Just found out my favorite pullet, is actually a Roo. Would you keep him in your flock with 2 other Roos,14 chickens and 3 guineas, or would you find another solution ? I would appreciate any input.
It depends on his personality, and your other roos' personalities. He may end up permanently stuck in "baby-roo-ville", or he could be the new bad-ace in town. Still, 14 girls might get over-worked under 3 roos.
I've kept three roosters with 15 hens for a while and had no problems with the hens getting roughed up, barebacked, or over bred. The 10 to 1 ratio is what commercial breeders that produce hatching eggs using the "pen" method use to assure fertility. It is a fertility thing. It has very little to do with the hens being roughed up, barebacked, or overbred or with roosters fighting, which is another claim often made. The more roosters you have, the more likely you are to have problems, so my normal advice is to keep as few roosters as you can to meet your goals. Whether this is one rosoter with one hen, one rooster with 25 hens, three roosters with 14 hens, or something else, that just depends on your goals. I find the really critical things regarding barebacked and overbred hens are space and the personality of the individual chickens, hens as well as roosters. With all that said, it still sounds good and can be a good excuse to get more hens. And with very low ratios more hens could help, but I don't consider 3 roosters with 14 hens to be a really low ratio. I've actually had the worst problems with the better ratios due the the individual personalities.
Thank you all for the advice. We have plenty of room for them, and are in the process of finishing their new coop, which will be big enough to house them in the winter. Maybe one or two new pullets wouldn't be noticed for a while ....
