# mean little roo?



## TNchick

Hi all. I am new to posting but have been lurking here reading and learning for some time. My birds were bought from rural king as 4 day olds back in the spring and since we had no idea what we were doing we picked a random selection. They are now 17 weeks old. I ended up with 2 barred rock hens, 4 black sexlink hens, 2 bantam hens (cant decide their breed) and a very pretty but mean little bantam roo. Also a pair male and female roehn ducks. We also had 4 cornish cross who were sweet natured and fat and tasty. Proud to have processed them using the info from this forum.

My birds are healthy and growing and my whole family loves them. But the pretty little rooster is becoming more aggressive by the day. While the girls come to me and cluck and let us pet them ( watching for eggs) the roo crows and stalks us and charges us when ever our back is turned. 

I have mixed ideas about why and if he is useful to the brood. He does seem to boss them in and out of the coop. He also announces when I bring treats and such. I havent noticed him being mean to the hens but the family is tired of him trying to scratch them and his attacks can be scary even though he is small.

Question?? Will he calm down as he matures? Should he go into the frying pan as a bad roo? Will a bantam roo ever mate with my much larger hens? I will post photos if I can figure out how.

Thanks for all the useful info.


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## Bee

Bantam breed roosters are a little more aggressive than some standard breeds..I call it "little man syndrome".  They make excellent flock masters, they just need some training by you to be socialized around humans. 

Everyone will tell you not to take chances on a "mean" rooster and that it's not worth it, but any flock master worth its salt~that hasn't been properly trained~is going to protect the flock...even from you. It's the equivalent of your dog jumping up on visitors...will you train him out of it or will you get rid of him over his very natural actions of dominance? 

I wouldn't be too hasty to put him in the pot or send him away until you have put some serious, effective training in him. It doesn't take much work, just smart work, to teach a rooster that you are alpha to him and cannot be challenged over the flock. 

If he doesn't respond to thoughtful training, by all means eat the little morsel! 

And, yes, a bantam breed can breed standard size hens.


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## TNchick

Thank u for ur post. I wasnt ready to give up on him yet. He was my favorite chick and watching him grow up and start crowing was so cute. I will research further on training and give that a good try.
Also I have learned a lot from your other posts here.


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## Bee

TY! It's pretty easy to train a rooster with a simple, long and supple stick..sort of like one would see back in the old days when people would herd geese. Even children can do it and I encourage a family with children to use this training tool for all their roosters, starting at a young age. 

All it takes is the occasional ambush and then to move him where you want him to go. What I mean by that is just hang around and wait for the opportune time, when he isn't paying much attention when he approaches a hen or food and take that switch and smack the ground right next to him out of nowhere. Hard! If it made him jump and run, you have succeeded in your ambush.

If he did not jump and run, take the same stick and tap him on the bottom or the back hard enough to make him jump and run and then follow him if he doesn't go far and keep touching him on the bottom, on the back and on the head until he is the jumpiest rooster around. 

Then, sit down and let him relax a little...keep your stick up in the air and just...wait. When he comes close to the food or the hens near you, smack the ground next to him again when he isn't looking. Make him jump and run! If he doesn't run, do the tap and keep tapping until he completely leaves the area and doesn't come back while you are there. 

That concludes the first lesson. Keep repeating that lesson until he gives you a lot of room when you or the family approach. This can be a fun thing for kids to do that can give them confidence and show them that the rooster is, in fact, a chicken and that they don't need to run or scream when he runs at them but they need to walk towards him and back him down. Make him move...whoever moves is the loser. 

Pretty soon you won't need that stick as the rooster will always be looking over his shoulder for you and will move away when you approach. This is ideal..this is how a subordinate rooster acts when the big dog is near. These tactics are what the top cock does when a subordinate dares to approach...they ambush them until they run and they don't let them forget it, either. They will remind them each and every time they dare approach his favored hens or the food until the top roo is done with it. 

Occasionally you can reinforce the training, just for fun and to make sure he still understands that you are the alpha, he is the underdog and as long as he minds his manners, he can stick around. Never hold him, pet him or try to make friends with him..it's a sign of weakness that a more hormone driven rooster will store in his little pea brain and bring out when he wants to challenge for flock rule.

I've had ol' Toby for 6 years and he's never challenged me...he's watched me school a few roosters, though, and he knows I walk like I talk and that makes all the difference in the world. 

