This may sound very stupid.......

[simplysophie]

Can roos fall in love or have favorite hens? Because i think our roo hagrid is in love..

he makes her a nest and escorts her to it, and he refuses to move until she is done. What do you chicken experts think?

 

[Stephanie739]

I think that is precious! All animals have emotions, don't they?

 

[gryeyes]

Absolutely! My dominant roo loves a special hen. She is the only one who can refuse his advances and he still snuggles with her, she has Roost Rights next to him at night, and they groom each other. He brings her treats (but he does that with other hens too...) He'll jump other hens, but not Rebecca.

And a couple of other Roos have their favorites, too.

 

[Pele]

Aw, that sounds so cute! I'm not sure roosters 'love' in the same sense that humans do, but it's not uncommon for a roo to have a favorite hen

. Chickens have different personalities, and it's not hard to imagine that some get along better than others.

Now, roosters being roosters, no amount of affection will keep them manogamous with their favorite hen......

 

[corgiscatsandchickens]

I'm not an expert, but in my experience the answer is yes.

Back in the day our free ranging bantam roos paired off with a particular hen and the couple stayed together regardless of the roo's or the hen's social order within the flock.

Today we have 7 Barred Rocks. 1 Roo, 6 hens. He has always been extremely fond of one particular hen, even when they were chicks. She was dominant hen for a long time, then as the other girls matured faster, she fell to lowest in the pecking order. Now that she's maturing, she's right around the middle, working her way back up. No matter where she's been on the social order, she has always been the roo's favorite. They roost side by side, he keeps the others from picking on her too much, he mates with her the most, brings her treats. Very sweet. She is the only hen you can cuddle without the roo getting jealous.

 

[sourland]

I doubt that it is 'love', but animals of all species have favorite 'friends.' I once saw a video of two elephants that had been in the same circus, were seperated when the circus folded, and reunited many years later at a sanctuary in Tennessee. Their trumpeting, caressing through the fence and general 'carrying on' brought tears to my eyes. They very evidently had deep feelings for one another.

 

[galanie]

Quote:
My roo has a special girl like that too. And she LOVES her boy! I mean she just loves him to pieces. She spends her every waking hour close to him and sometimes even snuggles under him on the roost. He acts all "who cares" toward her but she can refuse his advances, everything you list, and it's all fine. None of the others can get by with that.

 

[simplysophie]

Its the opposite with us, she is the only one who accepts his advances

It makes him feel very special Im sure

 

[sunnyvera]

We too have a special rooster/hen love story going on. They are the same age (8 months old). All the chickens stay in the pen, but Lynn and Inga escape over the fence TOGETHER regularly. We got tired of fetching them and bringing them back. Now, it is not a big deal. By evening, they are all in the coop with the others. They sleep snuggled together in the exact same roost spot every nite and are funny to watch. Clearly, they are each others favorite.

 

[gritsar]

My roos have all had special hens and right now I have a pullet that is starstruck by the roo. She follows him everywhere, including sleeping in the coop he sleeps in rather than the one she grew up in.