Tell me about your sweet roosters, please

[Beekissed]

I don't know if I would call my roosters sweet, but they are not aggressive towards us and only mildly aggressive towards each other. Sue, the oldest and a RIR, has tried to "protect" his hens on two occasions but learned quickly not to repeat the performance. They are all very gentle with the hens, though my big blue orp is kind of heavy and takes awhile to balance on the hens....this can't be comfortable for the gals!

 

[lovemychix]

Quote:
Those are some nice pics. Thanks for sharing. My roos aren't nice at all. I've had to rehome all of them.

 

[wings]

It totally depends on how you raise them. I had two roosters that I got as two day old chicks. We held one way more than the other, so it was nice, but the other one was mean.

My rooster lets me hold him, pet him, play with his wattles and combs, and pick up his hens without a problem.

The one that we got rid of (rooster pot pie) was MEAN! He tried to flog me, wouldn't let me hold the hens, and NEVER let me pick him up.

 

[willkatdawson]

I think that's what upsets me the most. I got the as day old thru the mail and raised them in a playpen brooder in my laundry room. My children and I were in the everyday for hours naming them cleaning up after them and just loving them. This little roo from the very beginning was wild. He would run all over the playpen and was hard to hold. At the time we thought he was a she and the kids named it Wilder. Well it sure lived up to it's name. He just gets wilder and wilder.

 

[speckledhen]

The truth is that no matter how you raise a rooster, you may not know how he will be till he hits mating age. Then, with raging hormones, you will have a better idea. ALL my roosters were raised with lots of petting and interaction, but two of them became aggressive as they were coming into maturity(Ameraucana and Delaware). My Barred Rocks are by far the most consistently even-tempered as well as my Blue Orp. To a degree, temperament is heritable.

Of my Barred Rocks, all descended from my late great Hawkeye, only one ever became aggressive to my knowledge. He was uncharacteristically skittish from hatch and literally lost his head later on. But, his full brothers, Dutch, Mace and Zane are all fabulous.

 

[Fresh Eggs]

My ee roo, Oschter Haws [ havs].He has a leg disability, and cannot walk well, but he is very calm and sweet.

 

[ursusarctosana]

My rooster (OEG bantam) went through a teenage stage where he was ornery, but he got over it. He would kick at us and sneak up on us from behind and pinch our ankles. Sometimes I swatted him away and he was a bit of a pansy. Now he only reacts when I wear a red sweater or I go to change the watering containers because they are red. He spurs the plastic bottoms of the containers. I suppose he could accidentally get me, but he wouldn't mean to.

 

[wings]

Rooster Red says that you can discourage nasty rooster behavior with certain strategies, so I think handling is HUGE!!!

 

[americana-chick]

my EE roo is something, out of all of them he seems to really like people (out of all the roosters anyway

)

 

[speckledhen]

Even rooster-red will tell you that those methods may not work. It didnt work for my two and believe me, I tried them. Its definitely worth trying before culling the rooster, but just know that rooster may be a tough case that wont respond to them.