Confident strides and movements in the coop and yard, make them move away when you want to be where they are standing...I can say Toby's name and point to the pop door and he gets to steppin'. If he doesn't, I simply stand up and take a step in his direction and he is GONE. It's just good practice and it sets a boundary for interaction between you~the food bringer and real flock master~and the little bird that you allow to breed your hens.

I never handle the roosters as chicks or try to make friends...chickens imprint to a certain degree and will try to treat you like a female of their species if you are hand feeding them and nurturing them when they are small~as will many male livestock animals. Not a good idea to even let that happen, right from the start. Love on the hen chicks, if you feel you must love a chick, but not the boys. 

Hope this helps!


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## Sundancers

Around my place a mean roo gets the axe and dinner is severed ... Just the way it is... (sorry)


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## Bee

And I've never met a mean roo in my whole life...just plain old roosters doing what roosters do. Not mean, normal cock bird behavior that is very easily changed with less than 10 min. activity...less time than it takes to process a bird.


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## kaufranc

We have one too! His name is Boog and he too will scratch your feet when you turn your back but he does an awesome job warning the girls if there is danger above! He lets out a ear piercing screech when something is flying about! He is not my favorite but he does his job!


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## Elfinworld

Thank you Bee! I was just contemplating wether we are going to keep our Ben when I read your post. You are a lifesaver (Ben's). He's been trying to ambush my son every time my son goes in the fenced in area to the point he's afraid to go in. 

Your post gave us new hope. Here he is with his rake trying to hit the ground next to Ben.


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## TNchick

I took my little broom in with me this morning and gave the little guy quite a fright. Lol. It was kind of funny turning the tables on him. I only had to whop the ground twice and he make a huge ruckus getting away from me. He went inside the coop and crowed like crazy. He peeked out at me until I left. Lol. Gonna take the kids in later and show them how to handle him. Glad his life has been spared. He is a pretty fellow and has a very funny attitude. My mom next door likes hearing him crow in the morning. She was raised on a small farm with chickens. It reminds her of my grandma, who was a tough lady raising chickens, hogs, and 9 kids.


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## DixieCol

When I first started my chicken flock about 3 years ago, my best friend (who raises Cochins) offered me a beautiful adult rooster he had found running loose in his orange grove. The rooster was a big sucker with black and white barred coloring. He got into a nasty fight with my friend's Rhode Island Red rooster, so my friend gave him to me to start my flock. I was already in the process of raising 6 Orpingtons and 4 Brahamas who were too young to allow outside.

At first, the rooster seemed neither tame nor aggressive. He flew over my 4 ft fence a couple of times until he realized that my 2 dogs were not rooster-friendly. After a couple of months, I allowed my young Orpingtons and Brahmas out into the pen with the adult rooster, and he watched over them very well. Unfortunately, a hawk got 2 of my Brahmas, but when the second one was attacked, I arrived at the pen in time to see my rooster had the hawk pinned to the ground on his back and was about to kill it. When I arrived, the rooster let the hawk up, and the hawk flew off, never to be seen again.

As my hens began to mature, I noticed that my big rooster (Rocky) became more aggressive with anyone who came into the pen. He and I got into a fight almost everytime I entered the pen, with him attacking me by running at me, and then leaping into the air to nail me in the legs with his toenails. I had to start carrying a large stick with me to use to protect myself. My wife was attacked several times also in the same fashion, and she finally refused to go into the pen again. We never allowed our grandchildren into the pen after Rocky attacked my teenaged grandson.

I put up with this sort of conduct for several months, but was never able to instill a fear in him to where he would stop attacking me. Quite paradoxically, there were times I would sit on a bench inside the pen and handfeed all the hens AND Rocky without any problems, although I always watched him very closely and had a big stick handy just in case..... He was very protective of the hens, and I never had any other hawk attacks.

Finally, one day Rocky attacked me 3 times in one day while I was trying to feed the hens and gather eggs, drawing blood all 3 times, and I had finally had enough, particularly since by that time I realized that 2 of my Orpington "pullets" were actually cockerels. I went and got my .22 cal revolver, and when he tried to attack me again, I blew his head off, and he ended up in the pot for chicken soup. Fortunately, my 2 Orpington cockerels (Riley and Barney) were able to take over Rocky's duties, and have handled the job very ably for the last 3 years.

