i am baffled as to what to do.I NEED SUGGESTIONS!!!! all my roosters have been breed here and raised here from my very first one 8 yrs ago and they have all gotten along for the most part except for pecking order squabbles. so this is the problem i am having now..... my main big rooster (4 yrs) got sick and he stopped walking, so we brang him in the house, has been in about a month, he started walking again but has not fully recuperated, he is not very balanced, (he is also missing part his toes). so while he was in his 1/2 banty son took over(1yr). anyways when he was well enough we put him back out and he was ready to take back over, but is son is vicious and attacked and basically kicked his butt a few times cause he can't balance so he retreated, BUT the banty won't stop, big roo will RUN from the SON and he just keeps following him and attacking, so i took the banty away for a week kept him in the house, i just put him out in the coop last night while everyone was asleep hoping it would be like when i get new hens and he would accept him , BUT once again i heard loud crowing 7 this morning go out to check and the banty has my big rooster chased into the front yard and he has his head shoved behind a box and a wall and the banty is just sitting there crowing and feathers on the ground. What can i do, my big guy has resigned to being just a chicken not a breeder or head flock master, he knows his condition and is surrendering it to his son but the son just won't stop harassing him. I just want my old rooster to be able to live out what little life he has left in peace he's been a good rooster. Also i only have 5 girls, my husband thought maybe if we got more it might help? the girls we got now are fine with him being around and one would rather be with him. or does it sound like he will need a separate coop/run for himself, mine pretty much free range the yard. sorry so long I'm just looking for ideas thanks in advance!

 

[aart]

Sounds like you had a good run of cock/erels over 8 years.....now you have a 'bad' one.
Get rid of 1 or keep the 2 separated.

You have basically added a new bird,
the old birds don't 'remember' him,
and a weak one(due to his injury/disability) at that.

It's not surprising that the bantam cock is attacking.

 

[azygous]

You already understand the problem, and are asking for ideas on how you can manage it.

Well, Aart mentioned a couple general solutions. There's no easy out, I'm afraid. Your two cocks will keep fighting as long as they are allowed access to each other. That's a given.

So, if you wish to keep Old Faithful, make him a protective pen so he can be safe from getting beat up by the younger one, but still enjoy talking to the girls and watching them.

Or let the youngster patrol the exterior of the run, leaving the old guy inside with the girls. I've employed this strategy with good results.

You can trade off "duties" with the two boys, alternating who's in with the girls and who ranges outside the run, letting the one outside back in at the final moment before roosting to avoid confrontations.

You can see why culling is the preferred solution for many chicken keepers.

 

[ChickenGoesRuff]

I had a new silkie rooster that would only show aggression to my iowa blue rooster. I had to put the silkie in a dog kennel in the coop with his own feed and water for a week. He tried to attack through the fence, but after day 3 he was showing indifference to my other rooster. Other than that, all of my roosters (different batches of chicks put together at maturity) get along or get kenneled for a few days.

 

[scooby]

well the problem with splitting them is i have a big coop that has a little door to the lamb pen/run that the bigger girls and rooster can't get out of when all the doors are shut, for the most part i leave the actual door in the coop open so they can just free range and go out in the field. the problem is that even though my big girls/ rooster can't get out. the banty rooster can cause he is smaller can get in he can just jump /fly or fit right through the fence of the run. i tried earlier today to put my big rooster in our "dog run" which is basically our side yard that is paneled off with cattle panels, so i set him up in one of our insulated dog houses with shavings/ food/ water. So he had his own "yard" coop food ext ext, he just had to put up with our hounds. he seemed happy and our other rooster NEVER goes in the side yard. left for 2 hrs, came back to check on him and he is missing, was looking everywhere turned around and guess who was in the side yard.... my banty .I am still baffled as to how the big rooster got out cause he is about 15/20 pounds and can't fit through the fencing. So does anyone think getting more girls would help? 'v been switching them in and out the house do you think it would make a difference if i penned my banty in the rabbit cage in the coop for a few days like "chickensgoesruff" suggested? or is it basically just get rid of one or pen one in, its snowy here and we can't exactly build a new coop or put in fencing would be a pain in the frozen ground so i think it would be a last ditch effort to do that!

 

[aart]

well the problem with splitting them is i have a big coop that has a little door to the lamb pen/run that the bigger girls and rooster can't get out of when all the doors are shut, for the most part i leave the actual door in the coop open so they can just free range and go out in the field. the problem is that even though my big girls/ rooster can't get out. the banty rooster can cause he is smaller can get in he can just jump /fly or fit right through the fence of the run. i tried earlier today to put my big rooster in our "dog run" which is basically our side yard that is paneled off with cattle panels, so i set him up in one of our insulated dog houses with shavings/ food/ water. So he had his own "yard" coop food ext ext, he just had to put up with our hounds. he seemed happy and our other rooster NEVER goes in the side yard. left for 2 hrs, came back to check on him and he is missing, was looking everywhere turned around and guess who was in the side yard.... my banty .I am still baffled as to how the big rooster got out cause he is about 15/20 pounds and can't fit through the fencing. So does anyone think getting more girls would help? 'v been switching them in and out the house do you think it would make a difference if i penned my banty in the rabbit cage in the coop for a few days like "chickensgoesruff" suggested? or is it basically just get rid of one or pen one in, its snowy here and we can't exactly build a new coop or put in fencing would be a pain in the frozen ground so i think it would be a last ditch effort to do that!

I do not think so.
Securing pens to positively confine birds would be the first move.

 

[scooby]

well thanks for the info sounds like i have no choice but to do some building ! any ideas for a cheap/ easy Run LOL!

 

[aart]

well thanks for the info sounds like i have no choice but to do some building ! any ideas for a cheap/ easy Run LOL!

Livestock/cattle panel hoop house.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Quote:
The blame lies with the old rooster. He still refuses to give up his former place in the pecking order of things and give way to the new reality of the barn yard power structure. Like all old codgers, loosing ones youth is a terrible fate to face. If you want the old guy to father chicks again you will need to single mate him, that means the old rooster and only one hen in in his pen and no way that the new cock-of-the-walk can fight through the wire at his daddy. Face facts, with the health issues that you have listed i also doubt that the old mans semen is viable. Time waits for no man and roosters are no exception to this rule.