Taming a Rooster?

[Wickedchicken6]

Are you keeping your rooster to raise chicks?
Or are you keeping him for protection and/or other reasons?

If you are keeping him to produce chicks, it is possible that he may pass his unsavoury attitude to his offspring. When selecting animals or birds for breeding stock, it is preferable for those selected replacements to exhibit the temperament and docility you desire. That alone disqualifies him. Safety is paramount. Especially with a two-year-old. If you already dread having to deal with him...he should be long gone already.

 

[HeartsDelight]

If a bird is so aggressive you are afraid of him and worried about being alone with him, it is time to cull. There really isn't any salvaging a relationship with a bird you distrust that deeply.

 

[Nin8705]

Are you keeping your rooster to raise chicks?
Or are you keeping him for protection and/or other reasons?

If you are keeping him to produce chicks, it is possible that he may pass his unsavoury attitude to his offspring. When selecting animals or birds for breeding stock, it is preferable for those selected replacements to exhibit the temperament and docility you desire. That alone disqualifies him. Safety is paramount. Especially with a two-year-old. If you already dread having to deal with him...he should be long gone already.

For protection. I get why my husband wants to keep him. We don’t have a cover on the outside part when they go out. So to help with predators I get it, but is there a certain type of breed of rooster that is friendly for there owners

 

[Alexandra33]

Most frequently advised "fixes" are to fight back. While this may work in a few cases, I don't recommend it. First of all, by attaining position of head rooster, you're increasing chances of future attacks. Think about how roos interact, the manner in which they treat each other. Dominant males often face confrontations with their power-hungry subordinates in order to remain at the top of the pecking order. Why else are roosters known for violent scuffles? Mimic his kind, he'll treat you as his kind....this includes regular challenges.

Secondly, why keep roosters if the situation only makes life miserable for both sides? It's bad enough he's aggressive, and could inflict serious injury upon unprepared individuals, but intentionally returning violence? Nobody benefits. In my opinion, it's far more humane to get rid of a roo (however one chooses, whether it be rehome or slaughter) than resort to kicking, poking with sharp objects, and preventing natural behaviors, thereby instilling even deeper fear/disrespect. Handling any other creature this way would generally be considered maltreatment, therefore, roosters shouldn't be an exception. I'm passionate because I've been there, done that.....ruined countless cockerels in the past, and still regret it.

Protective roosters are hit-or-miss. Some provide safety, others don't. There's no guarantee your handsome boy will take care of his hens, sadly.

Hopefully the wonderfully experienced members I tagged will chime in with their wise input.

~Alex

 

[LRH97]

Yes he’s a jerk to me. Actually he is to anyone who tries to go in to the coop. My husband has tried showing him who’s boss and it work for a couple days and then he’s right back at it. I hate to admit it but I’m kind of afraid of him. Im not looking forward to the two weeks I’m flying solo and having to take care of them by myself

You shouldn't be afraid of your birds. You should enjoy them. There are plenty more roos out there to try. Or maybe don't have one at all. That's a decision you'll have to make. In regard to protection, I have five roos now and they're early warning systems at best. I still take losses from predation. The stories of gallant roos dying for their hens are really exceptions rather than rules. I do think it's worth noting that I have had way more well behaved roos than foul ones. Don't let one bird ruin the rewarding aspects of keeping chickens. Keep in mind, cull doesn't necessarily mean kill. It really just means remove. If you don't want to butcher him, offer him for sale as a butcher bird (be sure to note his aggression). I usually sell excess roos for cheap and the Amish usually scoop them up from me. That's just an idea.

Best of luck to you!

Most frequently advised "fixes" are to fight back. While this may work in a few cases, I don't recommend it. First of all, by attaining position of head rooster, you're increasing chances of future attacks. Think about how roos interact, the manner in which they treat each other. Dominant males often face confrontations with their power-hungry subordinates in order to remain at the top of the pecking order. Why else are roosters known for violent scuffles? If you act like his kind, he'll treat you as his kind....this includes regular challenges.

Secondly, why keep roosters if the situation only makes life miserable for both sides? It's bad enough he's aggressive, and could inflict serious injury upon unprepared individuals, but intentionally returning violence? No one benefits. In my opinion, it's far more humane get rid of a roo (however one chooses, whether it be rehome or slaughter) than resort to kicking, poking with sharp objects, and preventing natural behaviors, thereby instilling even deeper fear/disrespect. Handling any other creature this way would generally be considered maltreatment, therefore, roosters shouldn't be an exception. I'm passionate because I've been there, done that.....ruined countless cockerels in the past, and still regret it.