I believe that one problem with Rocky may have been that I suspect he had been raised as a fighting cock. The orange grove where my friend found him is in an area where there are a lot of Mexican laborers, and it is a well-known fact locally that they engage in illegal cockfighting for entertainment. I suspect now that either Rocky simply escaped from his previous owners, or that he did not do as well as they wanted him to do, and they dumped him in my friend's orange grove.


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## Bee

TNchick said:


> I took my little broom in with me this morning and gave the little guy quite a fright. Lol. It was kind of funny turning the tables on him. I only had to whop the ground twice and he make a huge ruckus getting away from me. He went inside the coop and crowed like crazy. He peeked out at me until I left. Lol. Gonna take the kids in later and show them how to handle him. Glad his life has been spared. He is a pretty fellow and has a very funny attitude. My mom next door likes hearing him crow in the morning. She was raised on a small farm with chickens. It reminds her of my grandma, who was a tough lady raising chickens, hogs, and 9 kids.


I know this sounds rather evil, but I've always loved schooling a roo...it just gives me a way to vent over all the bad men I've known.  In my mind I'm thinking, "Yeah? You think it's okay to just break bad whenever you get it in your pea brain? Learn the rules, buster....this is the gal that feeds you." WHOP! on the ground until he jumps a mile!

Wait a little while, let him get complacent and meander into the coop to grab a bite when it's feeding time...WHAP on the pop door frame right in his little feathery face! Rooster streaking for the woods!

You see him later over there cleaning out his little roo shorts and looking over his shoulder in fear of the terror he left behind....that's when you know you can put that stick away and never have to use it again. Every once in awhile you can just stomp in his direction and get the same reaction.

Yep! For us ladies it holds a certain satisfaction to put a troublesome male in his place (even if it's just a chicken) and keep him jumpy for the rest of his life. The best roo in the world is the one who is constantly looking over his shoulder in fear of you.... not the other way around.


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## Sundancers

Bee said:


> And I've never met a mean roo in my whole life...just plain old roosters doing what roosters do. Not mean, normal cock bird behavior that is very easily changed with less than 10 min. activity...less time than it takes to process a bird.


Sorry...

We will have to agree to disagree on this one. I've seen first hand what a mean rooster can do. (and there is no other way to put it ... he was mean & dangerous)

After the trip to the ER ... it was the axe.

I have Grandbabies that come to the farm each and everyday, so I want a rooster I can trust not to go after them.

Best of luck to the OP ...


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## TNchick

So far so good.  No more attacks from the little guy. I have him so frazzled he heads for the coop crowing like crazy everytime I enter their run. My hubby and daughter have both taken a turn with the broom and their confidence has greatly improved. No one is demanding his demise any longer.
On another note.. Started them on ff yesterday. They love it. Eat it up so fast. I also started letting them out to free range today. We had a great chicken day.
I would encourage anyone to try this schooling with their roo If ur having a problem. Of course my guy is bantam size and only 18 weeks and he had everybody spooked so I can understand how scary a really big guy could be. Good luck.


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## Bee

Good feedback! Now that you have him intimidated, every once in awhile as you are walking past him...just suddenly stomp and lunge in his direction. It will make him jump and run...and that is as it should be. 

If you watch roosters, this is one of the things they do...they ambush you when you least expect it. So...just to reinforce the training you've already done, surprise him every now and again with a lunge and stomp. If he doesn't immediately jump and run, advance towards him quickly until he runs away. 

That's how the roosters do it...it's their language!


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## hennypenny68

I have to say I'm on the fence with this one. I have had chickens since I was able to walk lol and I've had my fare share of good and bad roosters and the last couple of years have been the worst. I have hand raised Roos and I have been givin adult Roos and they all have been nasty lately and ended in the pot my best roo was a buff Orpington I had 2 years ago raised him from a chick and he ate out of my hand every day until a damn bald eagle got him but he did mange to save all his girls god bless that bird. My last big roo I had was the worst he would even go after me through the fence the miserable sob I tired to make friends with him and I tried the bully tactic I even knocked him out a few times but he still till his last day before reaching the dinner table still tried to rip me a good one. What I'm trying to say is some just naturally have a mean streak and for me that's not tolerated so into the stew pot they go.


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## Bee

Any certain breed that you've found to be the nastiest?


