Why are my rooster so rough with my hens.

[TbChiCken]

Hello,
We have two Rhode Island Red Roosters(5 months. They have just started mating and are really rough with our hens. Whenever we go out to check on them the hens are all beat up and don't look happy. What do we do, we don't really want to get rid of the roosters.
Thank you

 

[Aapomp831]

That is because they are juvenile. They are like horny, sexually clumsy teenage boys. Eventually they will learn - but you need to protect your hens. Typically you need at least 7 hens per rooster; maybe you need more hens? Regardless, sometimes they have their favorites and there’s nothing you can really do except get that particular hen a saddle - they sell them on Amazon and can help the favorites from getting so beat up.

 

[SueT]

How many hens are there? Are they laying yet? Maybe you have too many males? If they are all 5 mo, the girls are pullets, and the boys are still cockerels. Cockerels tend to be rough, and may need to be separated....

 

[TbChiCken]

Thank you,
We have 10 Hens.
Thank you

 

[TbChiCken]

The hens are laying. What does the Hen saddle do?

 

[Aapomp831]

The hens are laying. What does the Hen saddle do?

It protects their backs from the roosters claws. It is still a behavior that needs to be corrected; I would put them in chicken jail for a few days and let them cool off, see if they adjust their behavior when let out.

 

[microchick]

First off, young roosters coming into their hormones are jerks and stay jerks until they are about a year old. They do not know courtship manners. They are slam bam thank you ma'am. As a result feathers on hens get pulled out, the hens scream and get scratched up as they do not appreciate the rough treatment and struggle with the young rooster.

If you have the room to do it, separate the roosters from the hens for a while and let the hens have a break.

Secondly, no problem in having two roosters. My flock has multiple roosters and they work out a pecking order. But until your boys mature and can work out who is going to get to be flock master, I'd pen up your extra rooster after the cooling off period and leave the 'nicer' of the two with the girls. He will learn how to court the ladies.

I removed 8 young 'problem' roosters from my flock this spring and put them in a bachelor pen. You would be amazed at the lowering of the flock stress levels.

Don't give up on your boys. They will mature into adult birds and you will see a world of difference in them when they do.

Good luck

 

[TbChiCken]

Could I make something to put the roosters in, say our brood. Thank you for the feedback.
Thank you

 

[TbChiCken]

Are Brood is 5ftx2ftx4ft

 

[Flockincrazy]

They are a more sexually aggressive bird imo I won't get rir anymore but when I did have them I kept there nails clipped and rounded how much bigger are the cockerels than the pullets and what is your ratio