When will I know if he is a good one?

[Mosey2003]

Roosters should be given more time to correct their behavior than just early on in their teen years..... I mean, I'm sure some of you are mothers who experienced children going through that teenage stage, I'm sure at some point you wanted to put them up for adoption but then you stuck it out and they turned out fine........ right? Hehehe.

Have you successfully rehabilitated a rank rooster?

 

[andreanar]

Going thru the same. I never keep my cockerels after having a really bad experience with our first one. Now, a mama hatched 3 chicks and 1 is a cockerel. He's 13 or so weeks now. I don't have much to do with him, I kinda just let him alone, unless I am checking him over. We are thinking of keeping him so we can hatch our own chicks. We will just have to wait and see.

 

[Shorty22366]

I have 4 cockerels. 2 are silkies at 11 months, 1 Sebright that is 8 months and a favorella that is 4 months. One of my Silkies get an attitude at times but I give him an adjustment and he is fine for another few months. One silkie has always had a good attitude. The Sebright has never showed any aggression and the Favorella is a true sweetheart. They are all good to my girls and babies and me and my husband. Ben (silkie) has run ins with my husband alot but not with me. I do hold and rub my boys and baby them just like the girls.

 

[CCUK]

What breed? (sorry, I probably missed it somewhere back there).

He's an araucana.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

This is my first time raising a cockerel with the intention of keeping him.... I know... his behavior might change... at what age do you think you can accurately judge the temperament of a cockerel?...

Everything being equal mean or man fighting roosters are made by their keepers and not hatched. Man fighting is a response to stress or mistrust between a rooster and his owner/keeper. grabbing him off of a roost at night without awaking him first, children running around, playing, screaming, & holloring can all set a rooster off on a lifetime of human aggression. Dip netting a hen in front of a rooster is almost guaranteed to make a rooster a man or woman fighting fiend. When you get a rooster like this you only have yourself to blame when you catch him and he takes a big chunk of meat out of your forearm and swallows it. A 2x2 foot conditioning stall to house this bad boy in so that you can catch him without drama and handle or massage him (as opposed to petting) is a good way to start manning a rooster. A well behaved rooster should not mind you beating the front of his 2x2 foot stall with a broom if he is well manned. Manned in this respect means comfortable in the presence of humans. BTW, Manned and manors both come from the same root word.

Now this doesn't mean that a rooster will ignore new or unusual things. I use to keep 90 to 150 roosters on my 120 acre farm and any time my wife or any woman for that matter came into view you would think that the devil himself was after them. They were all (hens too) cackling and flying into the overhead wire on their pens trying to escape a 130 pound woman in a skirt. Men with strange hats were almost as bad. But if I was with my visitors or guests there was not nearly as much drama. The sudden naturalization out of thin air of something new or unusual was what set them off.

 

[CSAchook]

Wow! So many great responses! I really appreciate the advice of everyone that has responded so far. I know there are no hard and fast rules about if or when a cockerel or rooster may turn aggressive, but it is really helpful to hear other people's experiences. Thank you!

 

[CSAchook]

Here he is!
View attachment 1542817
UK standard!

He is a handsome fellow!

This is my little guy (and his photo-bombing sister)

 

[llombardo]

I think the biggest thing is to go about your business when near them. I don't do anything different. He is right there when I rake the run, change water, add food or pet the girls. He follows me around while I'm adding bolts here and there to secure the pen. If I'm on the other side, I can look up and he is right there watching me with such a look that I if human I would think he was supervising. He was completely interested in the tarping of the one side. He is used to noise, rakes, brooms, hoses, etc. He has shown zero aggression with visitors such as my son or sister. Of course o stand in front of them at first and watch him, but he shows complete neutral behavior. I feel like if I trust it, he trusts it because I firmly believe he trusts me. The only time I've ever disciplined him was when him and the other boy were challenging each other and he didn't seem hold that against me

Here is my boy Prince

.

 

[CSAchook]

I think the biggest thing is to go about your business when near them. I don't do anything different. He is right there when I rake the run, change water, add food or pet the girls. He follows me around while I'm adding bolts here and there to secure the pen. If I'm on the other side, I can look up and he is right there watching me with such a look that I if human I would think he was supervising. He was completely interested in the tarping of the one side. He is used to noise, rakes, brooms, hoses, etc. He has shown zero aggression with visitors such as my son or sister. Of course o stand in front of them at first and watch him, but he shows complete neutral behavior. I feel like if I trust it, he trusts it because I firmly believe he trusts me. The only time I've ever disciplined him was when him and the other boy were challenging each other and he didn't seem hold that against me

Here is my boy Prince

View attachment 1543157
.

He is gorgeous! Thank you for sharing your experience.

 

[aart]

I think the biggest thing is to go about your business when near them..

Great advice....calm, cool, collected.