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## hennypenny68

The first one was a barred rock the second one the worst one I've ever had I think he was a mix he's standing amongst his girls I tried and tried he drew blood even and at times when I wasn't even near the hens he would come full force across the property to get me.


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## TNchick

Just an update on my little guy. Let them out in their newly expanded chicken yard yesterday. We watched him do this crazy dance move where he looked like he was tripping over his wings. He stretched his wing to the ground and hopped around then made a different noise than id heard before. I wondered....hmmm.. is he...? Didnt wait long for the answer. He grabbed one of the black sex links by the neck, hopped on her back with both feet, and for a moment I thought he's too small he will never... but he got himself in the right position and he did. Lol it was so funny. Bee geuss he answered that question.


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## Bee

I always call that the Ol' Buck and Wing dance of courtship! It's cute to watch and sometimes the hen will dip just a fraction and he'll do the do and sometimes she just keeps on awalkin' away and he'll back off.

Sometimes there is no dance...just a gallop across the grass and the hen hunkers down immediately as she sees him come arunnin'! 

Always amusing to watch the social life of chickens. 

How's he doing with you all now? Every now and again I'd just stomp in his direction to keep it fresh in his mind and also to assert your dominance.


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## TNchick

This morning he fluffed up at me when I wasnt paying attention. I flogged my sweat towel at him but that seemed to keep him coming at me instead. I hollered and ran straight at him. He didnt really back down til I had my broom after him again. But Its not frigtening anymore and I made sure I had it handy after that. I chased him around til he went off and pouted.


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## TNchick

We were in the chicken yard we finished fencing off. They have a lot more room now. Im still head roo. All my girls run to me when I go out with them. Lol


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## Bee

What a pretty bird! Sounds like you are going to have to take the offensive and really give him a lesson that sticks in his mind...one that hurts a little. If he is still threatening, he hasn't got the message. If he is making the first move, he hasn't got the message.

Lay in wait for him, surprise him.... and then rain down holy terror on his head and keep at it until he is scared to even approach where you are~there must be physical attacks on his body that are mildly painful during this reign of terror because it sounds like you have a little hard head on your hands.  If he is close enough for a sweat towel or broom, he's too close. 

It'll be worth the effort if you really want to keep him. If not, he's not really big enough to eat, so maybe selling him?


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## TNchick

The little guy is so stubborn. Everytime I think hes learned to keep his distance and I let my guard down here he comes. No problems for a whole day. He avoided me like the plaque. Kept a far distance. Then today while i was checking out the coop he snuck up behind me and attacked my leg. I hit him with my stick and chased him and hit him in the rear end solidly a few times. Getting frustrated. He may have to go after all. He just doesnt seem to learn. I was so mad that he scratched me today! It wasnt bad enough to leave marks on me so I guess it hurt my pride and feelings more than my leg. I thought either I will teach u not to attack me or I will beat u to death but one way or the other this is going to stop. We have a chicken swap/auction in the area once a month. He may be on his way out. He really is too small to eat. 
I get it that he is doing his roo thing, but im the one that feeds them and cares for them and if he cant get that through his pea brain then.... otherwise I love raising my chickens. My hens are funny and sociable. Their behavior is predictable to some degree. They love the food lady.
Admittedly this is my first go with a roo. But i have raised critters all my life. Ive had cats, dogs, hamsters, rabbits, ferrets, once a baby raccoon for three days til i found a wildlife agent to take him, and I have never had a critter I couldnt train or get along with after time. Im the critter lady. People bring me critters out of the blue. I geuss im just venting now. Still not ready to give up. I picked out the silly bird to begin with as a hatchling. Had the cutest fuzzy little head. So I guess im going to up the violence on him and if he persists hes just gone.


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## Bee

He could just be too far gone to retrain due to that early imprinting. According to that study, they seldom get over it. Maybe that is why I have such success with roo training...I've never allowed any birds to imprint like that. Most farmers and country folk aren't cuddling their chickens, so it's just never been an issue I've encountered much out here in the sticks. 

Everyone's roo tries on his big britches eventually and does the dance or the fluff of the scruff...but usually that is nipped in the bud quickly, never to return. 

Maybe time to start over with your pretty boy...I'm with you on that. Spread the word to your friends...no cuddling the chicks unless you know they are females and no hand feeding all the chicks , because you really can't separate out the males and not feed them too during something like that. If they must cuddle and nurture a chick, make sure it's a gal.


