Why is my cockerel acting this way?

BookWorm243

Songster
9 Years
Oct 13, 2010
2,132
12
171
Franklin, NC
So we got my hen back today, we had a friend keeping her for a while. Anyway while she was gone we got a Black Copper Marans cockerel (henry) . He has been with our other bantam pullets with no problems. I introduce him and the hen and war breaks out. First they both started bickering like chickens usually do when they start working out the pecking order. Well Henry started getting to aggressive so I split them up, I than let them go back out later outside where she could steer clear of him. Well there he go's running after her
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He raises his hackles as he runs towards her, than he will either grab her neck or back feathers and wont let go. He will end up pulling them out and than he grabs another beak full. He will also jump and scratch up her back, almost like when a rooster flogs you it seems to be along the same lines. My poor girl is freaked out, and he is now taking a break all to himself in the garge. What is his deal
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I have never had this happen.

Thank You
 
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I am not sure but it could be that the cockerel thinks that she is a rooster, or that he feels threatened or that he just want to mate and is not 'nice' to older hens or something
 
Thanks!
I thought at first that he might be trying to mate, but when he is not pulling her feathers out he is pecking the crap out of her head. She is smaller than him and she always had her head down trying to avoid him. I am not sure what his problem is
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Keep them separate for awhile but where they can see each other (one on one side of a fence and the on the other side of a fence). I have pens next to each other and put the roo in one and the hen in another, She is new to him and he is new to her so they will need time to adjust to each other. It is a new bird to him in his territory.
 

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