Roosters and Mating

[Nuggiesduggies]

So, I plan on owning a rooster, and he’ll be part of a home with 5 hens. What are somethings I should be expecting from him being around them?

 

[Nomadicus]

Hello and Welcome to BYC. Glad to have you here with us in this fun and poultry loving community. You are borderline on enough hens if they are a light breed layer. Roosters will over breed hens if there are to few and cause a lot of feather loss on their backs. Good luck with your flock and hens hatching eggs if that is what you want.

 

[FrostRanger]

So, I plan on owning a rooster, and he’ll be part of a home with 5 hens. What are somethings I should be expecting from him being around them?

Mainly fertilized eggs. The rest depends on the temperaments of the birds involved

Also welcome to byc!

 

[Nuggiesduggies]

Hello and Welcome to BYC. Glad to have you here with us in this fun and poultry loving community. You are borderline on enough hens if they are a light breed layer. Roosters will over breed hens if there are to few and cause a lot of feather loss on their backs. Good luck with your flock and hens hatching eggs if that is what you want.

Thank you! Eggs is something I definitely wanna see

 

[DobieLover]

Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.

 

[nuthatched]

The only real thing is fertilizing eggs.

 

[Jenbirdee]

 

[Jener8or]

How old is your rooster/cockerel going to be? If they are young, I'd expect some immature chasing/opportunistic behaviors around the girls. If the hens are older, they should teach him some manners. I wouldn't ever tolerate a cockerel or rooster that goes after people, though.

Thanks for joining and welcome to BackYard Chickens!

 

[Tookie]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[Debbie292d]

Hiya, and welcome to BYC!

Not sure what age you're getting, but our adult roosters do dances around the hens, then jump on their backs to breed them, which usually makes the eggs the hen lays fertile. Having fertile eggs means you can let them sit on some eggs and hatch chicks if you want. Usually, depending on breed, they can start doing that around 4-6 months. They usually get better as they age.

Our roosters also make sure the chickens are warned if something seems awry around here. They make certain noises and the chickens run for the coop or the side of the house.