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## TNchick

Ur probably right. This was our first time raising chicks and we were very hands on from the start. Not knowing it would affect them later we held them and babied them for a while. I guess i thought it would help them be friendly. I wanted the kids to see them and not be afraid of them. We started out treating them like pets until they began to look and act more like full chickens. 
The hens seem to be fine. They are sociable but still act like chickens. They run to me when i come out looking for treats then move on. 
Started out all wrong with him I guess. Im too stubborn to give up. Especially now realizing its probably my fault. I wont make that mistake again. I knew there would be a learning curve but gee whiz. Understand now that farm critters arnt pets. Thanks for all ur advice and wisdom. They dont tell u these things in the chicken books.


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## kjohnstone

TNchick said:


> This morning he fluffed up at me when I wasnt paying attention. I flogged my sweat towel at him but that seemed to keep him coming at me instead. I hollered and ran straight at him. He didnt really back down til I had my broom after him again. But Its not frigtening anymore and I made sure I had it handy after that. I chased him around til he went off and pouted.


Remember what Bee said about interfering with him getting to the girls? It was useful to you to see that he had no problem getting to them, but since you just watched, HE thinks he still has a chance to be dominant. From now on, remember to chase him from the girls when you are there, so that he has to wait and "sneak" when you aren't around. They are your girls, not his, and that is what the aggressive dominant behavior is all about.


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## kjohnstone

Ooh, another chicken idiom..."venting" ...since chickens get all their crap out of their system through the vent, then that is what we are doing when We "vent" - getting rid of our "cooped" up anger crap.


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## Bee

Oh, BOY! Did you say a mouthful! "They don't teach you these things in chicken books." Never a truer statement was made. 

There are many, many things they don't teach you in chicken books and many things they teach will not bear up to the test of time if one is wanting a healthy, well adjusted flock. 

I'm just so pleased that you are wanting to learn and wanting to made adjustments...many do not. Kudos to you!!!


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## kjohnstone

I'm just glad to be learning about how to handle/not handle a roo before I ever have one. (I'm kind of thinking about a buckeye roo, since they are supposed tto have a neighbor-friendly low crow.)


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## Bee

Never heard that before, but I wouldn't mind having a BE rooster either, just for the good genetics!


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## TNchick

Thanks kjohnstone for reminding me of that. I was so amused with the whole thing I forgot to think about showing him dominance during his mating show.
thanks bee for ur encouragement. As I am training him I am learning not just about chicken husbandry but strengths in myself I didnt know were there. Toughness, determination, and persistance mean something new to me now. After processing the meaties a while back, the harsh realities of life and food and survival are much closer to heart. I knew I wanted the kids to learn that food doesnt come packaged in nice boxes but I didnt know how much I still had to learn either. 
And it is funny how many things we say everyday are from the chicken world.


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## DixieCol

Bee, I am not a long-term chicken raiser, only being involved in it for about 6 years since I retired (aside from when my folks had chickens when I was a child), but I did notice your comment above, _"Spread the word to your friends...no cuddling the chicks unless you know they are females and no hand feeding all the chicks , because you really can't separate out the males and not feed them too during something like that. If they must cuddle and nurture a chick, make sure it's a gal."_

When I was a kid back in the 50s, my parents would buy me an Easter chick every year. Back then, Easter chicks would come with their fluffy feathers dyed in colors like blue, pink, etc. I would handle my Easter chicks constantly, playing with them on my bed or the floor as if they were kittens or puppies. Some of my Easter chicks ended up being cockerels and some ended up being pullets, but they all ended allowing me to keep handling them without problems even when they were adults. I attributed that to all the human interaction they had when they were chicks.

I currently have 2 buff Orpington roosters that I have had since they and their "sisters" were 4 days old. I handled all of them equally back when I had no idea what gender they were. The only "different" treatment I have ever given them was when they "reached puberty", I made the roosters sleep outside on top of the coop at night, but kept the hens inside a fenced run and coop to keep the roosters from harassing the hens in the evening and first thing in the morning.

One of my Orpington roosters, Barney (formerly called Blondie until he crowed), has always been very friendly to me, and used to like to sit on my knee while I would feed the flock bread, apples, or other treats. To this day, 2 1/2 years later, he will still come and sit on my knee after we put the girls into their pen/coop in the evening. He allows me to stroke his chest, rub his wattles, and check him for mites or other "critters", and even allows me to pick him up, although he complains vocally if I do it in front of the "girls".

