Tonight was the first time I had to shoot one of my chickens.

[Mrs MIA]

Quote:
X2

I agree. He isn't free ranging any more. Problem solved.

I know I stirred up the Momma bear with what I wrote, and please know that I probably would have done the same thing in your shoes. Yes, your baby is more important... that wasn't in dispute.

Thinking on it more, it is likely that you took out the head roo, so as long as you make it clear to the others that YOU are the head roo, you may not have any problems with them. In my humble experience, even the most docile sweet roo will be "aggressive" in the 20-30 week range, where they're fighting for that top spot, and should be penned and kept under a watchful eye until they settle down.
I just wanted others reading this, that might be newbies, to understand that there IS a difference between aggressive and hormonal. That's just part of roosters growing up, and I hate to see them being put down because they're a dime-a-dozen. I hope this makes sense.

 

[KDailey]

Mrs. AK-Bird-Brain :

I'll probably get flamed for this, but this makes me sad. There is a difference between a truly aggressive roo, and one that is just working out the hormones. At 23 weeks old, they're starting to mate, and if there are 3 of them, they're going to be aggressive to anyone that comes by, especially children, just because of raging hormones. If I shot every rooster as it went through puberty, I would have been out of business long before I started.

Now, before you get your panties in a bunch, please understand that I do NOT keep truly aggressive roosters, nor do I breed them, and I most certainly do not sell them to someone else just to get rid of them. I have been spurred myself, and yes, a couple of birds have been sent to Camp Kenmore for less. But only after I have worked with them for a few weeks to determine that they really are aggressive, and not just under the spell of new hormones. You have to understand that at that age, they're GOING to act aggressive no matter what you do, so you have to keep the kids away and keep an eye on them until they figure out what's what. And work with them. For a while. A couple of days isn't going to cut it, it takes patience. Make them understand that YOU are head roo, and the rest will fall into place.

I'm sorry your child was hurt, but the responsible thing to do is to keep them from the chickens until they're old enough to fend for themselves.

I'm actually going to have to agree with Mrs. AK-Bird-Brain on this one. Young roosters have to learn. They're impulsive. They don't understand why they feel the need to act aggressively just yet, they just know it's what they feel the need to do.

You wouldn't shoot your puppy because it bit your son would you? No. Because it has to learn that biting is a no-no. The same goes for roosters.​

 

[BarefootMom]

Mrs. AK-Bird-Brain :

Perhaps the lesson here is not to let the chickens free range. Especially if the kids are in the yard.

so you think you should just keep them in a pen? Seriously? Or just not let your kids play outside? Maybe I am biased b/c I have small kids and I firmly believe in free ranging chickens. I hate to see chickens in a pen with ZERO grass, just doesn't seem healthy and to me it is no better than a CAFO. Penning them ALL the time takes away from the meaning of BACKYARD Chickens.

I had a mean young rooster too and he also was shot. I have several roosters now and they all live happily in the yard while we are all outside. IT is not instinct for any animal to attack a human IMHO.​

 

[KDailey]

Quote:
so you think you should just keep them in a pen? Seriously? Or just not let your kids play outside? Maybe I am biased b/c I have small kids and I firmly believe in free ranging chickens. I hate to see chickens in a pen with ZERO grass, just doesn't seem healthy and to me it is no better than a CAFO. Penning them ALL the time takes away from the meaning of BACKYARD Chickens.

I had a mean young rooster too and he also was shot. I have several roosters now and they all live happily in the yard while we are all outside. IT is not instinct for any animal to attack a human IMHO.

No the idea is to not do both at the same time. Have a time set up for free range for the birds while the kids are at a friends house or inside napping or watching cartoons. When they want to play outside you put the chickens up. It's that simple.

 

[Ifowldown]

Mrs. AK-Bird-Brain :

Quote:
I agree. He isn't free ranging any more. Problem solved.

I know I stirred up the Momma bear with what I wrote, and please know that I probably would have done the same thing in your shoes. Yes, your baby is more important... that wasn't in dispute.

Thinking on it more, it is likely that you took out the head roo, so as long as you make it clear to the others that YOU are the head roo, you may not have any problems with them. In my humble experience, even the most docile sweet roo will be "aggressive" in the 20-30 week range, where they're fighting for that top spot, and should be penned and kept under a watchful eye until they settle down.
I just wanted others reading this, that might be newbies, to understand that there IS a difference between aggressive and hormonal. That's just part of roosters growing up, and I hate to see them being put down because they're a dime-a-dozen. I hope this makes sense.​

From watching them, I don't think he was the head roo. He was the most aggressive with the hens, and the largest of the three roosters, but anytime he tried to mount a hen, the smallest rooster of the three would rush over and knock him off, then if the hen was still squatting there, the smallest guy would breed her. It seems like the smallest guy is the most gentle with the hens, but may also be the head roo. He actually will try and push both of the other roosters off hens.

