Young Rooster Trainable?

[dawny2u2]

This 12 week aracauna (who was supposed to be a female) is REALLY mean! He is always attacking anyone around him, I often find feathers in his beak, so he is pulling hard! Sometimes, if I catch him I will chase and yell. Is there anyway to alter his behavior? I would like to be able to keep him, but I don't want such a MEAN roo. Suggestions? He is an interesting looking guy.

 

[Mrs. K]

Mean roosters need to tenderized in a stew pot. Works well. Get a nice rooster, may have to try a few.

 

[sourland]

Doesn't sound like he is being mean. He's probably trying to breed the pullets who are not ready for that yet. Seperate him away from the pullets and reintroduce when they start laying if you want to keep him.

 

[donnavee]

I have a 17wk old SS roo that was supposed to be a female. He is pretty nice most of the time, though he will sometimes chase one of his brooder mates and pull out a feather. I also have 7 grown hens that are still dominate to him. I'm sure he wants to mate, but no one wants any part of it yet. He is meanest in the morning - chasing the young girls around - then seems to settle down for the rest of the day. If you can't isolate him, make sure they have plenty of room so the girls can get away. I am lucky that we have the ability to let ours free range in the woods when we are home and I've been letting them a lot more since the roo is coming of age. We figure if he's scratching and looking for bugs and lizards, maybe he won't think about sex as much.

 

[dawny2u2]

Yes! He is worse in the morning! And I would like to keep him, and I do have room to isolate him for awhile! Great options, thanks much for direction. This is my first group I raised from days old, and he is a bit precocious....crowing weeks before the others, etc. etc. I will give the others a chance to catch up!

 

[dawny2u2]

Well, hes gone now. I had never killed anything before, but I could not see a whole flock screaming and hiding with Attila the Hun in their midst. So I killed him. He was just a MEAN bird. Guess they can't help how they are. But it wasn't easy.

 

[dreamcatcherarabians]

Quote:
Let us know how he tastes. My rooster's name is Sunday, as in Sunday Dinner. He hasn't done anything mean yet, so he's still with us, but I reserve the right to make chicken & dumplings any Sunday I like. I think he knows it too, he's always a little mellower when I'm around.

 

[chickenlyn]

I got 18 chickens from the local farm store, mixed breeds and genders, just to see of I liked to care for them. I do like all of them, but ended up with 6 roos. I have one beautiful large white one who is very protective of the flock, who free range nearly every day, and he and got along fine until just recently. I lost one roo to a coyote a couple of weeks ago; the dummy managed to get out of the yard one night and I found feathers outside the fence in the morning, and since then Dumpling has been in a dither, doing his aggression dance when I approach the yard. All of the chickens are just coming into maturity, some of the pullets have begun to lay, so everyone now is trying to breed. Dumpling had been the first to mature, so he is probably stirred up to have all this competition, but he is attacking everyone with 2 legs lately. I have to keep a 2x4 in the driveway for my daughter, so she can pick it up as she gets out of the car. He hasn't done any real damage yet, but he pecked my grandson the other day and he told me to cook that rooster today!
I really don't want to get rid of this bird, as he is so good to the flock in protecting them, even finding bugs and worms and calling the girls over to get them. We are certainly overstocked in the testosterone department so I am planning to cull 3 for the freezer, but I don't know if he will settle down or not with less competition. I really would like to brood a few of his eggs because his size and overall appearance are outstanding, and if he settles down I would like for my grandson to take him to the fair next year for his first 4-H showing.

Does anyone have any experience with this?

chickenlyn

 

[NC29mom]

OMG

 

[mmaddie's mom]

The best roos don't need any "training"... they either are or are not... don't settle.