As I mentioned above, when I first started my flock, my friend gave me a huge barred rooster that he had found running loose in his orange grove. The rooster was excellent at protecting the girls, but he persistently attacked any humans who would come into the 50' x 80' fenced area I use as a combination goat and chicken pen. Sometimes he would just attack me frontally, and sometimes he would try to attack me from the rear when my back was turned, and he bloodied my legs and even my waist more than once. Finally, after almost a year of that, as I mentioned above, I blew his head off with my .22 cal revolver one day when he attacked me, and turned him into chicken soup.

From my own experience, which is not lengthy, as I mentioned, I think the best thing to do, assuming you do not have 30 chickens or more in your flock, is to have as much hands-on interaction with them as possible when they are peeps. That technique has worked well for me so far, and I plan to continue to use it as I get more peeps in the future.


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## Bee

You might have missed my earlier post when I stated there are exceptions to every rule..and there are. But, those are exceptions. There are many, many, many more people on other forums having just the opposite effect from their roosters from the early hand rearing.

According to the article, it's not just with chickens but with other birds as well, so I'm thinking this is not just an isolated phenomenon and the ornithologist is basing his conclusions on actual research of imprinting by these birds. 

But, each person has to do what they feel works on their own place and if coddling roosters works for you, keep doing it...if it isn't broke don't fix it. But, when someone is looking for exactly why their coddled rooster suddenly turns bad on them when he reaches sexual maturity, I offer them this article and advice from observations and reading of many other experiences. 

It's sort of like those people who won't wear a seatbelt because they heard of someone who got killed because they were wearing one during a car accident...but they ignore all the millions of other people who got killed because they were NOT wearing a seatbelt. That one anecdotal story was enough to validate their not wanting to wear their seatbelt, so they don't. 

In this case, I'll stick with all the information that leans towards not causing the birds to imprint at a young age if one wants to avoid having a confused rooster later on.


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## nj2wv

thanks Bee .. used your mean rooster method and it worked.. i still carry my stick but he runs when he sees me .. a loose dog kept killing my hens so a person in town offered me free choice of his roosters .. i picked the biggest one .. no more problems with dogs but he does his " scratch the ground before he bites the hens neck" dance to me !  .. so i let him know whos in charge .. thanks again  .. on another note the man told me the rooster was hatched in a classroom project and his kids always played with him .. being a beginner i thought he would be tame and gentle


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## TNchick

Update on my guy...been raining holy hell on his little behind for past few days. Keeping in mind what bee said about not letting him get too close to begin with. Realizing one mistake I made was letting my guard down thinking he was reformed after only a few days. Now im not letting him in my vicinity at all. If im out with the birds, I make him go away completely. After a few broom thrashings he now flees to the coop and so far all is well again. He does act a little braver if I dont have my broom in hand. Meaning he watches me and may take a few steps closer. Stomping clapping and yelling does back him up but when he sees the broom in my hand he makes himself scarce now. Almost instant reaction. Glad I didnt give up tho hubby says hes not worth all the trouble. (Lol he laughed at my eye roll. He knew what I was gonna say) But the hens seem to like him. My biggest hen even acts protective of him. She goes to him right away when ive freaked him out and he even hides behind her. The hens listen to him, they come when he calls and hes part of the flock. I like his crowing so its worth it for me. 
Hope ur guy learns his lesson too. 
Ps. Check out my other thread on first egg today!


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## Elfinworld

TNchick said:


> Update on my guy...been raining holy hell on his little behind for past few days. Keeping in mind what bee said about not letting him get too close to begin with. Realizing one mistake I made was letting my guard down thinking he was reformed after only a few days. Now im not letting him in my vicinity at all. If im out with the birds, I make him go away completely. After a few broom thrashings he now flees to the coop and so far all is well again. He does act a little braver if I dont have my broom in hand. Meaning he watches me and may take a few steps closer. Stomping clapping and yelling does back him up but when he sees the broom in my hand he makes himself scarce now. Almost instant reaction. Glad I didnt give up tho hubby says hes not worth all the trouble. (Lol he laughed at my eye roll. He knew what I was gonna say) But the hens seem to like him. My biggest hen even acts protective of him. She goes to him right away when ive freaked him out and he even hides behind her. The hens listen to him, they come when he calls and hes part of the flock. I like his crowing so its worth it for me.
> Hope ur guy learns his lesson too.
> Ps. Check out my other thread on first egg today!


