Does it matter how many roosters there are? I'm planning a flock of 6-8 hens. The lady I am getting them from, gives her roosters away. They are really beautiful and I would like to take 3 of them off her hands. She said they are fine together. They don't fight and it doesn't matter how many there are compared to number of hens. Would you agree with this statement?
Recent Reviews
-
Buffy is our only Orpington. She is independent, lower on the pecking order, but big, fluffy and likes to cluck. She lays frequently when not broody. She's my only brooder so far that I have...
-
These are my first chickens, gifts from a daughter for Christmas. Once they started laying, it's rare to have a day without one egg from each hen. They come when I call them, stay close to the...
-
I have six Japanese Bantams. Five hens and one rooster. Grace, Zoey, Lemon, DeLacey, and DeLaney are the hens, and George Tucker is my rooster. They make up about 1/5 of my chickens. I have all...
-
I just LOVE my sicilian buttercup, Poppy. Anytime I go outside she loves to hop up onto my back or my arm. She's very curious and loves to he held or played with. I've also noticed that she loves...
-
My Brown Leghorns are very good natured, and easy to care for. they lay well and lay large eggs. You can count on a dozen plus out of this coop every 4 days with only three hens laying. I get a...
More than one rooster ok?
- seminolewind
-
- Flock Mistress
- Location: spring hill, florida
- Joined: 9/2007
- Posts: 12,509
- offline
Roosters are noisy. When you get more than one they compete vocally and physically They fight amongst each other and can pick on the girls. We have a big flock where I keep my horse and at one point there were about 7 roosters and 20 hens. The roosters went away and peace and hapiness ensued. I have chickens at home with one rooster we love him to pieces but he is quite enough thank you.
- Location: Willits, CA Gateway to the Redwoods
- Joined: 4/2007
- Posts: 1,149
- offline
No, I would not agree! You may well have bare-backed hens w/ that ratio. Not fun for the girls at all.
More than one rooster is perfectly fine especially if you're using a smart breed in which males quickly learn their place, BUT -
6-8 hens is waaay too few girls for more than one male. You will quickly get stressed, bare backed, possibly injured hens from excessive breeding and competition.
Araucanas, Polish, Shamos
Araucanas, Polish, Shamos
- Location: Northwest Arkansas
- Joined: 2/2009
- Posts: 12,091
- offline
The more roosters you have the more likely you are to have problems, regardless of the number of hens you have. That's why I recommend you keep as few roosters as you can and still reach your goals. And it really helps if both the hens and roosters are mature. Adolescent pullets and cockerels very often don't have their act together. If you can get them past that adolescent phase you are much less likely to have problems.
I currently have four roosters (3 of them adolescent) and 9 hens (3 of those adolescent) and don't have problems. But I will soon change that to one rooster and seven hens. Mine were raised together, male and female, and they have lots of space. I think both of those factors help. Plus I think having a mature rooster in the flock helps keep it calm.
You can try it and it might work fine, but if you do try it, I strongly recommend you have a back-up plan ready. And try to get mature roosters.
The spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure that it is right.....Judge Learned Hand (The more sure your are that your way is the only right way, the more likely you are wrong.)
The spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure that it is right.....Judge Learned Hand (The more sure your are that your way is the only right way, the more likely you are wrong.)
- Location: Deerfield, NH
- Joined: 1/2012
- Posts: 450
- offline
I personally have 6 roosters and 9 hens in my big house right now and they get long great! No bare backs and no problems at all!
