Suddenly mean rooster ):

[chick mommy]

I have a silkie about 7 months and he was SOOOO cuddly. Now, he attacks me. What do I do to get my sweet boy back? Is there anything???

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Cuddling and petting rooster most often causes the rooster to be confused that you are not a part of his flock, he's trying to dominate you now that he's becoming sexually mature, unfortunately it's near impossible to retrain such roosters, you will probably have to put up with him attacking you or confine him so he can't.

 

[chick mommy]

That's what I'm afraid of. Is there anyway to be dominant over him so he stops attacking?

 

[Jesusfreak101]

Well question if you have kids he be the same with them which is dangerous. But if its just you its dangerous as well but you can try to be the dominent once which may or may not work. You can force him to move out of your way, carry him by his legs upside down, squirt him with water when he crows or tries to mate. Anything that shows your bigger and badder then he ever throught about being but like the previous person said this most likely wont work.

 

[tandykins]

Cuddling and petting rooster most often causes the rooster to be confused that you are not a part of his flock, he's trying to dominate you now that he's becoming sexually mature, unfortunately it's near impossible to retrain such roosters, you will probably have to put up with him attacking you or confine him so he can't.

That's not something I've found to be true at all. All three of my roosters displayed domination behaviour when they reached sexual maturity and I successfully retrained all three of them with very few problems. It's now over a year later and my boys are all gentle again.

When my boys began spurring me and pecking at me, my response might seem counter-intuitive. I'd ignore them. I'd just not react apart from ensuring that my face was safe. I might turn away from them, but I wouldn't even look their way to dignify the attack with a response. Most spurs were barely met with a flinch, no matter how much it hurt. I wasn't going to give them the response they wanted. At some later point, when they weren't behaving aggressively, I would offer them food from my hand as though nothing had happened. They would look at me suspiciously but take it, relaxing.

The key to this is showing the rooster that it has no reason to perceive you as a threat. You aren't a challenge to its ability to mate. You are a food source. A rooster has no reason to feel threatened by a food source.

That's worked marvellously for me thus far. Once or twice my boys have started exhibiting this behaviour again, always after a period where I've neglected their socialization, and all that's been needed is repeating the training. Ignore the spurring, later offer food from hand.

The best advice someone ever gave me when dealing with roosters is that I should never respond to the rooster by reducing myself to its level and becoming a rooster.

 

[JanetMarie]

Being mean to him will likely make him worse.

 

[JanetMarie]

The best advice someone ever gave me when dealing with roosters is that I should never respond to the rooster by reducing myself to its level and becoming a rooster.

True, when you fight them back they will fight back even more.

 

[tandykins]

True, when you fight them back they will fight back even more.

Responding to a rooster attempting to dominate you by mimicing its behaviour only validates its behaviour. You have just shown it that you are something to be threatened by. The behaviour escalates the situation until it is deemed that the rooster is "just aggressive" when often the rooster is just following your lead.

I know that's not a very popular opinion - and that popular perception is that roosters are just unredeemable. If I'd found that, I might agree. I just haven't. I've found a lot of training poultry to be difficult but rehabilitating roosters is not one of them. I'd take rehabilitating a rooster over trying to convince my hens where to lay any day of the week.

 

[Jesusfreak101]

Every person i have talked to or reasearch i have done says that if they fear you it equals respect. Its honestly up to the handler mine big boy went to the freezer he attacked my two year old who feeds the birds and gives them treats he was just about as big as she is no way he saw her as a threat. I am sorry but some roosters are mean and thats it i cuddle mine like the op and that probably made him mean but it could have just been him. I know i did try to retrain him after his attack one but i wanted his blood for his attack on her. He never tried to attack me agian after i chased him around the yard and carried him but he had a short life since his additude towards my daughter. And sorry but any animal that attacks me or my husband or my children goes if it cant be trusted then it will not stay.

 

[SGTChicken]

I had the same problem with my once very friendly rooster. Now that he's feeling his oats he tries to sucker punch me when it's chow time. As awful as it sounds I now post a 5 ft. long tomato stake at the gate to carry with me. It's not a club or anything, just a 1 inch X 1 inch stake. After whacking him a couple of times, not enough to cause injury but to show him who is the dominate roo around here, now all I have to do is drag the stake behind me when heading to the coop for food. He still follows all puffy, just at a safer distance. He's a smart young bird. Now he is dipping his head and ruffling his neck feathers at my 2 year old grandson so I can't turn my back when my little man is with me.