What Rooster Breed for Mixed Coop

[Faraday40]

This made me laugh out loud, but I guess it only makes sense.

We will have a small flock (4 to 6) of hens with no plan to add a rooster. Do we need to to keep them less aggressive? Are some breeds softer crowers? Silly question I'm sure.

Lots of pros & cons about adding roos. If your flock is always contained in a predator proof coop/run & you're not interested in breeding, then there's no reason to add a male. Best to work on the bully female or get rid of her.

If you want to free range & it's legal for you to own a rooster, then there are plenty of good roos out there. I love my English Orpingtons. They are so calm with a lower pitched crow. I put them in the garage at night so we don't hear them in the early morning & let them outside at 8am. They crow a few times (1-4 min) when I put them outside & are generally quiet throughout the day - unless there's a perceived threat. Their big size deters many predators and they're people friendly. We don't baby & cuddle them like the hens, but they let us bend down & pick them up without fuss.
Cons: The crows of some can be loud & carry. I am sensitive to noise, so I find the lower pitched boys more soothing. (Smaller breeds like silkies & OEG have a higher pitched shrill noise. The smaller may have less volume but they seem to crow more frequently to each other throughout the day. Another thing to consider is size. If you have small breeds like silkie hens, a giant orp may harm her under his weight.

Here was our all-time fav rooster. He knew he was too big to mate the bantam - our Sebright - but he still guarded her & any chicks with no benefit to himself.

 

[Shadrach]

A rooster isn’t going to solve your problem.
Removing the bully for a while isn’t going to solve it either. Despite what one reads the removed bully doesn’t go to the bottom of the pecking order when returned to the flock.
Now it seems your whole flock has learnt from the bully.
If this was a rooster the usual response you would get is ‘into the pot’ or ‘invite him for dinner’. Yep your bully may well lay eggs but are a few extra eggs worth all this aggravation.
Kill the bully; cooked hen tastes just as nice as cooked rooster. Let the flock settle down again and a new senior hen establish herself and hope that they all sort themselves out.

You just can't expect a male to move in and sort out all your hen problems.

 

[Chickassan]

Personally, I would try adding a rooster. A "good" male really does change the dynamics of the flock. It may or may not change your mean hen but the other ladies would surely appreciate a bodyguard right? Maybe another warm body in the coop at night? Somebody to scan the skies so they can carry on without worry? It also very well could be the thing that turns your bully into a lady, a good rooster will most certainly not tolerate too much nonsense in his harem.

 

[Phaedra Winters]

Honestly, if you're going to get a rooster, I would just go to the bu/sell/trade and pick up a free rooster from somebody, because everyone has an endless supply they're trying to get rid of. Personally, I would not get a silkie. my purebred silkie roosters were the worst birds I've ever had. They are incredibly human aggressive and were garbage to our hens. Ironically enough, our rhode island rooster was the best one we had, although I know they're a typically aggressive breed, so i'd pick up a mixed breed or just any of the free ones. We did that and got lucky with an excellent BR x EE cross who we trained and is very sweet to the hens and never walks near us.