Thoughts on Roosters??

[Cookies-Chickens2004]

Any tips on how to react to roosters if they start showing signs of aggression?

Any tips on how to react to roosters if they start showing signs of aggression?

Don't turn your back on them, make yourself big and loud if he approaches you, catch him and hold him for about 5-10 mins, then hold him to the ground and wait till he relaxes and becomes submissive. Then you can release him and see what he does. If he approaches again repeat the process. I walk around with him so the hens can see how I fit into the flock. My hens that are being bred ragged will seek me out to keep him off them for a bit.

 

[ThePhoebeFive]

Don't turn your back on them, make yourself big and loud if he approaches you, catch him and hold him for about 5-10 mins, then hold him to the ground and wait till he relaxes and becomes submissive. Then you can release him and see what he does. If he approaches again repeat the process. I walk around with him so the hens can see how I fit into the flock. My hens that are being bred ragged will seek me out to keep him off them for a bit.

Yes, I agree, but also if you can start with a chick and handle him tons when he's little that goes a long way to preventing aggression at all.

 

[Farmlife16]

You want to get rid of him because you haven’t had any predator action?

I have had losses due to predators, though thankfully a lot less than I could be having with the wildlife in my area

 

[Farmlife16]

Are roosters worth it? As far as protecting from predators...​

If the only protection a group of chickens has is a rooster then the answer is most definitely yes. Unfortunately this is the primary role many keepers expect the rooster to fullfill and unfortunately often the rooster is expected to fullfill this roll with a massive life threatening handicap.

For a group of chickens mainly contained in a coop and run the roosters options on how to go about protecting his hens is severly limited. A predator breaks in and the rooster it seems is expected to take on the predator and defeat it. In most cases that's rather like a cage fight between a cat and a mouse. The mouse is going to lose because all those stratagies a mouse has to keep his family safe are useless if the keeping conditions don't allow him to use them.

If one is going to keep a rooster and hens confined then the confinement should be built well enough to ensure the rooster is never going to have to fight a predator in such conditions.

I had never kept confined chickens until very recently, they've always been free range and until one has kept free range chickens one has very little idea of just how much difference a rooster can make to the safety of the group. It's not about his ability to fight, it's a books worth of behaviors that confined roosters never learn and those that are innate, he never gets to practice.

My answer to the question therefore is it depends on how the chickens are kept.

This is a great point! Mine range on pasture, so I'd assume that the rooster would definitely have the room and opportunity to protect my hens well.

 

[Farmlife16]

He’s a beauty; did you raise him? I would say give him a try. You might be surprised.

I had a young rooster who was gorgeous, but he ended up being extremely aggressive, and caused a lot of drama with the hens, he was very good at keeping an eye to the sky, but the trouble and drama he caused made everyone miserable.

Unfortunately he was aggressive to people, attacked my mum constantly, then he started attacking me; he also was pretty much just attacking and having his way with the hens.

He was so big he overpowered my poor silkies and my smaller EE hens. I ended up processing him with a couple other young Roo; I thought about trying to rehome him, but around here no one wants Roos other then for eating. I didn’t want someone getting my Roos, throwing them all into a small coop all fighting getting injured, and being stressed before they are processed - so I kept them so they had a good life till I could get them processed.

The change in my hens was amazing when the Roo was gone (the young Roos never bothered them). There was no drama, the hens were quietly running around doing their thing, the silkies and smaller hens came out and started enjoying themselves.

Then I had an opportunity to get a Polish Roo; I thought long and hard on this, but I gave him a try. What an amazing Roo, the girls all love him, he enjoys making nests and hanging out in the nests. He tidbits, he has a favourite hen - my black silkie hen Marty, they are like an old married couple.

This year I raised a bunch of chicks and he was good with them, he didn’t interact with them much but he also did bother them, mostly he just looks on and enjoys life.

I enjoy having him around, so much that I am keeping one of the Roo chicks to be raised by Mr P’s example - so far Rico the Wee Man is behaving and acting like a good Roo should.

View attachment 3550566

So I say, keep you gorgeous boy and give him time to grow, and see how he does, he’s a beauty and looks like he would a wonderful addition to your gang.

Thanks for the complement, but that's not my roo Somehow an attachment made it's way onto my original post. I have no idea how that happened
I'll try getting a picture of my roo, so all the wonderful people who have responded to my thread can see him

 

[Rosmarino]

I've had chickens now for a few years, but never a rooster. I have a beautiful roo that I am thinking about keeping, but I'm honestly nervous that he's going to end up being aggressive and be more of a headache than he's worth. The main reason I'd keep him is to help protect against predators, but I'm not convinced it will make that much of a difference. Those that have or have had roosters, what are your thoughts on this?

I have my third Australorp rooster now (one died in defending the hens, another one I gave to another flock). They are huge birds but so gentle. I have never seen mine being forceful to the hens, almost politely asking and accepting if refused. They are also very friendly to other roosters. He never eats himself but showing the hens the food and then watches. When his favourite hen is in the laying box he is sitting in the neighbour box to give her company (or annoy her...) I find roosters the sweetest thing about keeping chickens

 

[ThePhoebeFive]

I have my third Australorp rooster now (one died in defending the hens, another one I gave to another flock). They are huge birds but so gentle. I have never seen mine being forceful to the hens, almost politely asking and accepting if refused. They are also very friendly to other roosters. He never eats himself but showing the hens the food and then watches. When his favourite hen is in the laying box he is sitting in the neighbour box to give her company (or annoy her...) I find roosters the sweetest thing about keeping chickens

Oh my goodness, my EE does the same thing. He'll sit in the nest box with them!

