What predators can roosters actually kill/fend off?

[chickengeorgeto]

Breeding to some senseless standard is how we ended up with dogs with hip dysplasia or Basset hounds with hearing problems or any of the other problems we humans have fostered on our live stock in vain attempts to tickle our eyes or to stoke our faltering egos.

 

[cgmccary]

Looking at my rooster he's got to be over 10 pounds and his spurs are gnarly... it has got me wondering what kind of creatures a rooster can hold off. I would suspect a neighbor cat going for baby chicks would be in for a rude awakening if a rooster was there to protect them. The skunks around my area are all very small, I couldn't imagine them weighing more than 6 or 7 pounds. I would think the rooster could probably hold it's own against a skunk too. Raccoons are just so destructive I wouldn't hold out much hope for Mr. Rooster but who knows... anyone have any experiences with roosters fending off predators?

Most chicken vs. predator encounters end in the death of the chicken so do not count on rooster coming out on top. The exceptions to this general rule are lucky birds & we all talk about -- but they are the exceptions.

Some exceptions I have heard or witnessed {other than on this forum}: (1) once, my brother saw a Game Rooster on his tether hit and kill a juvenile Red Tailed Hawk that dove in after a hen (though the same game chicken farm has many losses to hawks all the time); (2) Some years ago, I heard my Bantam Game hen screaming one night, I went out with flash light to find her blindly flogging a opossum who was eating one of her chicks it had taken from under her in pitch darkness (I shot & killed the opossum which would have probably killed her next.); (3) One of my 9 lb Buckeye roosters I saw run at and chase off a juvenile Cooper's hawk diving for a hen (the young hawk was probably hungry and inexperienced at hunting) and (4) recently, I witnessed one of my Game Hens with her chicks who hit a large adult (female) Cooper's Hawk diving for her one month old chicks -- the hawk failed to get a chick and the hen flew in the air behind the hawk chasing it away. If you have not experienced it, a game hen with chicks can hit hard like a regular rooster & I have noticed they come for your face.

However, a determined, hungry predator will almost always win against a chicken. Please never trust that a rooster is some kind of deterrent -- he may sacrifice himself first.

I trust my dogs, donkey & mules to be my best defenses. They are more formidable against predators (except hawks).

 

[MrsBachbach]

Your reply has confused me. You seem to have misunderstood my point. I didn't say nor did I assume that you were breeding him, just that my own personal policy is that a human aggressive large fowl rooster does not stay here, that I breed for temperament because it is heritable. Many folks do believe that it's completely fine or tolerable rooster behavior for him to flog the hand that feeds him. No one was even discussing EEs vs Ameraucanas so not sure where that came from. My reference to the Standard of Perfection was only to emphasize how important of a trait I feel temperament is in a rooster, as much as eye color or body type, just as much of a trait to be bred for-had nothing to do with you breeding your rooster. Not sure how you got that from what I said. Please re-read my reply for clarity-it had nothing to do with the breed of your rooster.

You quoted me, and then proceeded to school me. What else was I to think? I was just relating a story from years ago. You came back with all kinds of reasons why that rooster shouldn't have been kept or bred in your opinion. I just wanted to set the record straight, because I do have people here who buy from me and I don't want it assumed by anyone I breed aggressive roosters based on your response.

 

[speckledhen]

You quoted me, and then proceeded to school me. What else was I to think? I was just relating a story from years ago. You came back with all kinds of reasons why that rooster shouldn't have been kept or bred in your opinion. I just wanted to set the record straight, because I do have people here who buy from me and I don't want it assumed by anyone I breed aggressive roosters based on your response.

That was never my intention. I'm sorry you misunderstood, that you took it that way. I was only expressing my policy/opinion, as I usually do. Since you do not know me as others do, you took it the wrong way. You also assumed I knew you bred your chickens and that you bred Ameraucanas from your post, which no one could have ascertained. All you said is you had a "big old EE rooster" and " he was mean, MEAN" that you had to fend him off. So, really, the only person who assumed anything here was you. Sorry you were upset over anything I said, but I was referring to myself, not you.

 

[Our Roost]

In reality, most if not all roosters will sacrifice their lives to protect their flock and offspring. What predators a rooster can actually kill is secondary and more of a boasting as to how and what you have acknowledged or seen. Roosters have 2 purposes in life. Reproduce and protect their flock and offspring. Thats it!

edited by staff

 

[Spifflove]

Buford fought off a full-grwn Husky he did

 

[ElleLovesDucks]

I know this is on roosters, but a wild turkey adopted my hens as family and now chases off cats and dogs (which seem to be the only predators my hens have had to meet.). and I actually had to chase her(/him?) off my neighbors cat before the turkey killed the poor thing. I had considered getting a roo because you can find them free all the time, but with our turkey friend guarding our hens and now our ducks I don't worry too much anymore. They really do protect each other.

 

[chicketydooda]

I have a 7 lbs Cuckoo Maran Rooster that fended off a hawk that was going for a 10 week old hen. I Ran out to see what the squawking was all about and was pretty darn impressed.

 

[tankerman]

Our turkeys have seriously injured two of our hens this week.

Chickens (all the time) and turkeys (when we're home) have free range of our property during the day and are locked up seperately at night. They don't mess with each other while foraging during the day.

For some reason twice this week hens have flown into the turkey pen when we weren't home. The turkeys proceeded to mangle their heads, eyes, combs, pulverizing them to a bloody pulp.

A Buff and Leghorn - Both are bloody messes but are recovering, one without an eye and the other with a very mangled comb.

Suppose turkeys can be considered a predator, on ocassion.

 

[laughingdog]

When i did fighting cock rescue and rehab (as like dogs, any can be rehabilitated), and had some game cock breeds, crosses with, be great flock protection (at night id provide low watt bulb to see ect). You need to keep id say four or five, three at min, to do good sentinel and attack mob work. have had games kill that actually watched: dogs, cats, coons, oppossums, rats, snakes, ect probly more they cornered and mobbed in open, corner of pens, or houses. they had killed many juvi and several adult redtails, coopers, ect smaller BOPs, and one owl that carried a wayward hen off some but hen came back spurs bloody and bunch of feathers missing just at dark next night. horned owl got it that night as i put up some cocks were hen had roosted out night before, and two of the cocks got it with their still sharped spurs cornering it between building and air conditioner.