- Mar 23, 2011
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I've had chickens for a long time and always tried to stick with "friendly" breeds because of two young boys. This rooster was considered a "pet", the most behaved Rooster we've ever had. I am thankful the Rooster went for his back instead of his face. Not seen in the photo are the deep scratches to his head. My son stands a little over 4 feet tall.
There was no need to punish the Rooster, he was doing his job, I failed at mine and yes, I'm paying the price. My son loves this particular Roo, and it was his decision not to rehome him.
I realize there are many chicken owners with children who have the question, to Roo or not to Roo and I post this photograph to help you make decisions and take precautions if you decide to Roo. I'm not arguing against Rooster ownership at all, we will own Roosters in the future however, this incident has completely reversed my management of them. It's going to be a pain in the butt to manage the flock in such a way that neither of my sons will be in harms way yet continue to reap the benefits of poultry ownership. My story represents the ugly side of poor management/parenthood. Please use this incident as a tool and not a platform for bashing. Go the extra mile to protect your children, it's a pain yes but we owe it to them and visitors as well.
For what it's worth, my son was back to feeding his hens about 20 minutes after the attack (the Rooster was isolated). He also had a long sleeve shirt and full face helmet on and Daddy was two steps behind.
There was no need to punish the Rooster, he was doing his job, I failed at mine and yes, I'm paying the price. My son loves this particular Roo, and it was his decision not to rehome him.
I realize there are many chicken owners with children who have the question, to Roo or not to Roo and I post this photograph to help you make decisions and take precautions if you decide to Roo. I'm not arguing against Rooster ownership at all, we will own Roosters in the future however, this incident has completely reversed my management of them. It's going to be a pain in the butt to manage the flock in such a way that neither of my sons will be in harms way yet continue to reap the benefits of poultry ownership. My story represents the ugly side of poor management/parenthood. Please use this incident as a tool and not a platform for bashing. Go the extra mile to protect your children, it's a pain yes but we owe it to them and visitors as well.
For what it's worth, my son was back to feeding his hens about 20 minutes after the attack (the Rooster was isolated). He also had a long sleeve shirt and full face helmet on and Daddy was two steps behind.

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