Please help :( my chickens are scared of me. Rooster problems?

[lolobearleo]

I’ll try to keep this brief!

We got our 11 chicks back in august and got 1 rooster and 10 hens, which is exactly what we wanted. I raised them all by hand and they’ve always been very friendly with me. When we transferred them outside anytime I open the door and come out they run to the edge to greet me. One will stand and my feet and scream (bock) at me till I pick her up and snuggle her. She’ll sleep in my arms

Our rooster has started getting a bit aggressive as the weather has started to warm with spring. He will run up to me and we will have a bit of a stand off and he’ll get all stompy boots (stomps his feet) at me. He’s tried to kick up a time or two.

I did some research and the advice I saw was to 1) try to pick him up and hold him to assert whose boss but also show him it’s safe and 2) if he charges to make him back up and then not chase when you turn away.

He’s not liked being picked up or touched much as he has matured so I’ve tried to respect his space. Maybe the wrong move. Anyways, I’ve tried both these a few times recently. I’ve managed to pick him up twice but there have been some problems and this is what is really making me sad .

Since I picked him up the first time and in general since he’s been more aggressive my girls won’t come over to me at all. They’ll run away . I can get them to come up with grubs and I can pick up my one girl for maybe a second but then she wants down. She runs away they all do. One of my girls will come up a bit still but not much. They seemed to be getting a little better but not much… then the rooster charged at me a bit again and I picked him up (they were all in the coop not outside with us) and again they’ve been more standoffish.

I also managed to get them to eat some snacks out of my hands then the rooster came up and pecked my hand hard and scarred them all away. The girls also seem to startle more when they’re eating… is it him being aggressive?

I’m at a loss I don’t know what to do. I just wanna hang out with and hold my babes

Thanks for any advice everyone!

 

[troyer]

It sounds like the rooster is the trouble maker. I think if you would rehome him or stew him the hens would calm down and be friends with you again. If he becomes alarmed, the hens will tend to be alarmed as well.
Some roosters when they have started being human aggressive will never quit and usually it's best to put him down.

 

[nuthatched]

Very few chickens like to be held, it can be very uncomfortable for them both with feather shafts being pushed back into their skin and their respiratory system taking up most of their body, holding them makes it hard for them to breathe.
Very often hand raised roosters turn into turds since in the rooster world, nicey treatment means that that bird ranks higher than you or is equal.
I'd get rid of him.

 

[Acre4Me]

Chickens are also prey animals, so they are always cautious, really not that cuddly. Sure, there are exceptions.

Rooster: we have much, much better luck with roosters when they come into the flock that is older than the male. We have a multiage flock, and those hens teach the young male a thing or two about chicken manners. When there is a male that is same age, it is nearly always a problem.

Bc he seems to want to attack you, you may need to decide how you envision your flock experience. Do you try to attitude adjust him, is that worth your time? Do you get rid of him and get a different one once the girls are hens, laying eggs, and more capable of teaching him manners? Do you keep this one, but pen him so he cannot attack you so easily (or anyone else for that matter)?

We have dealt with aggressive (mild to lots of aggression) cockerels and roosters. We keep if there is a reason to keep. Generally, for us, that has primarily been bc my kid shows in 4-H, so if we can manage, a mildly/and manageable aggressive male is kept until shown, then sold if no better in attitude. Some do tone down their aggression with a bit of age and it not being springtime when hormones are ramping up.

Currently, we have a pretty aggressive white Rock. He is penned with 3 White Rock females, and is a good rooster to the girls. But, wow, is he single minded aggressive to the humans. So, he stays for now, but he won’t make it to show season, as we will sell the group as a breeding group/flock starter (they are only 12 months old) in about a week bc he is much too aggressive for us, and we need the space for the chicks we ordered to arrive in April.

Overall, solve for peace in the flock. You will wonder why you ever kept an aggressive male once gone and you are no longer worried about an attack.

Good luck!

 

[sybonbon]

I’ll try to keep this brief!

We got our 11 chicks back in august and got 1 rooster and 10 hens, which is exactly what we wanted. I raised them all by hand and they’ve always been very friendly with me. When we transferred them outside anytime I open the door and come out they run to the edge to greet me. One will stand and my feet and scream (bock) at me till I pick her up and snuggle her. She’ll sleep in my arms

Our rooster has started getting a bit aggressive as the weather has started to warm with spring. He will run up to me and we will have a bit of a stand off and he’ll get all stompy boots (stomps his feet) at me. He’s tried to kick up a time or two.