Aggressive or hormonal makes no difference. It doesn't make it any better to me if my boy gets injured because the rooster was just being hormonal. What will happen next time he is being hormonal? You can't guarantee that a "hormonal" but not "aggressive" rooster will never harm a child again. I can pretty much say 100% for sure, that with the way I dealt with him, he will not harm my son again. (unless he chokes on the drumstick

) I prefer those odds over "hoping" he will turn out nice and always wondering if my boy and the rooster are ever out again at the same time, if he will get attacked again.

 

[Mrs MIA]

Quote:
so you think you should just keep them in a pen? Seriously? Or just not let your kids play outside? Maybe I am biased b/c I have small kids and I firmly believe in free ranging chickens. I hate to see chickens in a pen with ZERO grass, just doesn't seem healthy and to me it is no better than a CAFO. Penning them ALL the time takes away from the meaning of BACKYARD Chickens.

I had a mean young rooster too and he also was shot. I have several roosters now and they all live happily in the yard while we are all outside. IT is not instinct for any animal to attack a human IMHO.

No the idea is to not do both at the same time. Have a time set up for free range for the birds while the kids are at a friends house or inside napping or watching cartoons. When they want to play outside you put the chickens up. It's that simple.

She beat me to it. And no, not all roosters are going to attack humans, but chances are pretty darn high when the hormones take over so why take chances. You have to keep in mind that everyone's situation is different. I have WAY too many chickens to free range, and hubby complains about the poop on the lawn from just the 6 turkeys that I let roam around from time to time. I WISH! If I could, I would let my chickens roam. But I live in an area where we have more predators than people, and I don't like losing my birds to them. I have to keep them penned up, and bring the grass to them. My kids aren't small anymore, but they have a healthy respect for the roosters, and take an active part in reminding them that they are NOT the top dogs. But I never would have allowed my kids near any of my roosters when they were younger because I know they couldn't have possibly fended off one of my big boys. I have had a couple of RIR roosters that, when they became of age, would actually rush the fence when the boys walked by. No amount of handling handled the problem, so they were sent to freezer camp. They were truly aggressive, and I don't tolerate that. But 6-10 month old roosters coming into puberty are more likely to attack someone they perceive to be a threat to them or their girls than an older seasoned rooster... we know that, and we expect it. More likely than not, it's going to happen. So you adjust your situation until it passes.

 

[Mrs MIA]

Quote:

I know I stirred up the Momma bear with what I wrote, and please know that I probably would have done the same thing in your shoes. Yes, your baby is more important... that wasn't in dispute.

Thinking on it more, it is likely that you took out the head roo, so as long as you make it clear to the others that YOU are the head roo, you may not have any problems with them. In my humble experience, even the most docile sweet roo will be "aggressive" in the 20-30 week range, where they're fighting for that top spot, and should be penned and kept under a watchful eye until they settle down.
I just wanted others reading this, that might be newbies, to understand that there IS a difference between aggressive and hormonal. That's just part of roosters growing up, and I hate to see them being put down because they're a dime-a-dozen. I hope this makes sense.

From watching them, I don't think he was the head roo. He was the most aggressive with the hens, and the largest of the three roosters, but anytime he tried to mount a hen, the smallest rooster of the three would rush over and knock him off, then if the hen was still squatting there, the smallest guy would breed her. It seems like the smallest guy is the most gentle with the hens, but may also be the head roo. He actually will try and push both of the other roosters off hens.

Aggressive or hormonal makes no difference. It doesn't make it any better to me if my boy gets injured because the rooster was just being hormonal. What will happen next time he is being hormonal? You can't guarantee that a "hormonal" but not "aggressive" rooster will never harm a child again. I can pretty much say 100% for sure, that with the way I dealt with him, he will not harm my son again. (unless he chokes on the drumstick

) I prefer those odds over "hoping" he will turn out nice and always wondering if my boy and the rooster are ever out again at the same time, if he will get attacked again.

Interesting! Yep, the little guy is definitely head roo. I had to laugh... it's no joke, about the drumstick, but that was funny!

Just my own experience, again, as I've raised a LOT of roosters for my breeding programs, but they usually outgrow it. But in your situation, your peace of mind with regards to your babies is most important. And if you don't want to be constantly watching out for ninja roosters, perhaps holding off on keeping roosters until the babies are older is for the best.

I do hope you enjoy the chicken dinner...

...and, would you believe, I just had to go out and wrangle 50+ birds back into their pen... the pen door got left open, and they were all over the yard.

 

[kfacres]

next time resort to an axe... the chips off the axe head don't break teeth like the pellets of bird shot do.

 

[Ifowldown]

Quote:
The .410 shell from 4 feet away didn't leave any pellets in the meat. The only place it hit him was in the head. It was easier then trying to chase him down and hold him still for the axe, and just as quick and painless a death.

 

[darkmatter]

You did the right thing.

I've been keeping chickens a couple decades now and hatch my own eggs. I use to have problem roosters----they didn't contribute to the gene pool. I haven't had a problem rooster for years now.

P.S. Kids enjoy the taste of a "problem rooster"