Morgk
Songster
- Mar 29, 2020
- 149
- 123
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When will my rooster start crowing and doing his job with the ladies?
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Had seen a couple vids....but still was pretty amazing to have one in my coop.I can't remember the youngest I've seen one try to crow. Not two weeks, Aart may have a record on that.
You seem to be very well informed. So I have a question; I have 4 hens who are a little over a year old. I just got a cockerel I was told was 6 months old. He looks full grown and has tried to mate with one of the hens already. The two at the top of the pecking order won't have anything to do with him. They're all free ranging together and spent the night on the roost in the coop last night together. My question is whether he will get larger yet or is he pretty much at his full size now? He is considerably larger than even our brahma hen. He seems pretty calm and gentlemanly so far. He hasn't been aggressive with the hens, our dogs, cats or us. As he gets older is this likely to change or at 6 months is he showing us what kind of roo he will be? Thanks for any information you can provide.I love how we can have so many different opinions on here, but that should be expected. We have difference experiences.
I can't remember the youngest I've seen one try to crow. Not two weeks, Aart may have a record on that. Probably around 4 or 5 weeks for me. But I believe Aart has seen that. Most of mine don't start trying to crow until maybe 4 months of age, but there are exceptions.
When does a cockerel start trying to fertilizing eggs? A few variables there. How old are the ladies? Mature hens often will not allow an immature cockerel to mate. Until they start to lay most pullets don't cooperate either. The ladies have a part to play in this.
I've seen a cockerel as young as 12 weeks try to mate pullets. Can't say I've ever seen one that young ever bother a mature hen but I could believe some would try it. I tend to have around 10 cockerels growing up in the flock at a time. Usually around 15 weeks some get real active with the pullets and may try a mature hen. Others may wait until they are over 5 months before they start. With that many together you get different interactions than if you only have one cockerel.
I have had a cockerel as young as five months that was accepted by all of the mature hens, but that is rare. I had one cockerel that did not win over the last mature hen until he was 11 months old. Most of mine can do that at around 7 months. I think the personality of the cockerel and the personality of the mature hen both lay a part.
If you don't have mature hens but only pullets the same age, cockerels can be a pain with their mating antics any time from 12 weeks on. Usually mine wait until 15 weeks or so but you never know.
I'm not totally sure what you mean by "doing his job with the ladies"? A cockerel will often start trying to mate long before he is allowed by the ladies to actually fertilize eggs. Most will be producing sperm by 15 weeks but may not be given a chance to deliver it until quite a while later.