Proud momma of 4 Kids, 3 Cats, 3 Dogs, 5 Geese, 10 Quail, 50+ Chickens, 3 Royal Palm Turkeys, 5 Guineas, 3 Rabbits, 8 Goats, and 2 COMPLETELY EMPTY 'BATORS! DARN WINTER!!!:( *NPIP Certified Flock*
*****REST IN PEACE CAPT. JACK - 6/23/12*****
Proud momma of 4 Kids, 3 Cats, 3 Dogs, 5 Geese, 10 Quail, 50+ Chickens, 3 Royal Palm Turkeys, 5 Guineas, 3 Rabbits, 8 Goats, and 2 COMPLETELY EMPTY 'BATORS! DARN WINTER!!!:( *NPIP Certified Flock*
*****REST IN PEACE CAPT. JACK - 6/23/12*****
Sounds smart! Then later when chicken math kicks in good, you'll NEED another roo 
1 Weim,1 Pomeranian, 2 Cats,2 fish tanks, flock of 30(or so ) BLRW chickens,flock of Banties(Cochins,Showgirls,Greylegs and Silkies), Flock of Ancona Ducks (B&W,Lav & W),Flock of Mallards (Blue Fawn and Restricteds) 6 Muscovies, 3 Narragansett Turkeys,2 Geese(Toulouse), 2 Budgies,2 zebra finch, 2 Cockatiels.... and oh yeah, 5 great kids( 2 have flown the coop) and an enabling hubby
1 Weim,1 Pomeranian, 2 Cats,2 fish tanks, flock of 30(or so ) BLRW chickens,flock of Banties(Cochins,Showgirls,Greylegs and Silkies), Flock of Ancona Ducks (B&W,Lav & W),Flock of Mallards (Blue Fawn and Restricteds) 6 Muscovies, 3 Narragansett Turkeys,2 Geese(Toulouse), 2 Budgies,2 zebra finch, 2 Cockatiels.... and oh yeah, 5 great kids( 2 have flown the coop) and an enabling hubby
I used to tell people that 10 to 1 was the general ratio, 1 rooster to every 10 hens. However, experience has taught me that's not always true. I bought a couple batches of chicks last year and wound up with 8 roosters and 16 hens. I got that batch down to 4 roosters (1 bantam and 3 standards) and 16 hens (1 bantam and 15 standards), and they got along fine. Then, one day while they were out free-ranging, one of my bantam roosters from a different coop decided he was going to move in with the new ladies and those other 4 roosters, and he declared himself the big man on campus. lol! So far, he's maintained his position as king with none of the other roosters challenging him, but I'm not sure how long he'll reign. Either way, they're all getting along fine right now, and there are no bare-backed hens. I'm pretty sure little Edgar is the only one who gets to do much lovin' in the coop and run, but I've noticed when they free range they tend to break off into groups, with the hens spread among the roosters. The run is also fairly large (50ft. x 50ft.), so they have room to get away from each other, which may aid in their tolerance of each other.
- More than one rooster ok?
Recent Discussions
- › Pasty Butt chicks 1 minute ago
- › CSU - Chicken State University- Large Fowl SOP 1 minute ago
- › Chickens playing dead 1 minute ago
- › Tell everyone your current mood in three words (no more, no less!) 1 minute ago
- › Pennsylvania!! Unite!! 1 minute ago
- › Yum or Yuck? 2 minutes ago
- › Cackle hatchery's Hatchery Surprise- Anybody got this before? 2 minutes ago
- › Texas 2 minutes ago
- › ALABAMA!! 2 minutes ago
- › The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome! 3 minutes ago
Recent Reviews
- › Orpington by chickenteacher2
- › Red Sex Link by Hogs and Horns
- › Japanese by MoodyBroody622
- › Sicilian Buttercup by Glimmer Otnes
- › White Leghorn Pullets by HershelMS
- › Wyandotte by The Bantam Guy
- › Ameraucana by 1stTimeChikMama
- › Icelandic or Viking Hen by my urban barnyard
- › Plymouth Rock by australorp41
- › Easter Eggers by mrstomcat
New Articles
- › Wild Thyme Farm's Flock by applegal
- › Cedar Acres Coop! by CedarAcres
- › Beauty is in the eye of the beholder! by SillyChicken
- › The Hunger Games -----Awesome RP - Members Page! by IceFire
- › My wife thinks I've "flown the... by bartholomew82
- › The Royal Chickens of Cluck Caslte by ChickFuentes
- › Darkstar's Palace by elisem
- › Bls5049 Swap page by bls5049
- › Pullet Grower Tractor by Kagen
- › Dead Hen by cortneyh
About BackYard Chickens | Join the Community | Advertise | Chicken Supplies | SufficientSelf.com | BackYardHerds.com | TheEasyGarden.com
© 2013 BackYard Chickens is powered by Huddler Families | FAQ | Support | Privacy/TOS | Site Map










