Opus 2025-487: The Toxic Rooster

I don’t know why my mind turned to roosters this morning.  It may be because I had been checking on my daughter’s chickens as she was out of town and thinking about how she’s not allowed to have a rooster in the city limits . I thought about how the rooster gets very aggressive when protecting his hens.  I tend to think of chickens just being mindless balls of feathers and that may have some truth in it, but I’ve also seen the way my grandchildren can sometimes carry them around like pets and I’ve watched them follow people.

There’s more to chickens than meets the eye and the rooster is a good example.  Roosters can be very aggressive and very effective in fighting for their brood.  They will take on all kinds of adversaries and I understand they come out on top.  Part of that is because of their aggressiveness.  I know I wouldn’t want a rooster coming after me.  They are a prime example of toxic masculinity.

One of the interesting things about roosters that I’ve learned is that if they find something good to eat, they don’t eat it themselves, but they call the hens over and let them have first go at it. That is toxic masculinity at work.  That is how the male in any species will look at it as his responsibility to protect the rest of his group.  It’s the way roosters are.  It’s the way men are.

Consider it a blessing and not curse.

homo unius libri