When can you tell what kind of personality a maturing rooster will have?

[Zinniah]

He is 4 & 1/2 months old. I think he is still figuring out who he is right now, the "teenage years". I know some roosters are mean, some aren't, some are protective and some aren't. At what age can I tell what kind of guy he is going to be? Right now he crows well, not all day, only in the morning, a few for times for an unknown reason. Once or twice a day he will argue or have some type of competition with the 2 other roosters that live a few houses away, can last for many minutes. He is still learning to mate with the hens, i haven't seen him do it successfully. His dance is changing a lot and he doesn't bite their neck feathers anymore after his failed dance, he just accepts they don't get it and wanders off, before he would bite them and have a tantrum. Though now i have noticed their tail feathers are looking pretty ragged, i think he is trying to mate them, when im not around. He also seems oblivious to dangers, a couple of hawks flew by and he didn't notice or did and just didn't think of them as dangerous. There was also a stray cat, that would lean up against the other side of the fence and watch them. I was outside though, so perhaps he sees me as the protector, i did chase the cat away in the end. I don't expect him to protect he hens from danger, but i mean, like a warning call or something would be nice. I thought he would try to find food for his girls, he is actually quite rude at the moment. He chases the girls all over the yard and steals their food. Today one girl caught this little snake/lizard thing he chased her down a fought her for it. He quickly won and ate it. She was so upset, she kept letting out these very loud growling like sounds after that.......

 

[youngchooklover]

He is 4 & 1/2 months old. I think he is still figuring out who he is right now, the "teenage years". I know some roosters are mean, some aren't, some are protective and some aren't. At what age can I tell what kind of guy he is going to be? Right now he crows well, not all day, only in the morning, a few for times for an unknown reason. Once or twice a day he will argue or have some type of competition with the 2 other roosters that live a few houses away, can last for many minutes. He is still learning to mate with the hens, i haven't seen him do it successfully. His dance is changing a lot and he doesn't bite their neck feathers anymore after his failed dance, he just accepts they don't get it and wanders off, before he would bite them and have a tantrum. Though now i have noticed their tail feathers are looking pretty ragged, i think he is trying to mate them, when im not around. He also seems oblivious to dangers, a couple of hawks flew by and he didn't notice or did and just didn't think of them as dangerous. There was also a stray cat, that would lean up against the other side of the fence and watch them. I was outside though, so perhaps he sees me as the protector, i did chase the cat away in the end. I don't expect him to protect he hens from danger, but i mean, like a warning call or something would be nice. I thought he would try to find food for his girls, he is actually quite rude at the moment. He chases the girls all over the yard and steals their food. Today one girl caught this little snake/lizard thing he chased her down a fought her for it. He quickly won and ate it. She was so upset, she kept letting out these very loud growling like sounds after that.......

I spend a lot of time with my chickens so I know there personalizes very well.
I would say he's just young. The older the rooster gets the more caring he gets for his hens.
You can't judge him for fighting other roosters all roosters do that.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

it can take a rooster a year to mature and show his qualities.

 

[chickmomma03]

I'm trying to give mine time too. My son's father said they're just like teens when they're this age. Mine is almost 6mos now and gets a little cocky (no pun intended) sometimes. He will shake his leg, veer toward me, and let me know when he's in a foul mood.

 

[Zinniah]

I spend a lot of time with my chickens so I know there personalizes very well.
I would say he's just young. The older the rooster gets the more caring he gets for his hens.
You can't judge him for fighting other roosters all roosters do that.

I think he is just young as well, he has a lot of growing to do. I think it takes like a whole year for them to be 100% grown physically and mentally. He isn't fighting other roosters, they cant even see each other. They just yell at each other, i don't think it is a bad thing. I'm just wondering it if it means he is being more manly or trying to have like a better crow than the other ones.

 

[Zinniah]

it can take a rooster a year to mature and show his qualities.

thanks, i thought maybe that was the case. i wasn't sure if it took a year for both, or just he the personality/physical part.

 

[Zinniah]

I'm trying to give mine time too. My son's father said they're just like teens when they're this age. Mine is almost 6mos now and gets a little cocky (no pun intended) sometimes. He will shake his leg, veer toward me, and let me know when he's in a foul mood.

Even f he turns out to be an angry guy, im keeping him, he will just have to have his own little area to live in. He seems like a good guy, i spend a lot of time out there with him. He seems to be having a hard time figuring himself out. I did a lot of google searches and i think its normal, since these are my first chickens, i guess i just find it odd. His "dancing" really is odd to me, its like he has a split personality. He is always doing it a different way or not all all, or he will start and then just walk away lol.....

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have had some buttheaded roosters turn into nice ones by separating them and letting the calm down and mature, judging a rooster at 6 months is like judging a 16 year old boy, you might be seeing all there is or you just have to wait until they become more responsible.

The main thing I want out of my young boys is for them to run from me, it shows respect and sensibility, a young rooster who is following me or standing and facing me is thinking about how to best challenge me. It's best to take some time to toss something in his direction so he gets startled every time he sees me, it's usually enough to change their minds about coming after me.

I separate if they are harassing the hens too much or if they are being too rough, otherwise I let them be, I always keep one eye on them, especially if I turn my back. Most turn into nice roosters who never think about me as something to attack, I can handle and chase hens without trouble, if they mate in my presence they get chased off.

Just some of my practices.

 

[trailrider330]

He's going to need time to mature. He is like a kid hitting puberty so he hasn't had any time to learn any finesse. Give him time and he will eventually get it. In the meantime, your hens are most likely going to get a little beat up while he learns what to do. Hence, if it is causing them too much stress, you may want to separate them for a bit.

How old are your hens? Sometimes putting a younger cock in with older hens can help because the older hens will put him in his place and teach him some manners.

How many hens do you have? Recommended numbers are 1 roo for every 8-10 females.

 

[chickmomma03]

Quote: Mine shakes his leg when he's ******. And then charges in the opposite direction of the leg shake, so if he shakes the left he charges to the right, if he shakes the right he charges to the left. He does a little scuffle shuffle when he's ticked too. Then he will puff his feathers, flap his wings, and crane his head around. I try to just give him space when he's having a bad attitude.