Do hens even like roos?

[Brungeman]

So I was reading the thread about personality and it brought up that question.

So I got 3 day old Ameraucana chicks in July and since I am new to them,I am not versed in the nuances of sexing them, and while we have been waiting for blue eggs, I started noticing some changes in my black bird... "she" started picking on the other birds her same age. The older birds kept "her" in line. Well last week while checking the coop before work I heard a crowing from inside and it all started to click that "she" was actually a he...

Yesterday while I had them out he started in on his Rooster like things and was trying to make it with the older birds all of which were ticked off and were having no parts of it! They gave him the business! One hen almost kicked his behind! Lol

So do they actually like having a roo around?

 

[Toddrick]

I'm not sure they do like the roos. They seem to tolerate them at best, in return they get protection (and getting bullied around).

It kinda makes me wonder if human females actually like men or not, or if they just tolerate them heh...

 

[Monguire]

Does my wife like me? Absolutely! Does she like me better when I'm at work versus being around the house all up in her grill trying to get in her pants every ten minutes? Positively! My function is to provide and protect and when I'm doing that in a non-groping, "amorlous" manner she suffers my presence quite well. When I start giving her that look and get a little too handsy, she tries her best to give me other things to occupy my time! Maybe it had something to do with her hatching four kids within 28 months!

Much the same for roosters methinks. When they are nice they are welcome and when they need to get their lust on, they are merely tolerated. It's funny to watch my pullets run to my cockerels when they are startled or being chased by others further up the pecking order. I can tell from their body language that they are relieved for the protection the cockerels provide but that relief quickly turns to something between terror and disgust as the boys start mounting the sea of pullets crashing around their feet. Once the carnal buffet is complete, the pullets scamper off muttering and complaining until the next falling leaf or stiff breeze scares them back into waiting wings of my overly-enthusiastic cockerels!

I know my wife loves me just as I know she loves me better when I'm not within groping-distance! Unless she needs something, then I can't get home fast enough!

 

[myfarm4579]

Well explained lol.

 

[lazy gardener]

I know that when I've put my cockrels in the "jail" or grow out pen, the pullets, and often the ones they've terrorized the most will hang out around the grow out pen, and would go in with them if given half a chance.

 

[Beer can]

I know my wife loves me just as I know she loves me better when I'm not within groping-distance! Unless she needs something, then I can't get home fast enough!

Same here Lol!
The question "do hens even like roos" well I never asked them!
I think it helps if you have plenty of hens, the breed of the roo probably helps also. I had 15 RIRed pullets. After the first yr laying I gave half to my Grandma. The second yr I figured I was going to hatch out my own little ones so I got four RIR roo chicks. The plan was to keep the biggest bestest one for myself and give the second to Grandma. When it came time Grandma said "I wont have any of that business going on in my hen house!" And then we moved, only kept three hens and had four roos to deal with. Withen a week them hens were looking pretty rough so the roos went to freezer camp, no little new ones. I ordered different breeds instead. EEgrs, brown leghorns and wellsummers and three wellsummer roos, only keeping the best one. After free ranging and loseing a bunch to predators I'm down to eight pullets and one roo, coop and run only. The pullets don't seem stressed at all, they are always hanging out with the roo, he makes funny clucking noises when they are out and the girls come running, he gives them any worms or bugs he finds. Same when I feed them, he is the first in the coop making the "come here girls food!" clucking noises and they come running. Hopefully he is doing his 'job' I want to hatch out more wellies in the spring. He's the calmest one of the bunch, the only one my kids can walk up to and pet (besides the one glpolish, but I think they can catch her cause she can't see them comeing with that poof ball head). I like having a roo, really enjoy hearing the crowing.

He is still young though, they wont be a year untill end of May. Hopefully he doesn't turn into a 'peckerhead' the older he gets.

 

[Brungeman]

Well, I went out to collect eggs the other day and there were none... I noticed on one of the hens back, a bit of what I thought was yoke, and some moret may have been on the wall of the coop... Yesterday when I went out there were eggs and my sweet Welsummer was in the nesting box, the roo was in the coop harassing her through the opening into the nesting box. She didn't seem too happy. And several of the others have given him a go and tried to whoop his but. I can't have a Roo in my area so he will have to be relocated soon...

I think the hens have issues with him because he didn't do anything when a hawk came and killed their sister... (Not to confuse the issue) LOL So he isn't providing the protection they want but, he still wants some tail! LOL

 

[aart]

Young cockerels are a pain in the butt....they can harass and stress the hens/pullets to the point of them not laying.
Had that problem last summer, segregated the PITA cockerel, eggs began to appear again just a couple days later.

 

[Brungeman]

Thanks aart! That is kinda what I was thinking. He is beautiful but I can't keep him and since I am not in the chick hatching thing yet, I think I need to rehome him to give my hens a brake!

 

[StephensonC]

Young cockerels are a pain in the butt....they can harass and stress the hens/pullets to the point of them not laying.
Had that problem last summer, segregated the PITA cockerel, eggs began to appear again just a couple days later.

I totally agree! We had the same problem with a younger cockerel. His actions were much like a teenage boy that couldn't make up his mind if he wan't to be naughty or nice. I think maybe he wanted to flirt with the girls, but had no clue as to how to do it. One minute he would call them over for treats and the next he would fight over the treats. Then when he wasn't chasing them away, he would try to mount them. That's when the alpha rooster would step in, and attempt to kick his tail....Needless to say, we had to remove the younger one.

That is a very pretty boy! Are you near NC? I could take him off your hands.