Best rooster for a mixed flock?

[CrazyChickenLady35]

We have a super mixed flock. 1 Easter Egger, 1 Olive Egger, 1 Australorp, 1 Light Brahma, 2 Cochins, 1 Dominique, 1 Buff Orpington, and 1 Speckled Sussex. What would be a good rooster for our flock? We live in a big neighborhood and have a ton of neighbors so a quieter breed would be best. Obviously no rooster is silent but we can’t have one that crows extremely loudly all day. Any suggestions?

 

[No Coop No Problem]

Brahma might be a good choice. I recall them being very calm for the most part. I would avoid anything from the Ameraucana family, they're quite tense and loud

 

[CrazyChickenLady35]

Brahma might be a good choice. I recall them being very calm for the most part. I would avoid anything from the Ameraucana family, they're quite tense and loud

I love the brahma breed; we used to have 3 light brahmas but 2 of them passed away so we only have 1 left. The only thing I’m concerned with is breeding. We’d rather not have a bunch of chicks running around, so maybe not a brahma rooster?

 

[aart]

The only thing I’m concerned with is breeding. We’d rather not have a bunch of chicks running around, so maybe not a brahma rooster?

The way to control breeding is to not let any broodies set.

What is your goal for having a cockbird?

Breed is not generally indicative of behaviors.

 

[CrazyChickenLady35]

The way to control breeding is to not let any broodies set.

What is your goal for having a cockbird?

Breed is not generally indicative of behaviors.

We only are looking into roosters for a protection factor. We have hawks fly over almost every day and no rooster, so our hens are always on high alert and searching the sky and not really focusing on eating and laying eggs. I think a rooster would help them relax a little bit and amp up egg production.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I love the brahma breed; we used to have 3 light brahmas but 2 of them passed away so we only have 1 left. The only thing I’m concerned with is breeding. We’d rather not have a bunch of chicks running around, so maybe not a brahma rooster?

Just gather your eggs every day and you'll never have chicks. It takes 21 days of incubation to hatch chicks from eggs.

 

[aart]

We only are looking into roosters for a protection factor. We have hawks fly over almost every day and no rooster, so our hens are always on high alert and searching the sky and not really focusing on eating and laying eggs. I think a rooster would help them relax a little bit and amp up egg production.

Well, having a cockbird for 'protection' might or might not pay off.
Are you losing birds or just short on eggs?

If you're seeing a shortage of eggs, the hens/pullets may be laying out in the range area.

Free range birds sometimes need to be 'trained'(or re-trained) to lay in the coop nests, especially new layers. Leaving them locked in the coop/run for a week or so can help 'home' them to lay in the coop nests. Fake eggs/golf balls in the nests can help 'show' them were to lay. They can be confined to coop and maybe run 24/7 for a few days to a week, provided you have adequate space and ventilation, or confine them at least until mid to late afternoon. You help them create a new habit and they will usually stick with it. ..at least for a good while, then repeat as necessary.

 

[CrazyChickenLady35]

Well, having a cockbird for 'protection' might or might not pay off.
Are you losing birds or just short on eggs?

If you're seeing a shortage of eggs, the hens/pullets may be laying out in the range area.

Free range birds sometimes need to be 'trained'(or re-trained) to lay in the coop nests, especially new layers. Leaving them locked in the coop/run for a week or so can help 'home' them to lay in the coop nests. Fake eggs/golf balls in the nests can help 'show' them were to lay. They can be confined to coop and maybe run 24/7 for a few days to a week, provided you have adequate space and ventilation, or confine them at least until mid to late afternoon. You help them create a new habit and they will usually stick with it. ..at least for a good while, then repeat as necessary.

We haven’t lost any hens yet, but with the amount of predatory birds flying over our yard every day it feels inevitable. There’s one hawk that’s been sitting on our fence and watching them for a while now.
Currently 4 of our 9 hens are laying, and 2 of them are brand new layers(7 month old dominique and buff orpington). the other two are an australorp and olive egger, and they both just started laying for the first time since we got them(a few months ago). The rest of our girls we’ve had for 2 years and none of them lay, ever. The speckled sussex, easter egger, and both cochins have never laid in all the time we’ve had them, and the brahma hasn’t laid since her sisters died in front of her(stray dog attack. it was horribly brutal and I’m sure she’s traumatized. I don’t expect her to start laying again anytime soon.) We’ve tried changing their diet a few times and nothing has changed so we thought the next step could be getting a rooster, although we’ve never had one before.

 

[Noraaaaa]

I would say wyandotte or orpington! mine from those breeds have been super protective but never attacked me! the orpington was larger and would probably be a better fit for protection!

i also do love roosters for protection. this is because they just scare off some hawks and stuff like that. not the best protection, but works to an extent. i have had a rooster for that before. you can have a rooster and not have babies as long as you don't let your hens go broody. you don't have to have the goal of having babies to have a roo.

 

[CrazyChickenLady35]

I would say wyandotte or orpington! mine from those breeds have been super protective but never attacked me! the orpington was larger and would probably be a better fit for protection!

i also do love roosters for protection. this is because they just scare off some hawks and stuff like that. not the best protection, but works to an extent. i have had a rooster for that before. you can have a rooster and not have babies as long as you don't let your hens go broody. you don't have to have the goal of having babies to have a roo.

Hi again! You’ve replied to a few of my posts before haha. I’ve heard great things about wyandotte roosters, and they’re absolutely beautiful so I’ll definitely look into the breed some more. We don’t have any hens that frequently go broody, so that shouldn’t be an issue.