Will a rooster protec hens?

[Chickengirl47]

I might get a wyandotte rooster, the person i might get it from says that it is shy, will it still protec my hens from harm? And will it be skard of people? Thanks!

 

[epeloquin]

We can't have roos in my city but I can tell you that they have an instinct to protect their girls no mater what breed. There may be nuances from breed to breed that may make some better protectors than others but that kind of advice would better come frm someone whoo has them. I can tell you that if I were under different circumstances I would definitely have a roo. I would suppose that any roo is a better protector than no roo.

 

[galanie]

If its "shy" then it's likely just leery of people. Roosters do all have the instinct to protect their girls and some are better at it than others.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't know what they mean by "shy". If a chicken has not been trained to be handled, its instincts will tell it to stay away from people. Maybe they mean you can't walk up to it and pick it up. That is perfectly normal if it has not been trained otherwise.

Will a rooster protect his flock? To a certain degree. Part of it depends on the rooster and part depends on what the threat is. Not all roosters are even close to the same. I've had roosters that put themselves between their flock and danger. I've had roosters that lead their flock to safety as fast as their legs can move, instead of putting themselves between the flock and danger. Some roosters give their lives in defense of their flock. Some won't.

One thing roosters are known for is that they are guards. They are more likely to watch for hawks and other threats than the hens. That does not mean that they are all equally good at it, but there is a tendency for the dominant rooster to be on guard more. If you have a flock without a mature rooster, the dominant hen may take on some of these responsibilities.

 

[Lollipop]

Some roosters will fight any predator, but probably 99.999% of them will beat the hens to the hen house, if threatened. The vast majority limit their "protection" to sounding an alarm when winged predators threaten. Others may or may not offer themselves as the first line of defence, and therefore get eaten first. Most will come running if a hen is crying in distress, but many stop short of entering the fray. Guess that's why they are called "chickens". That said, I love roosters and have many. I love their majesty, attitude, and even their crows. They do offer some semblance of security in that they are very vigilant. Only add a rooster to your flock if he is mature. Newbie immature roosters are resented by the hens as an intruder and they show their resentment severely. A mature cock will simply take charge and proceed to treat the ladies with respect. Have fun..........Pop

 

[evenstargirl]

My rooster is nearly as good as our watch dogs. Crows and squawks like crazy if there is a strange dog in the yard. I was out there other day, and there was a big commotion from the rooster. Went around the run to find a oppossum lumbering around in broad daylight. So he's pretty watchful. When we had hawk trouble for a while, he sounded the alarm. He was also the first one in the coop, though.

 

[CarolJ]

Our beautiful Araucana rooster sounded the alarm for the hens to run to protection, and he faced off a hawk by himself. The hawk won the face-off. We now have a huge covered run so that won't ever happen again. He was a young rooster - but he died protecting his flock.

I don't know if most roosters would do that, but that experience completely changed my opinion about having roosters. Previously I didn't care for them. Now I wouldn't have a flock without one.

 

[sourland]

As others have stated the greatest protection that a rooster provides is as a warning system. SOME roosters may intervene between a predator and his hens. The degree of success depends upon the size and hunger of the predator. Generally the rooster in such a situation will lose the fray. A shy rooster may not be all that bad a thing. Such a rooster MAY have less of a tendency to become human aggressive.

 

[aoxa]

I've noticed that neither of my roosters truly protect my hens. They simply warn them of danger. My oldest hen (almost 2) is more protective of her flock mates than the roosters. Almost all of the girls will chase the cats out before the roosters.

[VIDEO]

Here is my rooster with my cat

 

[debid]

I think you need to ask the person you might get him from a whole lot more questions before you decide if this is the right rooster for you. It would be ideal to go and observe his interactions yourself.

Is he in a flock with other roosters? If so, is he submissive to the other roosters? It's fine if he is but it also means that you really won't know what sort of a leader he'll be once he's in charge. Changing roles can mean changing behaviors.