Protective roosters are hit-or-miss. Some provide safety, others don't. There's no guarantee your handsome boy will take care of the hens, sadly.

Hopefully the wonderfully experienced members I tagged will chime in with their input.

~Alex

Absolutely agree!

 

[Wickedchicken6]

For protection. I get why my husband wants to keep him. We don’t have a cover on the outside part when they go out. So to help with predators I get it, but is there a certain type of breed of rooster that is friendly for there owners

Out of all the roosters we've had over the last couple of years, only two have had poor temperaments. I have 15 roosters that live together. They are separate from the 14 or so roosters I have in with my hens. Every rooster in either coop can be picked up, handled and have anyone walk amongst them with zero negative reactions. (Other than a few being jealous of another rooster getting more attention when being pet or held. But I have hens that do the same.)

It is much more enjoyable to have a rooster with a good temperament. There are roosters out there that would be considerably more enjoyable than the fellow you have now.

I have multiple breeds of both large and small chickens; Cuckoo and Black Copper Marans, Easter Eggers, Faverolle, Ameraucauna, Old English Game Bantams, Silkies, mixed breed bantams and a couple I'm not certain about. I have roosters of most of the above breeds. All are docile and easily handled. But most have been hatched here from breeding stock I've selected. The top two traits on our selection list are conformation and temperament. A good breeder will select for temperament. However, the last rooster I got (he was given to me by a relative who doesn't want roosters) was from hatchery stock. He is a lovely fellow and easily handled. He'd never been handled before.

If it were me, pick a breed you like and go from there.

 

[Shadrach]

View attachment 1693221 Is that even possible? I have a black sex link rooster that I have a love hate relationship with. He’s so beautiful but he is such a jerk. Hes just so mean. This is the only real good pic I have of him and my husband took it.

Part of the problem I see most often in the ‘bad rooster’ threads is directly attributable to a persons perception of their rooster. Your rooster has absolutely no idea about good and bad behavior. He is behaving in a perfectly acceptable manner as far as he is concerned, should you be able to discuss such a point with him. You may think you’re Mr or Mrs lovely who bring him food, provides him with shelter, cares for the hens, etc, but he obviously doesn’t see it that way.
The question is why?
He is not going to be able to explain to you why he behaves as he does so you are going to have to work it out.
Some people are not interested and don’t have the time or patience and in such cases it is probably best all round if they get rid of the rooster and in my opinion, never get another. I read of people who have got one rooster after another until they’ve found one that behaves as they would like. This may be okay when dealing with people because you just ‘dump’ the person, but unfortunately with roosters in the above situation, people kill them. It’s a regrettable view imo that because a creature other than a human behaves in a way that one can’t cope with or don’t like, killing that creature is on the options list. Apply that to humans and we wouldn’t have the population problems we have.
Step 1 with a rooster is to realise that the hens and the territory he and they inhabit is his; not yours. For some people this first step is way to difficult because it effects all their conception regarding rights of ownership and ego.
Interestingly I’ve found a marked difference in the behavior of the chickens when they are in my house to their behavior when I am in their territory, even with the hens. Some may find this ridiculous but chickens differentiate and adjust their behavior from territory to territory. It is fairly obvious if you watch chickens in a free range setting moving between territories. They are in general a lot smarter than we give them credit for.
It’s also important to accept that roosters are supposed to be aggressive; it’s not a personality fault, it’s how they protect their genes.
Then you're left with the problem of working out if the rooster sees you as a member of his flock, or as a threat. If he sees you as a flock member and you aren’t behaving as he believes you should (just like some will try to force a rooster to behave as they think they should) then you have probably led the rooster to consider you in this way. A check on how you’ve dealt with your rooster in the past should give you some insight. If you’ve petted him and hand fed him and played with him and the hens, he may well see you as a flock member.
If he sees you as a threat it’s generally not that he’s scared of you, this should be obvious if he is prepared to attack you, he’s concerned that you are in some way undermining his authority and a great many people do this without even thinking about it.
The easiest starting point is to accept that he is the boss. They are his hens and not yours, it’s his territory and not yours.
If for example we were talking about a pack of wolves your behavior would be rather different because your expectation would be different.
Yes chickens have been to some extent domesticated but many are a long way from tame.
I suggest you read all the articles on roosters at BYC. Read some of the threads. Then try the various suggestions until you either run out of patience or find a working compromise.

