2 Cockerels and 3 hens, disaster?

[Ce2025]

This shouldn’t work should it? My 2 Cockerels are from eggs I incubated. Only 4 hatched successfully, 1 just stopped developing at 3 weeks and died a week later. Another was always stunted and died after a month. The other two, a SL Wyandotte and a BC Marans both turned out to be male and magnificent they are too. I had six SL Wyandotte eggs and 3 hatched. I had 3 BCM eggs and only the 1 was viable. 2 out of 9 is bad I know. But I’d never done it before. I was at a local market here and bought 3 Black Star hens for 6 Euros each. Never worth trying to hatch them for that. At this stage I didn’t know if my chicks were cocks or hens. I would love to get a Wyandotte hen or 2 but am afraid of upsetting the status quo. My SLW is a sweety and apart from the 1st thing in the morning chase he and the BCM are the best of friends and are always together. My chicks are pretty much free range.

 

[DobieLover]

Welcome to BYC!

If you have the space for more girls you can get them. You don't need the same breed hen to match your cockerel/rooster. They will breed any female. You just want them to be matched relatively well size wise.
The boys may get along now and it may continue but the odds of that are very small. Once the spring hormone flush hits, all bets are off. Males are genetically programmed to protect their hens. Once the females chose a male, he will fight to keep his harem. And they will fight to grow their harems.
I would have a plan B in place for if (when) that happens. Otherwise you will be doctoring bashed and bloodied boys quite frequently and all the stress from that nonsense also takes a toll on the girls. Or you will have a stressed and lonely subordinate male living on the outskirts of the flock with no real life for himself.

 

[Ce2025]

Thank you for that. Unlikely, but I’d swear that my SLW is the only gay in the village! He seems to have no interest in the girls but more interested in cuddling up to the BCM, no wonder he gets chased off in the morning. One of my Black Stars has gone broody and I’ve left her with 2 eggs and 3 ceramics. I thought that these chicks were not supposed to go broody. Oh well, I bet the 2 if they hatch are roosters, be just my luck!

 

[DobieLover]

I thought that these chicks were not supposed to go broody.

ANY chicken can go broody. Some breeds are more prone than others though.
Just because they go broody does not mean you have to let them set. You can break them.