2 SILKIE COCKERELS ABOUT 20 WEEKS

[HAPPYCHICKENLADY17]

i have 2 silkie cockerls who just started crowing a few weeks ago....i have a buff orp hen that has been raised with them since she was 3 days old, they are in a separate coop from my 16 laying hens....but they can see eachother from the wire barracade....for the past few weeks i have been letting the little buff out to mingle with the big chickens , but all she wants to do is hang out around the coop she was raised in..she rarely ventures very far...the older chickens dont really bother with her...i thought i would eventually intergrate her in the large flock, but she seems to want no part of that. my husband says to leave her alone and let her stay in the coop with the 2 silkies.....any advice will be greatly appreciated..thank you

 

[LizzzyJo]

Can you integrate all 3 at once? Integrating just her may lead to bullying, but leaving her with two brothers who are getting older could lead to over mating.

 

[Mrs. K]

I agree, this is going to go south if you leave it as is. Get all three in the main set up, and then if you want, pull the roosters back out. 2 roosters to one hen will not work, the fact that they are raised together will be a moot point when the hormones start, crowing is a sign the hormones are beginning to move.

Adding three is much better than adding one. The BO will not really 'belong' to the flock until she starts laying. You don't say how old they are, but roosters tend to develop earlier, so I would think she might be 4-6 weeks from laying.

Mrs K

 

[HAPPYCHICKENLADY17]

I agree, this is going to go south if you leave it as is. Get all three in the main set up, and then if you want, pull the roosters back out. 2 roosters to one hen will not work, the fact that they are raised together will be a moot point when the hormones start, crowing is a sign the hormones are beginning to move.

Adding three is much better than adding one. The BO will not really 'belong' to the flock until she starts laying. You don't say how old they are, but roosters tend to develop earlier, so I would think she might be 4-6 weeks from laying.

Mrs K

the buff is 16 weeks..the silkie cockerels are 20 weeks..the reason she is a single pullet is that when one of the silkies were 4 weeks old his sister got eaten by a raccoon, it was pulled right out of the wire cage...he survived...so i went out to the local feed store and got him a companion,, (that was before i got the second silkie) panic struck and i wasnt thinking not to get 2 buffs , so now i have a dilemma

 

[HAPPYCHICKENLADY17]

i was not really wanting to put the silkies cockerel in with my adult hens....i have no interest in fertilized eggs at this time...and the cockerels are still so young

 

[BlueBaby]

It doesn't matter if the egg's are fertilized or not. As long as you collect them every day, there's no chance of them hatching. You can still eat the egg's.

 

[LizzzyJo]

i was not really wanting to put the silkies cockerel in with my adult hens....i have no interest in fertilized eggs at this time...and the cockerels are still so young

Just brainstorming here: Could you integrate all 3 for a month or so (pick up any eggs each day so that the fertilization is a moot point) and then pull the cockerels out once the buff is happy? Did you have a reason for the cockerels that precludes their integration? How do you feel about them having a little bachelor pad to themselves?

 

[HAPPYCHICKENLADY17]

It doesn't matter if the egg's are fertilized or not. As long as you collect them every day, there's no chance of them hatching. You can still eat the egg's.

i realize that, i will collect the eggs every day, i have no objection to a bachelor pad, my concern here is getting the BO intergrated with the big girls with no drama, so i should put all three out in the big run, then pull the 2 silkies out???

 

[BlueBaby]

i realize that, i will collect the eggs every day, i have no objection to a bachelor pad, my concern here is getting the BO intergrated with the big girls with no drama, so i should put all three out in the big run, then pull the 2 silkies out???

Then it's better that you let all 3 of them out there with the flock together for awhile. The 2 roo's that the hen has been with look's to those 2 as being her flock and she will feel more secure if they are with her. That way she won't be trying to get back in the pen with them. Keep in mind that that pen has been known as home to her.

 

[HAPPYCHICKENLADY17]

Then it's better that you let all 3 of them out there with the flock together for awhile. The 2 roo's that the hen has been with look's to those 2 as being her flock and she will feel more secure if they are with her. That way she won't be trying to get back in the pen with them. Keep in mind that that pen has been known as home to her.

yes, i know....ill let all three out and see what happens..so should i let all three roost with the big girls in the big coop..thanks