 

[Nin8705]

Part of the problem I see most often in the ‘bad rooster’ threads is directly attributable to a persons perception of their rooster. Your rooster has absolutely no idea about good and bad behavior. He is behaving in a perfectly acceptable manner as far as he is concerned, should you be able to discuss such a point with him. You may think you’re Mr or Mrs lovely who bring him food, provides him with shelter, cares for the hens, etc, but he obviously doesn’t see it that way.
The question is why?
He is not going to be able to explain to you why he behaves as he does so you are going to have to work it out.
Some people are not interested and don’t have the time or patience and in such cases it is probably best all round if they get rid of the rooster and in my opinion, never get another. I read of people who have got one rooster after another until they’ve found one that behaves as they would like. This may be okay when dealing with people because you just ‘dump’ the person, but unfortunately with roosters in the above situation, people kill them. It’s a regrettable view imo that because a creature other than a human behaves in a way that one can’t cope with or don’t like, killing that creature is on the options list. Apply that to humans and we wouldn’t have the population problems we have.
Step 1 with a rooster is to realise that the hens and the territory he and they inhabit is his; not yours. For some people this first step is way to difficult because it effects all their conception regarding rights of ownership and ego.
Interestingly I’ve found a marked difference in the behavior of the chickens when they are in my house to their behavior when I am in their territory, even with the hens. Some may find this ridiculous but chickens differentiate and adjust their behavior from territory to territory. It is fairly obvious if you watch chickens in a free range setting moving between territories. They are in general a lot smarter than we give them credit for.
It’s also important to accept that roosters are supposed to be aggressive; it’s not a personality fault, it’s how they protect their genes.
Then you're left with the problem of working out if the rooster sees you as a member of his flock, or as a threat. If he sees you as a flock member and you aren’t behaving as he believes you should (just like some will try to force a rooster to behave as they think they should) then you have probably led the rooster to consider you in this way. A check on how you’ve dealt with your rooster in the past should give you some insight. If you’ve petted him and hand fed him and played with him and the hens, he may well see you as a flock member.
If he sees you as a threat it’s generally not that he’s scared of you, this should be obvious if he is prepared to attack you, he’s concerned that you are in some way undermining his authority and a great many people do this without even thinking about it.
The easiest starting point is to accept that he is the boss. They are his hens and not yours, it’s his territory and not yours.
If for example we were talking about a pack of wolves your behavior would be rather different because your expectation would be different.
Yes chickens have been to some extent domesticated but many are a long way from tame.
I suggest you read all the articles on roosters at BYC. Read some of the threads. Then try the various suggestions until you either run out of patience or find a working compromise.

I do understand that and I do need to have more patience and maybe actually go out there more than I do. Right now my husband gets the eggs while I’m inside with my son. So I’m sure that doesn’t help that he doesn’t see me as often as my husband. I have learned that if he does start to ruffle his feathers to just stand there and not move and he will usually start to walk away. I just don’t make any crazy movements.

 

[Shadrach]

I feel I need to point out, I'm not having a go at you and how you are trying to deal with the problem.
What I hope I might have done is suggest that changes in your perception; more so for others that may read this, will make a difference in the end to his behavior.
I understand that it can be very difficult. Behavior can often be attributed to an accumulation of events which on their own seem relatively insignificant.
There is no 'right way' of dealing with this.
While you and he sort yourselves out the only recommendation I can make for all rooster problems is wear clothing that gives you adequate protection. Sometimes just that workd.
I've had roosters here do the full out flogging approach but I wear heavy duty overalls and boots and don't get my face or ungloved hands anywhere near him until we've worked things out. This way I've found he stops bothering to attack because it has no effect and he learns this.
I do seriously wish you the best in trying to sort this problem out. Many people just don't bother.

 

[50-45-1]

At the very least,have your husband go out after dark and take the rooster off the roost and clip his spurs off. Those spurs can do serious damage to you and your 2 year old. Go ahead and google images of INJURED BY MY ROOSTER and look at the fact of what can happen. Most bad roosters wait until you are not looking and attack from behind.
As far as him protecting the flock from preditors, he only truly funtions as a look out. He does not stand a chance fighting off much of anything and will end up a casualty if he tries.
I never keep an aggresive rooster, there are plenty of other rooster to choose from.
Look... he is wrecking the whole joy of having chickens for you and you live in fear of him.
I feel for you and hope you resolve this for the safety of you and your family.