Why is my rooster suddenly aggressive (viscious!)

[Jenny1967]

He's a liability, not an asset, and would do best in someone's crock pot. Retraining a rooster who's behaved so badly, so often, is likely not going to be very successful.
Deep wound infections are not fun!
Mary

Thank you for the advice. I went to the coop today - with a rake in hand - and he quickly figured out he could not win. i'm still scared of him. He wasn't this way prior to chicks. Been looking online how best to prepare him for dinner. Oh, and he is obviously daddy. Chick is a mix between leghorn and silkie? Feathered legs.

 

[Jenny1967]

Leghorns can have mean temperaments. I had a good friend who had a leghorn roo that terrorized her. One day she'd had enough and shot him with her deer rifle out her kitchen window.

Depending on how old he is, you may be able to discipline him so he will respect and trust you, but it's a big job and you need to commit yourself to it. It's not for anyone who isn't assertive.

Other than that, you have two options - segregate him or eat him.

I like the rifle idea. Out of what I thought was compassion, strangled (not knowing better) a hen that had the nerve disease. Couldn't stand to see her suffer. This was 4 years ago and I still see her eyes at night.

 

[Savanna’s chickens]

Because this worked for one chicken, it is not a guarantee it will work every time. The chances are greater that he will attack again, but be more sneaky about it.

They’ve tried it with multiple of their roosters and it worked but ya maybe it won’t work for everyone but it’s worth a try before killing it

 

[alexa009]

I would think it would be hard to dominate a leghorn rooster. Its always the smaller rooster breeds that are aggressive. You usually tend to have better luck with the bigger ones.

 

[drumstick diva]

I'd at least keep him away from broody mama & chicks - to see if he quiets down when he doesn't think he needs to protect them.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

I would think it would be hard to dominate a leghorn rooster. Its always the smaller rooster breeds that are aggressive. You usually tend to have better luck with the bigger ones.

The bigger or what I call the fuzzy butt roosters are often to physically challenged or discombobulated to get out of their own way, little less do much flogging.
A young rooster or more precisely a cockerel is going up fools hill and he is likely not ever the ruler of your entire flock and he tries out every chicken or other living creature with in his reach to expand or solidify his control over your flock.

 

[Mrs. K]

Personally, I think the chick thing is a coincidence. How old is the rooster? How long have you had chickens? Might be that he has been giving off signals, that you didn't recognize.

Some roosters just become too aggressive. You are scared of him, very hard to get past that, and rightly so, he can hurt you. If you have small children, be very aware, they will get kids in their faces.

I recommend culling him. I think of them like a vicious dog, they are too dangerous to people.

Mrs K