TOO MANY ROOSTERS?

[delfargo]

my chix are almost 6 weeks old and i'm beginning to be able to figure out who's who. looks like i've got 3 roosters and 24 hens. this is my second go'round with chickens. i had 2 roosters in my last "flock" but got rid of 1 because he was way into "rough sex". i like having a roo, i like the crowing, they are fun and are good to have around for the hen's safety, but i think my current 3 to 24 ratio might be a bit much, right? i HAVE read that more than 1 is o.k. because each roo will have his "own girls" so the hens won't get over worked in the mateing department. what is YOUR opinion? should i loose 1 or 2 of them now or just let it play out and see what happens?
have any of you had this many roos? if so, how did it work out?thanx for your input.

 

[chickencowranch]

I'm in kinda of the same perdictament. I have 15 8 week old chicks. As of now I think I have 6 roos out of 15. 3 silkie roos and 3 sussex. The silkies will stay for now, but the sussex I may take to auction. The sussex roos are starting to pick on the others. I wasn't planning on having roos,at least not that many.

 

[donrae]

I think so much of it depends on how much space you have. If you free range most of the day, you absolutely could get by with your current numbers. If they're in a smallish space, at least one roo's gonna have to go.

Lots will also depend on your roosters. You'll have to keep an eye on your hens for bare backs, excessive squawking, hidiing from the roos, etc. I once ran three roosters with less than 20 hens and everyone was great. They were free range and had room to keep out of each other's way, and the hens could stay away from the roos if they needed to.

 

[dracoe19]

I agree it depends on if they are free ranged or confined. It also depends on the roosters. At the moment I have 5 roosters with around 30 hens and all of them get along. Sometimes the roosters are buddies and don't mind the others while there are some roosters that just cause problems. I had two golden laced wyandottes that would gang up on hens and threw the whole peaceful balance off. It's like kids on the play ground there is always that one trouble maker that doesn't get along/ can't share but you also have the relaxed ones that are okay with being with other guys. It's nice when you can have multiple roosters live peacefully with one another . I would just watch. Growing up together definetly creates a bond between them and they are less likely to fight. You'll just have to see when they come to the age of liking hens. Good luck!

 

[kidcody]

As the summer months past the roosters testosterone levels will drop and some calm should emerge among the flock. As long as the pen is large enough. But there will always be the dominate leader with up and coming youngsters to test his strength. good luck!

 

[Birde]

Young roos are over sexed & in sets of 3 or more tend to gang rape. I have found separating my roos from the hens when they are young is for the best. When they get older they calm down. I have 20+ roosters & love them all, almost all. I ate some really bad 1s. I recently let my 3 polish roos now 1yr. old join the yard birds after being caged a year. They were really bad but now very tame & funny. It's called training. Roos can be wonderful.
.

 

[Kylling]

To be honest, I have about six roos, and haven't really had this problem. The only fighters among the group are the three big boys, the King of the Coop Jordan, and the underlings Smoke and Leprechaun, who are trying to peck their ways to the top. X3 And even then, even when they try to pick fights with Jordan, Jordan always knocks them back down again. My flock is pretty well-organized in the hierarchy.
I also have two younger roos, almost a year old, named Oreo and Twilight. They tend to stick to the outsider hens, who manage to fly out of the coop with them. And then there's tiny Maestro, who has only one girl since he's so small, and knocked down the pecking order some. And finally Snowflake, who just takes them as they come. XD
Having more than one rooster might be a problem because they do tend to fight amongst one another sometimes---I've seen Oreo and Twi rough it out quite a few times, and just recently Smoke and Snowflake got in a tussle. But...if you let them know each other and fight like that, they'll eventually settle on a pecking order, like how Jordan is at the top, and Maestro is at the bottom---it's been that way for almost two years now. They'll eventually settle themselves down. ^_^

I wish you luck on your problem! They might be a bit loud if you get more, though! XD

 

[delfargo]

i think i'm gonna just let it be and play itself out. i personally love the sound of roosters crowing, and i have found that they are also the most fun to watch. my only concern is if they get too aggressive with the girls, then i will have to do something about it. i will need to spend alot of time with them before they get too big, so they don't view me as a threat. the last flock i had, i only had 1 rooster, and we didn't get along. he would try to sneak up on me and take the spurs to me every time i entered the coop or the chicken yard. i think it's because i didn't handle him enough when he was young, he didn't know i was friend, not foe.

 

[Myles]

Young roos are over sexed & in sets of 3 or more tend to gang rape. I have found separating my roos from the hens when they are young is for the best. When they get older they calm down. I have 20+ roosters & love them all, almost all. I ate some really bad 1s. I recently let my 3 polish roos now 1yr. old join the yard birds after being caged a year. They were really bad but now very tame & funny. It's called training. Roos can be wonderful.
.

I have 2 roosters. The Polish one is the dominant one. Although he is never teased, he gets very mean and will chase me, my wife and my 2 young daughters. I had to give him a good kick last night.
Any truth to what I have read about removing the roo from the flock for a week or so and then he will be "humbled" when he is put back? I like the guy (Animal is what my daughters named him) because he is very protective and the flock (only 10) is free to wander for a few hours a day.

 

[Myles]

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