Will a frightened rooster toughen up again?

[Agathe]

As I've written in a previous post, I've had some problems with my two roosters fighting lately. The former boss has lost his position to his brother who isn't even letting him eat at the moment. As I prepare to slaughter one of them, I just want some advice from more experienced chicken keepers. I was intending on butchering the trouble maker as I've seen the other one be top dog before and he is nice to the hens. I don't know what I get with the new one. But the old boss is now frightened, also of me, and I can't have a top dog that isn't acting like one. When a rooster has been through fights and has been living in fear for a couple of days (he's kept away from the other rooster and hasn't seemed to try to fight back), will he toughen up once the trouble maker is gone? My main concern, aside from having a rooster that is nice to the hens, is to have one that fertilises the eggs so I can hatch new ones next year. I know the new boss will follow through on that, but not sure if the old one is up for the job now.

 

[aart]

It's hard to predict how the remaining male will behave after removing the other one.
Just pick one and go for it.

 

[Cluckatar]

Remove the one you find too aggressive, put him in a dog crate or some other separate location. Let the other one heal up and be with the flock and see how he does for a week or so. He's probably still in pain from the fight, but given a little time he might be good again. The aggressive one is unlikely to relax much.