The hatchery slipped some Barred rocks in my order .I feel your pain!
Hm, yes, I missed this. I used to let The Kid release the chickens to free-range and toss them a little scratch in the afternoons. After a while he became afraid of the rooster. I wasn't aware there was a problem until it had escalated until the roo had become very aggressive. When I took over the chores he attacked me and I had to cull him. Some time later when I needed The Kid to take care of the birds one day, he was very hesitant. We had a new roo by this time (may have still been a cockerel). I told him to relax and remember, if the rooster came running toward him, it was only because he, The Kid, had the goodies, the afternoon scratch! The Kid recovered his confidence and the bird, now a mature rooster , is a fine gentleman.
Dad was a kind soul who never laid a finger on any his birds ever. He raised all of his chickens the same way .None of his chickens or roosters were "orphans" raised without the hen AND rooster that fertilized the eggs...
Care is taken to not reward acts of aggression while feeding. Based on descriptions a lot of that is going on.
Thank you.
OP rewarding aggression with presentation of more feed.
My first experience with cockerels....I am having a huge learning curve. Everyone has been very helpful!
