So I have a baby Roo living in the house, and it's time to meet Dad.

[RockwaterFarm]

do it slowly, let him run around with the older chickens while your watching him. but wait until he gets to almost the same size as your smallest hen then he won't get picked on as bad. then slowly work your way from watching him full time to let him in there while you do yard work to full time coop chicken. that is a barred rock correct, Elmo is also very handsome, my cookoo maran's comb is all bloodyfrom fighting with my neighbors rooster (who is much bigger by the way). Great pictures too.

 

[dcphotos]

I let Chirpy run for a while this past weekend. He was amazed the first time he saw the outside world. His mom was the biggest antagonist, but for the most part Elmo rounded the hens into the run, chirpy hopped up the nest box and the hens stayed outside and raised heck for an hour. I've never heard those birds yell like that. I worked in the yard and left him in there about 2 hours, he survived ok.
Now he isn't happy living in a bathtub anymore. He is roosting on a window sill and pooping all over the bathroom, so it's time to move out. My wife said I'll be building him is own coop if he can't get along, and if Elmo attacks him Elmo runs the risk of becoming soup!

 

[dcphotos]

An update on the Chirpy situation. I have let him out in the coop 3 times now. He hops up on the roost and Elmo rounds all the hens up in the corner and they stay away but squawk at him. Every now and then he gets down and runs around and winds up getting attacked. He can't live in the bathtub any longer though, the poo is getting to be too much and he has started crowing in the mornings. It's a cute crow though, kinda sounds like a little kid trying to crow through a gazoo.

So here is my new plan. I'm going to the flea market where I got the others and if the chicken man is there I'm going to buy a hen Chirpy's age. Let the two of them go together, hope that with a companion in his situation things will go down easier, and if he has his own hen maybe Elmo will be a little easier on him.