I did some research and the advice I saw was to 1) try to pick him up and hold him to assert whose boss but also show him it’s safe and 2) if he charges to make him back up and then not chase when you turn away.

He’s not liked being picked up or touched much as he has matured so I’ve tried to respect his space. Maybe the wrong move. Anyways, I’ve tried both these a few times recently. I’ve managed to pick him up twice but there have been some problems and this is what is really making me sad .

Since I picked him up the first time and in general since he’s been more aggressive my girls won’t come over to me at all. They’ll run away . I can get them to come up with grubs and I can pick up my one girl for maybe a second but then she wants down. She runs away they all do. One of my girls will come up a bit still but not much. They seemed to be getting a little better but not much… then the rooster charged at me a bit again and I picked him up (they were all in the coop not outside with us) and again they’ve been more standoffish.

I also managed to get them to eat some snacks out of my hands then the rooster came up and pecked my hand hard and scarred them all away. The girls also seem to startle more when they’re eating… is it him being aggressive?

I’m at a loss I don’t know what to do. I just wanna hang out with and hold my babes

Thanks for any advice everyone!

This is only my opinion so please do not hold it against me. Roosters ruin everything. There's no reason for one unless you want to hatch eggs. For 7 years my flocks have been very happy without one and the most dominant hen takes care of everyone without any abuse. I sincerely hope it works out for you.

 

[lolobearleo]

It sounds like the rooster is the trouble maker. I think if you would rehome him or stew him the hens would calm down and be friends with you again. If he becomes alarmed, the hens will tend to be alarmed as well.
Some roosters when they have started being human aggressive will never quit and usually it's best to put him down.

I really appreciate your reply and advice thank you so much!

 

[lolobearleo]

Very few chickens like to be held, it can be very uncomfortable for them both with feather shafts being pushed back into their skin and their respiratory system taking up most of their body, holding them makes it hard for them to breathe.
Very often hand raised roosters turn into turds since in the rooster world, nicey treatment means that that bird ranks higher than you or is equal.
I'd get rid of him.

Thank you so much for the advice and feedback, I appreciate it a lot!

 

[lolobearleo]

Chickens are also prey animals, so they are always cautious, really not that cuddly. Sure, there are exceptions.

Rooster: we have much, much better luck with roosters when they come into the flock that is older than the male. We have a multiage flock, and those hens teach the young male a thing or two about chicken manners. When there is a male that is same age, it is nearly always a problem.

Bc he seems to want to attack you, you may need to decide how you envision your flock experience. Do you try to attitude adjust him, is that worth your time? Do you get rid of him and get a different one once the girls are hens, laying eggs, and more capable of teaching him manners? Do you keep this one, but pen him so he cannot attack you so easily (or anyone else for that matter)?

We have dealt with aggressive (mild to lots of aggression) cockerels and roosters. We keep if there is a reason to keep. Generally, for us, that has primarily been bc my kid shows in 4-H, so if we can manage, a mildly/and manageable aggressive male is kept until shown, then sold if no better in attitude. Some do tone down their aggression with a bit of age and it not being springtime when hormones are ramping up.

Currently, we have a pretty aggressive white Rock. He is penned with 3 White Rock females, and is a good rooster to the girls. But, wow, is he single minded aggressive to the humans. So, he stays for now, but he won’t make it to show season, as we will sell the group as a breeding group/flock starter (they are only 12 months old) in about a week bc he is much too aggressive for us, and we need the space for the chicks we ordered to arrive in April.

Overall, solve for peace in the flock. You will wonder why you ever kept an aggressive male once gone and you are no longer worried about an attack.

Good luck!

Thank you SO much for this very thoughtful reply!!

Do you have any tips and/or tricks for attitude readjustment? My husband and I are leaning towards stewing him but I would like to try to adjust his attitude for a bit if possible before we call it quits with him.

Thank you again

 

[lolobearleo]

This is only my opinion so please do not hold it against me. Roosters ruin everything. There's no reason for one unless you want to hatch eggs. For 7 years my flocks have been very happy without one and the most dominant hen takes care of everyone without any abuse. I sincerely hope it works out for you.

Awe I won’t hold anything against you! Thank you so much for sharing your advice and opinion I truly appreciate it!

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Do you have any tips and/or tricks for attitude readjustment?

The only thing I know of, for a cockerel that's under one year old, is TIME. He very well may mellow out when he's fully matured and the hormones aren't so rampant (like between 1-2 years old). But he might not. In my experience, there is no way to 'train' human aggressiveness out of them, and no way to know which way it will go, until it goes.