Will separating a rooster from his hens make him mean?

[RL]

I had three roosters, two are gone because they were mean and tearing up my hens. The one I have left ~the youngest of the three~ is a Light Brahma that is just over a year old. He is very calm around people even young kids. He is very good to the girls mostly. He can get a bit over excited about matting. I think he might have picked up some bad habits from the other Roos. The problem is the girls need time to heal and grow their feathers back. It has taken me about 2 months to build and get ready a coop and run so I can separate him. With him being with the girls for over 2 months is separating him going to make him mean? I have 8 hens that are a year old now and they all need a feather growing break.

 

[RL]

I guess I will not really know if it would have made him mean or not now. I buried him this morning. I had put him the new boys coop last night, more like he put himself in as he went into the run to lay in the shade and I just closed him in. He walked the run, which is 8x16, for a little bit fussing some and then went into the coop. I checked on him about 10pm and he was on the roost ready for the night. I go out this morning at 6:30 and find him dead. Near as I can figure he must of freak and broke his neck or had heart attack. He was a great Roo and will be missed. I would still like know if it would have made him mean or not.

Rest in pease Turd Ball.

 

[Marie1234]

Wow, I'm sorry to hear about your roo.

 

[RL]

Thanks. It is sad, but things happen. The weird thing is there was no blood on him or any part of the coop. It's almost like he just laid down and died. It was hot yesterday around 100 or so, but by the time he was in the coop it was down in the low 90's. So I don't think it was heat related. Anyway, Turd Ball will live on in the 8 chicks of his that hatched out on the 20th of May. I am sure there is a TB 2 in there somewhere.

 

[gritsar]

I'm sorry you lost him. I love brahma roos.
To answer your original question - Going on my own observations with two brahma boys that I have owned, I'd say that while it might not make him mean, it could make a roo more aggressive (there is a difference). In other words, if he was out with the hens he wouldn't necessarily be running around looking for things/people to flog, but seperated he wouldn't think twice about tangling with the person trying to keep him from the hens. Does that make sense?

 

[RL]

Yes that dose make sense and that is what I ment by becoming mean. I just could not think of the word aggression.
So would it be better to keep the boys separate until they are around a year old before letting them run with the hens? Would they be less likely to over mate or defeather the hens if they are older and past the teenager stage?

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
IMO, any time you first put them together there's going to be alot of mating going on. It will settle down. Mating doesn't only have the most likely purpose (offspring), its also a way the roo uses to get the hens to submit.
My roos were raised with the girls. When I had two and they hit the teen stage it was awful, but the pullets didn't mind it as much as I did. Once I re-homed my former alpha and only had the one roo, the girls gave him a bad time. They eventually submitted, all but one and to this day my roo doesn't try to mate her. She's a real women's libber that one.

So, if the pullets are close to laying age then IMO there's no reason why they shouldn't be with the roo. Put saddles on the girls if he's too rough. Out of 13 hens, only one of mine has to wear a saddle because she's the roo's favorite. Keep the roo's spurs trimmed so he's less likely to do damage.
I interfere as little as possible with the daily going-ons of my chickens. I let them live their lives, stepping in only in case of injury or illness. As a result I have a calm, happy flock. Just MHO.