[jameslindsay]

I have some Black Rocks, lovely friendly birds!!!!

I know a few folk with black rocks and I don't know any that are friendly! Whenever new chicken keepers ask my advice they always want to get black rocks (good marketing campaign) and I always try and talk them out of it, because of their aggressiveness/independence!

I have 1 Black Rock and she is none of the above. She comes running to me when she thinks I have food and she even stands from time to time and lets me stroke her. Never has she shown any aggression, that I have seen, to my other chooks.

[egglady]

i think animals are much like people inasmuchas they are all different with their own individual personalities and likes/dislikes.  and how we are influences how they are.

if any of you saw the martin clunes programme about horses last night, you might have seen the bit about Equine Assisted Learning/Therapy - that's what i do and i can tell more about the person from watching them with the horses than i could ever tell from spending hours talking to them!

[BlueDaisy]

perhaps it is also partly if they are kept in a group just with other black rocks?
I don't know anyone who keeps black rocks as part of a mixed flock, but the ones I know have very definite pecking order, bully the lowest hen, will not tolerate being handled by owners, and like to range!
One of my friends got 3 as 9 week olds so that she could spend time taming them, she certainly put the time and effort in but it hasn't made any difference at all.
Another group of 3 spent so much time bullying the lowest in pecking order that my friends were really worried they were going to kill her! With intervention it has stopped but the bullied one still looks terrible, bald patches and very thin, though she is bright and perky and still laying an egg a day!

Anyway, I would never class them as friendly or easy-going, not like Orpingtons or Sussex, or I believe, the warren type hybrids.

[doganjo]

i think animals are much like people inasmuchas they are all different with their own individual personalities and likes/dislikes.  and how we are influences how they are.

if any of you saw the martin clunes programme about horses last night, you might have seen the bit about Equine Assisted Learning/Therapy - that's what i do and i can tell more about the person from watching them with the horses than i could ever tell from spending hours talking to them!

Sounds good, Laura.  I'll come up sometime and you do an analysis on me - could be fun!  I love horses, and that programme was just pure magic. And I love Doc Martin too - such a lovely person

[Cinderhills]

I love my Black Rock called Lilly-lulu. She is very friendly. Did have 4 but 3 were caught by fox.  Would have had more after that but they were hard to get so just went with a mixture of others.  But she is by far the biggest and most beautiful of the lot. 

[CameronS]

I find BR crosses to be more aggressive (and noisy) than actual blackrocks. The farm down the road had a group of fifty Blackrocks, they were the friendliest flock of birds ever, they didn't bat an eyelid when a further 30Warren Browns (or similar) were added, they had free range over 2acres and had access to a barn + cattle steading's. though that steading visits had to stop as they birds became to acquainted with the wheels of tractors 

My black rocks were crossed with Light Sussex and are my most dedicated, and proficient layers

[bamford6]

first le i sell black rocks at 4 weeks the kids shout them and they come over for food at 12 weeks they are very happey to be called and eat on the front lawn its just time when you first have chicks .the kids do the best job feeding them picking them up etc