Would chicks cause a rooster to get aggressive?

[TinyLittleFarm]

Our one year old Light Brahma roo has always been very gentle and never aggressive. The last week or two he has been charging and pecking all of us in the family. We all spend time with the birds and we raised him from a day old. The only new thing is that there is a month old chick in the flock--the only of a broody silkie's babies to hatch. As the weather has warmed up, they have all been outside in the yard. Neither he or any of the other hens has ever been aggressive towards the baby, so she seems to be very well accepted. Could his orneriness be caused by an urge to protect the little one?

We are dumbfounded. He's always been such a good boy.

 

[gritsar]

Two things - yes, the chick and the need to protect it. Also, it's springtime and the hormones they are a raging.

ETA: I caused one of my broody's chicks to squeal today by picking it up. My roo came running to the coop from across an acre wide field. I had to do some quick talking to convince him I meant the chick no harm.

 

[stormylady]

Quote:
I agree with ya and love the quick talking, you got a good roo there huh!

 

[wowmanacat]

My roo will come running anytime I go in the coop looking for eggs and the hens are there. So far I have never had him attack me but I give him a nice pep talk " don't even think about it or in the stock pot you will go." but then he is my only roo at the time.

 

[TeamChaos]

Spring is in the air and there's no tuning it out of the rooster brain! We've got two boys who are constantly in the throes of good roo/ bad roo now that the weather is warming up and the ladies are looking so very lovely. I swear, you can see the internal battle between what the urges tell them to do and what their social brain prohibits. Poor guys.