Daughter’s warning after dad killed in ‘malicious attack’ by aggressive pet rooster

The daughter of a man killed by his pet rooster has warned of the dangers of owning poultry after the bird also attacked her three-year-old child.

Jasper Kraus, 67, suffered a fatal heart attack after the Brahma chicken plunged its spur into his leg, causing him to lose litres of blood.

His daughter Virginia Guinan, 33, said Jasper - a dad-of-two and grandad-of-two - was an experienced animal handler, and while attacks are rare, she is encouraging others to watch out for signs of aggression.

Trainee healthcare assistant Virginia, from south Roscommon, Ireland, said: "You wouldn’t think a chicken can be dangerous - but they can be. It was a malicious attack, absolutely brutal. There were litres of blood all over the floor when I arrived.

"This particular bird was thought to be a nice and docile breed, and good for children. But this shows any breed can be dangerous.

"Having pet chickens is a big thing for families now, especially getting children involved. For this to happen is so rare and unbelievable, but it can happen."

Retired horse trainer Jasper, who was in remission from cancer at the time of his death, was out in his garden on 28 April last year visiting his dog’s grave when the rooster attacked from behind.

The bird plunged its spur - a spike on the back of its leg used for protection and fighting - into his left leg and he lost so much blood that it caused a fatal heart attack, it is thought.

Virginia said she had formerly owned the rooster that killed her father, but he had taken it from her after the bird had tried to attack her daughter Rosie, three.

She said: "A year earlier, the same rooster jumped the wall and jumped on Josie’s back. After that I knew I had to get rid - we should have put him down there and then because we knew he was no good. But my dad protested. He had too big of a heart and didn’t want me to get rid of the rooster - so he took it instead."

The animal, which has since been put down, had a random aggressive outburst and created a wound 1.5cm deep. The deep wound meant Jasper was quickly losing blood but he managed to make it back into the house and a man who was there called an ambulance.

Jasper, who was originally from the Hague in the Netherlands, collapsed from the blood loss before the ambulance arrived. Virginia recalled arriving to find her father in a pool of blood as paramedics attempted to resuscitate him. He was pronounced dead at 3:24pm.

An inquest heard the cause of death was due to lethal cardiac arrhythmia in the context of severe coronary atheroma and cardiomegaly. But a doctor at the hearing noted that the circumstances of his death were unusual as a wound had been inflicted on his left calf by a chicken, reports say.

Virginia said the incident has left the whole devastated. She said: "I got to the house and saw two ambulances outside. I walked in and just saw litres of blood pooled around the stairs, and a trail of blood leading out to the chicken coop in the garden.

"After he passed, I had to clean the blood left on the floor. It was traumatising after what had happened. There should be more support in place for families who go through tragedies like this."

Virginia said she wants to make others aware of the dangers of keeping poultry as pets, including a supposedly safe breed such as a Brahma. Jasper is believed to be one of only a handful of people in the world to have been killed in this way.

Virginia, also mum to Sofie Mai, one, added: "People want to have fresh eggs and keep chickens in their gardens. It’s such a big hobby now - but it’s not only larger animals like cattle and horses that can be dangerous.

“We don’t know why it happened - that breed was supposed to be soft and cuddly. People should be aware of the signs and get rid of any bird as soon as they show signs of aggression.

"I had wanted it put own as soon as it attacked my daughter, but my father wanted to keep it. Dad wanted the rooster to stay with him and breed with his hens so it didn’t have to be put down. That’s just what he was like - he was a real animal lover."