 

[OhioStateCluckeyes]

A good roo will alert the girls to danger and sacrifice himself to save them. It’s their instinct. I personally will never be with out one again. They keep the peace amongst the hens, they show them where the food is and where a good nesting area is, and you’ll get fertlized eggs that you can incubate if you choose.

Did it change your ability to handle your hens? Mine are very affectionate and i would hate to lose that

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I have a few Roos & love them all. Each has a unique personalities & crows as well as other sounds they make. I've gotten quite attached to my boys. I'm also very grateful for how they tend to their hens, from offering all delicious treats to hens 1st & alerting them to potential danger. There are many predators here at all times, hawks, falcons, foxes, neighbor's cats & dogs, raccoons, possums, skunks, saw some otters a few times pond hopping, an occasional coyote. I haven't been able to fence in, but most predators can jump, climb or dig their way in, anyway. What I have done is build predator proof pens for each Roo & his group of hens. I only free range them when I am outside with them, mostly daily intervals after work weather permitting & a few full days per week when I am there working on an outside project or can have the shop garage door open to keep an eye out. Now the predators here, have been living here with their routines longer than people bought parcels & moved in, as it was farmland for generations. It is still surrounded on 3 sides by farmland, so honestly at any given moment, day or night, you can plainly see foxes right on my property. Right now 2 vixens have raise 2 litters of kits, and they love rolling around the grass & playing where my property meets the cornfields. They often lay in the sun watching me do my chores. The 1 vixen has decided she enjoys my company & lays down by the firepit when I've got scrap wood to burn. Amazingly, she took notice of me getting photos of gorgeous sunsets a few years ago, and now sits down to gaze up at them with me. I'm not saying I trust wild foxes, but we do seem to have a synergy going. The foxes chase off the coyotes. I know they would love chicken for dinner if they had the opportunity, though. Even with me standing there, they'll trot right up, mostly to see what I am doing...but at times have been within 5 feet of me & my grub & worm pecking flock. All of my Roosters are sweet with me, I can hold, pet, fuss over & sit with each one on my lap...but let me tell ya, the Roos will give the alert to the hens, which gets them to safety, then puff up & strut with serious demeanor, letting foxes know Mr. Roo will Not be intimidated. Some of my hens are seniors & not so fast, & while I am outside I can't be everywhere, as I'm usually doing some digging, raking, pruning, painting, woodworking or the other 90 million items on the to-do list, so I do appreciate my Roosters very much. They let us All know what's going on & who is here. I can tell just by their vocalizations if it's a hawk, fox, stray dog, cat or just a nosy passerby. I currently have 12 Roosters, all quite wonderful. Breeds are Barred Rock, Buff Orpington, Easter Egger, Rhode Island Red & Wyandotte. I can't imagine life without them.

I also added 4 Guineas & they certainly raise a ruckus. They seem to get along fine with my Chickens, Roosters & Homing Pigeons...all are out on nice weather days when I am there. Guineas are funny, they don't like trespassers either but their vocalizations are not as diverse as the Roosters. One Rooster...a Buff Orpington named Romeo, he actually says a loud, long "Wow" when a hawk is flying. I notice Everyone looks up, & sure enough, there's a Red Tail soaring gracefully or a Cooper zooming way up high. It is awesome having such an alarm system! Plus I just love the sound of crowing. Most of the photos in my phone are of my handsome boys lol. Keep your boy & give him a chance, he may just become one of your best decisions.

 

[Snoopy11]

I'm newer to the chicken arena than most here... BUT! I now have 2 roosters... and they are quite an invincible duo. Thus far, the 2 roosters have not butted-heads... I'm playing it by ear. If they began fighting, I would have to get rid of the younger roo.

Hawks are a problem in my area... but the hawks steer clear of our roos.

Obviously, a roo is no match for a racoon or coyote or fox or... I think you see my point.

But... a handy thing they are. Ever since I have had a full grown roo, I have never lost a girl to a hawk. Being aggressive is part of the roo survival skill. You DEFINITELY can be friends with a roo... just know that you can't really 'train' them out of their negative behaviors. Those behaviors merely come with having a roo. They were created to be protectors... and I can honestly say that a roo brings A LOT of order to a flock. Roosters can't really do serious damage to the human body, this much we know. Flogging is painful... spurs are not fun... but the best thing you can do if you are being approached by a roo in an aggressive manner is picking up your foot, pointing it at the roo, and using the tip of your foot to keep him at bay. He will learn very quickly that he is no match.

Spraying an aggressive roo in the face with water only makes them MORE angry. NEVER EVER hit or strike a roo in any way. If it comes to violence, cull the bird. NO abuse or physical confrontation helps the situation. DO NOT remove the bird's spurs under any circumstance. Also beware if you live in a very cold environment, a roo can get frostbite on their comb and wattle very easily, particularly if their wattle gets wet.

You can always carry a stick or some other type of device to protect yourself... but NEVER use it for anything other than a GUIDE. Be careful of what you wear and what you carry. Sometimes things such as high boots or carrying a bucket can cause them to go into alert mode and attack. This is perfectly normal.

CONSTANTLY talk to your roo. Make some sort of phrase that you repeatedly say to them every time you see them. For me, I say to my roo, "Ash, you're such a big boy" in a certain voice. (I have a different phrase for my other roo). That way he knows, whatever I am wearing or carrying around, it is me, his friend. EVERY time he comes around, say that phrase to him, talk to him, etc. It is VERY helpful to bring some sort of food such as oatmeal, particularly if you are out walking and exercising in the free range area of the roo.

It is very important that you have a working relationship with a roo. They are so incredible and rewarding. Watching them find food for the girls, etc... it is all a very amazing part of creation.

EDIT: OH, and don't be afraid if your roo comes around you dancing, etc. Most of the time, he is merely showing-off...

Don