Gang Breeding

[bobbi-j]

Agree. I have, oh, probably 6--8 roosters in a flock of 30. It works fine. That is because I have a head rooster that keeps all of the younger cockerels in check. They are not allowed to make the hens scream or they will get their rears whupped.

If I didn't have that head rooster, I would have to butcher most of mine.

Do you free range? Just asking because I think that could make a huge difference in flock dynamics too. What works for someone with enough room to roam may not work with the urban or suburban backyard flock owner.

That's the beauty of BYC. One can ask a question and get a multitude of answers, and most likely one of those answers will fit the OP's situation.

 

[BantyChooks]

Do you free range? Just asking because I think that could make a huge difference in flock dynamics too. What works for someone with enough room to roam may not work with the urban or suburban backyard flock owner.

That's the beauty of BYC. One can ask a question and get a multitude of answers, and most likely one of those answers will fit the OP's situation.

Yes, I forgot to mention that. I would definitely not be able to continue this way if I kept them in a run.

 

[Bogtown Chick]

I have a couple acres. I open the door and they have lawn, gardens, swamp, and low lying areas and woods for cover and lots of ways to get away.
Bobbi~ you make a good point. These suggestions are largely dependent on set up and numbers of birds. And Threshold of what is tolerable for keepers of these flocks.


11 birds, of which one is a rooster free ranging on one acre large lawn/landscaping, gardens and woods and low land. That's what I've learned for me and my set up.

 

[bobbi-j]

Last year I got by with two roosters and 16 hens that all shared the same coop at night. But I live on a farm and they free ranged. They divided themselves into two flocks. For the winter, I put the two flocks in separate coops (with attached runs) because they never would have made it unscathed otherwise. In the spring, they free ranged together again, but went to their separate coops at night.

 

[RodNTN]

I can without a shadow of a doubt assure you that it will continually get worse.

Oh no I'll keep you all posted.

 

[RodNTN]

We have 24 acres so they certainly have enough space, the boys weren't too bad this morning. The two head roosters caught one of my Easter Eggers but she didn't mind and that was the only trouble we've had so far.

 

[RodNTN]

yes it was aimed at you.. an so there you have it the beginning of a mean roo and tomorrow they might be worst and some one could get hurt.? so now it starts , your roos will now battle you to get their way , thats how the making of a mean roo begins, just you trying to save the girls from them starts it and you will be the next target , they will always see you as their enemy..! your the one who is keeping them from the girls so you are now the problem..!!! dont get hurt, just save your self & your girls from these testosterone raging roos, , pen them up and decide later which one was your best to use for breeding & i had 4 roos i ordered last year , one for each breed of pullets i bought in the same chick order, so right about at 16 weeks they were running my poor pullets ragged, and challenging me when i tried to stop them so thats when it had to stop , so they are all now in large pens in pares of which ever of the roos got alone best , i will use them, to breed more chicks of the breeds they are so its not a total loss in any way , i dont mind feeding a few roos if at some point they will serve my purpose ,they will all live good lives , for the rest of their lives.

Oh no, poor Charlie He was always such a sweet boy

Here is a red sex link that was our first rooster:

A friend of ours gave him to us when he was 8 weeks old, he was so sweet! Always sleeping in our laps and cuddling with us, "Colonel Sanders" was his name.
Even after his hormones kicked in he was still a gentlemen.
After we had had him for almost a year an abandoned cockerel showed up at our house.

From the first moment he hated "Luigi' (the name we had given the bantam cockerel).
He would chase him all over the place, Luigi basically lived on our back porch, and would sneak into the coop in the evening.

After a couple of months of this Colonel turned on the hens, he would pull feathers and flog anybody who came within 10 feet of him. When I let the chickens out to range in the morning I would get away from that coop as FAST as I could, because he would charge out of the door crowing and attacking any chicken, dog, cat or human that neared him.

This was all too much and we called around asking everyone if they wanted him, no one did and a few weeks later a farm called and said that we would take him.

When we did give him away he was such a gentlemen to all of the farmers animals, hens, and him, I was shocked

Luigi finally warmed up to the hens (he was always so skittish). He was such a gentlemen Unfortunately though, he died this year He will always be missed:

 

[RodNTN]

I just wanted to share that

 

[microchick]

I think this is a universal story with multiple cockerels.

I have about 14 oegb cross bantam boys exhibiting the same behavior. The little tyrants. I love them dearly. They are all respectful to me but they 'love' the hens just a bit too much, to the point that they hunted down my 4 standard sized roosters and beat the dirt out of them. Talk about death from a thousand cuts. This was bodily damage at the hands of hormonal bantam boys. SO I pulled the standard hens and roos from the bantams and things settled down immediately. The hens were happy, the roosters were scarred up but happy and the bantams are left chasing the bantam pullets around.

I tried separating the extra roosters from the bantam flock. Nope, they turned on one another and released their frustrations by ganging up one the smaller males. Back in with the hens they went out of desperation. They have calmed down quite a bit. The oldest are 8 months almost and the youngest 8 weeks. They are still little tyrants but the younger hens aren't putting up with any of their bull. They try but the girls put them in their places. The older hens have learned to stay out of their way.

Yep, I love roosters, also. And yes, it probably will get worse. But with time it does get better.

 

[RodNTN]

I think this is a universal story with multiple cockerels.

I have about 14 oegb cross bantam boys exhibiting the same behavior. The little tyrants. I love them dearly. They are all respectful to me but they 'love' the hens just a bit too much, to the point that they hunted down my 4 standard sized roosters and beat the dirt out of them. Talk about death from a thousand cuts. This was bodily damage at the hands of hormonal bantam boys. SO I pulled the standard hens and roos from the bantams and things settled down immediately. The hens were happy, the roosters were scarred up but happy and the bantams are left chasing the bantam pullets around.

I tried separating the extra roosters from the bantam flock. Nope, they turned on one another and released their frustrations by ganging up one the smaller males. Back in with the hens they went out of desperation. They have calmed down quite a bit. The oldest are 8 months almost and the youngest 8 weeks. They are still little tyrants but the younger hens aren't putting up with any of their bull. They try but the girls put them in their places. The older hens have learned to stay out of their way.

Yep, I love roosters, also. And yes, it probably will get worse. But with time it does get better.

14 cockerels? I couldn't imagine the chaos! Thankfully though, they have been a lot calmer today.
Most of the girls in the top of the pecking order don't put up with it either, and the boys stay out of their way.