Can a rooster be too large to safely mate with a small hen?

[hysop]

I have two laying 6 month old girls. They are mixed with Black Jersey Giant & White Leghorn. Looks like only the rooster out of that small batch got the BJG size, the two females are small like White Leghorns.

I have two roosters who don’t have a flock (I am working on getting them one each but chicks will only grow so fast). Anyway, one rooster is pretty large he’s a Production Red and he’s the only one that mates with her (that I’ve witnessed anyway).

Unfortunately, it looks like he hurt her because he’s so big compared to her. I saw her limping. I caught her and isolated her, gave her food and water. Should I introduce her to smaller rooster after she gets better or give her back to the large PR? She’s also at the bottom of the pecking order.

 

[Mvan42]

I had this same question my rooster is three to four times the size of my hens.. they all seem fine. They were starting a late hard molt is why I thought he was to ruff.. lol. Below is a pic and a couple of ours.. he is huge compared to the plane white one

 

[hysop]

Yes, the size difference is exactly the same as your plain white one with that large rooster of yours. I also think the reason he hurt her is because she’s the only one he mates with so that’s excessive.

So hmm maybe I should put her and her sister up til I get more in about 6+ months.

 

[Mvan42]

If you can separate would help, how old is the rooster. If he is young he will be a little more aggressive until his hormones calm down. How big is your flock and how many roosters all together are with the hens. Sounds like there may be just more than one mating her (that you may not be seeing)

 

[Geena]

A large rooster can most definitely harm your girls. The cockerel I kept from last summer's grow outs has become an enormous beast. He's so big that he was just standing over, not on, the smaller hens to breed them. He's a gentle giant, but unfortunately recently ripped a huge flap of skin off one of the bigger girls. He's now separated and probably going to end up in the freezer.

 

[hysop]

If you can separate would help, how old is the rooster. If he is young he will be a little more aggressive until his hormones calm down. How big is your flock and how many roosters all together are with the hens. Sounds like there may be just more than one mating her (that you may not be seeing)

I have 5 roosters and 14 hens.

1 rooster is penned up with his flock of 5.

1 rooster free ranges with his flock of 7.

1 rooster (the mix) will be chicken stock soon, he free ranges and keeps getting in trouble with the other roosters. He’ll be food because that was the plan from the day we found out he was a roo.

2 roosters are bachelors and free range.

2 mix hens technically belong to the two bachelors but by chance not by me. They were hatched by a hen and once the hen went back to her flock they were left alone. These may be getting mounted by both bachelors (Production Red & White Leghorn) and even possibly the mix roo.

It’s looking like I’ll have to make a small coop for them until I have a larger flock so they don’t get hurt.

 

[hysop]

Oh the Production Red is an old rooster. He’s a rescue. But the White Leghorn we’ve had since he was a chick but not a hatchling (March 2019 is when we got him as a chick from TSC).

Their brother the mix rooster is young only 6 months. But will probably go to the freezer by the end of the week.

 

[Mvan42]

Do you young ones have a way to get close to the one who is hurting the girls. Even if they are not together but close enough for him to see the others. It could be a hormone (marking his territory kind of thing.) but I am not for sure.

 

[hysop]

Do you young ones have a way to get close to the one who is hurting the girls. Even if they are not together but close enough for him to see the others. It could be a hormone (marking his territory kind of thing.) but I am not for sure.

The bachelors and the 3 mixes (2 hens + 1 roo) sleep together. I have a “coop” that’s open 24/7 and they sleep there, that’s how they migrated to that one after the mother hen left them.

They were a surprise hatch. Hen went missing and returned with chicks. So I had no plan for them.

 

[Mvan42]

I am assuming that hormones is being your enemy. Once you are able to separate them they should be ok.. Good luck.. Others may have a better idea.. If you can get those bachelors separated you may not need to separate the hens from the other one. Or move the hens away form them all until you find a home or decide what you want to do with them, or more hens..