Our silkie rooster Ben has been doing ok with training as well. He is learning to steer clear of me now, even without the little plastic rake I'd used. My four year old son, however, is still nervous around him and Ben is still flogging him when he goes in the fenced in area without his rake. So we will keep training.


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## Bee

It's particularly hard for children because they instinctively walk and move with hesitation after being flogged once and they are quick to run, cry out, move backwards and even flap their hands when confronted with a rooster again. These are all triggers for the bird to advance and continue to attack. 

The way most children move makes them a target anyway...they don't usually stride out towards the birds because they've been taught to be gentle and approach nicely and even to squat down or bend down to the bird's level, in most cases. 

It's good that you encourage him to continue to try and work on it, so that he won't always be scared or intimidated by the animal. He'll soon get it and be able to anticipate the bird's moves and block them, if he is determined to deal with this bird. 

It will help if you continue to back him up so that the rooster knows he is under your protection and that your boy is not alone in his dominance of the flock. I think it's great that you are letting him gain confidence in that way! Kudos to you!


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## TNchick

I havent posted on this thread lately because I was trying to give the little guy time to learn his lesson. For a while he would back off if I had my broom in hand. Then seemingly for no reason would start stalking me again as I moved around the pen. I ran at him. I swiped him with the broom. I had him running into the hen house. However anytime I came out and didnt have the broom solidly in hand he flew at me with all his hackles up. Kicking yelling stomping wouldnt back him down. I had sort of resolved to having this sort of watchful relationship with him just accepting that I needed the broom to show him who was boss. 
Things changed over the weekend. We are getting eggs daily now so checking for eggs is a fun thing for everyone. My oldest daughter who is also well versed in handling the broom was momentarily "unarmed" while checking for eggs and he flew at her head vicously. She was able to knock him away without getting scratched up. Then the next day my husband was out helping me refresh the water and cleaning out the bottom of the coop. Roo came after him hard. He got kicked away the first time and hubby laughed it off. Roo went and hid pouting. A few minutes later he attacked hubby's legs from nowhere and left several deep scratches. 
We had another family discussion. Yesterday when I made my early morning trip to feed the birds he came after me even with broom in hand. I swiped him in the rear and he backed off and charged again. That did it for me. 
So he joined that great chicken coop in the sky. Rip little roo. Put his little pieces with some of my freezer birds and made a great chicken dressing dinner. 
I feel fine about it. Knowing I tried to train him and end in the end such is the life of a chicken. 
Much more peaceful in the chicken yard today. More eggs today than ever. Total of five. Even my bantam hen layed an egg for me. Maybe they were tired of him too.


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## Bee

Probably so! He'll be tasty and you won't have to carry a broom with you to do chores...I call that a win/win.


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## galanie

Bee said:


> You might have missed my earlier post when I stated there are exceptions to every rule..and there are. But, those are exceptions. There are many, many, many more people on other forums having just the opposite effect from their roosters from the early hand rearing.
> 
> According to the article, it's not just with chickens but with other birds as well, so I'm thinking this is not just an isolated phenomenon and the ornithologist is basing his conclusions on actual research of imprinting by these birds.
> 
> But, each person has to do what they feel works on their own place and if coddling roosters works for you, keep doing it...if it isn't broke don't fix it. But, when someone is looking for exactly why their coddled rooster suddenly turns bad on them when he reaches sexual maturity, I offer them this article and advice from observations and reading of many other experiences.
> 
> It's sort of like those people who won't wear a seatbelt because they heard of someone who got killed because they were wearing one during a car accident...but they ignore all the millions of other people who got killed because they were NOT wearing a seatbelt. That one anecdotal story was enough to validate their not wanting to wear their seatbelt, so they don't.
> 
> In this case, I'll stick with all the information that leans towards not causing the birds to imprint at a young age if one wants to avoid having a confused rooster later on.


I was in an accident when I was in my early 20's that, had I worn my seatbelt, I'd have been killed. But I wear one now anyway! Yes, those are exceptions.


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## TNchick

Things are much more peaceful now. Able to enjoy the birds again. I can walk around and work free from stress. Maybe one day we will try again to keep a roo but no more bantams. We would like to have our own chicks at some point. Next time i will be better prepared.


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