The Raging Rooster

"Oh, I don't like roosters."

This is a common phrase the more the subject of chickens comes up. It makes me a little sad when I hear this because usually it means a bad experience (often as a child) with an overly protective rooster bringing a lifetime of disapproval. Much like dogs, or any animals really, there can be a bit of training, breeding and understanding involved to get an excellent rooster. I think overall roosters seem to get a bad reputation that stems from misunderstanding. They can be aggressive, devious, cunning and a bit of a terrorist, I won't deny it, but they can also be lovable, sweet, thoughtful and hilarious. It's all a matter of how you treat them and respecting their role in your flock.

Severus, our favorite rooster as a high schooler. He is Black Copper Maran, particularly reputed for their chocolate colored eggs.

What is the role of a rooster in a flock?

Roosters by nature are territorial, protective and en garde at all times. They crow constantly (mine seem to start their crowing contest around 2am) and like to challenge each other whenever someone is getting too big for their britches. They will chase out unwanted visitors - a cat, a crow, a dog or your neighbor's kid, if they believe that something is putting their dear ladies in jeopardy. Expecting them to not do these is asking them to be hens, but they just aren't. They have their uses though.

When we moved to the island two years ago we had numerous people tell us that chickens were a pipe dream because of the bald eagles that have nests all over the island. The eagles were infamous for swooping down and grabbing a hen or a duck and devouring them in their nests, leaving a devastated ex-chicken owner in their wake. We were quite distraught over the prospect of losing our beloved pets (we had about 13 chickens and 6 ducks) and we watched the skies in terror, ready to chase off any predators.

Aladdin, our phoenix/sumatra fellow.

Luckily for us we had about five roosters and a drake and all of them were also on high alert. Whenever an eagle, crow, raven or even a sparrow would enter their skies an immediate "WHOOO!!!" (it's a high pitch warning call that I can't really type the sound of) would spring from their beaks and every hen would suddenly disappear (usually into the barn or under something close by) and wait until the danger had passed. Two years later, we haven't lost any chickens to the eagles, and they've even stopped swooping overhead. We have about 30 roosters in our yard and there is rarely a threat they aren't willing to throw themselves at. Now when anyone mentions not being able to keep chickens on the island we always ask, "do you have a rooster or two?" "no, I don't like roosters". Roosters are protectors first.

Raphael, our goldwing phoenix rooster.

So, you want a rooster to keep your flock safe, but don't want him attacking you or anyone else, what do you do?

Pick a breed that is more docile. Our first breed was phoenix, and they are a bit more aggressive than some of they other breeds. We chose them for their gloriously long tails, but found that the roosters can be very territorial. The pair of boys we hand-raised, Thor and Ares, were consistently attacking my three year old whenever he would go out to check eggs. Ares was famous for stepping on the outskirts of your peripheral and then doing a quick spur attack. Almost all of us were victims of his domineering nature. We did our research and instead of fighting back, we would hold him, rub his comb and wattles and give him special attention. He would modify his behavior for a few days, but it never really took. In the end, both Thor and Ares ended up going into the soup pot and we tried on the next generation sons, Hephestus and Loki, who are both quite good roosters. I don't know if the fate of their fathers was warning enough but neither one of them even hints towards attacking any of us. The phoenix breed does seem to have a bit more feisty in it than some of the others and I would not suggest them for a first time rooster.

Our silkie boys, though small, can also lean towards being bossy as well, and pick fights with some of our hens, and most of our other roosters. This isn't a bad thing, since the term "pecking order" is accurate, but once established, you really shouldn't see a lot of fights breakout. If you do, you probably need to send some of your boys on an extended vacation. I like to watch my birds in the morning during feeding time and see if the roosters are helping or causing fights. Some of the phoenix mixes like to attack the hens while eating and it causes quite a stir. The yard is best when everyone is happily enjoying breakfast not having their feathers ruffled and being pecked in the face.

Hod, our beautiful Sumatra rooster, keeping things chill with the ladies.

What breed should you get for an easy going rooster? I would lean towards a large breed chicken, an Orpington or Wyndotte, or my particular favorite, Black Cooper Maran. We've also found success with our Sumatra roosters, who although very decorative with long tails, are docile and even skittish,if you are looking for a more standard, yet beautiful bird.

Our first BCM rooster, Severus has been one of the sweetest roosters imaginable. He was raised very loved by my teenage daughter who had him as her pet project (which I would suggest doing with any rooster you want to keep). She took it a step further than most of us have time for, as I would go in her room to talk to her and there Sevy would be, sitting on her bed (or snuggling on her lap) watching netflix with her. I think he may have spent more time inside than out for the first few months.

My daughter and Sevy, who are always happiest in each other's company.

Hand-raising seems to be a very good way of getting your rooster to be more easy going, but there is something to be said for his breed. Albus, Sevy's son, was just as sweet and from birth would always come right up to us and eat out of our hands, fly up to our shoulders and tell us about his day (sadly he was killed by dogs recently, it was very devastating to my daughter who had taken to bringing him inside to watch netflix as well.) The breed seems to have a more friendly temperament, with the advantage of a protective male, as Sevy is also our Top Rooster, and wanders from territory to territory making sure hens aren't being attacked by other roosters, chicks are getting food and calling his warning sound if anything seems dangerous. He runs our entire flock of 120 birds, reigning diligently and attentively.

In conclusion, don't assume all roosters are aggressive bastards, most of them are trying to sacrifice themselves for the sake of their feathered ladies when you enter their territory and retrieve their girl's beautiful eggs. Put some time into picking a good breed and handling your rooster on a daily basis. I find most of them really enjoy their wattles being rubbed.

Our Silkie rooster, Humphrey. Though small, he is quite sassy.