Arizona Chickens

[Happy Novogens]

@Happy Novogens I have heard of broody's before that did not sit the full time on the egg's to hatch them. I have also heard of hen's that kill the chick's as they hatch. I incubate in an incubator because with knowing that, I do not trust the hen's to hatch them. It only takes one rooster to fertilize the egg's, unless you are planning on running 2 group's for breeding purposes.

So if 1 rooster can change the dynamic of a flock, can the roo be housed separately (until needed for breeding) or does that make for an unhappy roo?

 

[BlueBaby]

So if 1 rooster can change the dynamic of a flock, can the roo be housed separately (until needed for breeding) or does that make for an unhappy roo?

My rooster Hawkeye is housed with the girl's. He call's them when I put food out there and let's them eat first. He warns them when a hawk fly's around them so that the girl's can go run and hide in the coop. He also break's up the girl's fighting for the nest boxes.

 

[Happy Novogens]

My rooster Hawkeye is housed with the girl's. He call's them when I put food out there and let's them eat first. He warns them when a hawk fly's around them so that the girl's can go run and hide in the coop. He also break's up the girl's fighting for the nest boxes.

Looks like I won't be able to get more Novogens at this time. Those Bielefelders have my attention though. I assume you are happy with their egg production, egg size, & overall bird size? I was reading up on them & like what I've seen. They're really pretty too. Are you open to sell any? If so, what age would be best to slowly integrate 2 or 3 with my 4 pullets (hatched April 20)?

 

[BlueBaby]

Looks like I won't be able to get more Novogens at this time. Those Bielefelders have my attention though. I assume you are happy with their egg production, egg size, & overall bird size? I was reading up on them & like what I've seen. They're really pretty too. Are you open to sell any? If so, what age would be best to slowly integrate 2 or 3 with my 4 pullets (hatched April 20)?

Yes, I am happy with the Bielefelder's. As you probably read in this thread that just a few month's ago, I was going crazy with how many egg's that they layed that were in my fridge. I had to start feeding them back to the chicken's (cooked, of course), and giving some to neighbors. Egg size right now is an average of the large size. They are shades of brown. I got egg's all winter from them.

The only Bielefelder's that I have for sale right now is a breeder's trio of them that I want to go together, so that my extra cockerel will be able to find a home too. The 2 pullet's that would go with him are due to lay the first egg this month. Other then that, I might have a few chick's available after this shipped egg hatch that I'm doing. It all depends on how many hatch. Then after that I will be setting egg's from my flock here.

 

[igorsMistress]

Thank you for that. I was getting overwhelmed with all of it. If I do this and end up with a few roos, if I decide I want to breed more, should I keep one or two roos and house them separately from the gals (if I want to still be able to interact with the gals)? How would that work when one wants to get fertilized eggs? Does one just let the roos out with the gals maybe when they are out of the run and roaming about? Will any of the ladies hatch them out or must it be done with an incubator? How do we know which eggs to collect for eating and which are fertile? Oh my, now it's getting complicated again just thinking about this.

How you do that is entirely up to you.

For clarification, the only time you need to keep roosters separated is if you have multiples and you’re keeping them for whatever reason. There’s no need for multiple roosters for the average backyard keeper.

When you hatch eggs, generally you don’t know what the sex of the chicks are until they’ve grown a bit, unless you go the sex linked route. All of your chicks will end up integrating into the flock, separation of roosters comes much later when their hormones are raging and the girls don’t want to have anything to do with them. Roughly 16 to 26 weeks. This is generally the age people separate or cull. In my opinion, freezer camp at that point is fine. Some people will want to grow them a bit more so they are heavier, but I don’t. They go straight from the roost to the kill cone at that point.

Sometimes a gal will go broody and hatch for you, which is my preference. You can encourage this by leaving eggs in the box or by getting a breed that is “known to go broody.” Of course there are individuals in every breed who want to be mamas, or refuse to be, so there’s no telling. They’ll go broody on you in August when it’s 110 for days too lol, but that’s easy enough to deal with.

Some people make a big deal about having the mama and chicks separate from the flock, but I don’t ever do that. Mama has them out and about in a couple of days, teaching them to forage and introducing them to the rest of the crew. She defends them and teaches them the things they need to know. I don’t take her out of the coop when she’s sitting, or disturb her in anyway. Don’t get me wrong, there are advantages to separating her while she sits, but I just let her do her thing for the most part.

 

[CaroleW]

I have lotsa learnin' to do! With just hens, life is simple. If I start hatching, then I'll need to learn how to tell fertile eggs from infertile, how to safely integrate new birds into my flock, and how to handle too many roos. --all new to me.

That also means I'll need to setup a couple new enclosures (I assume). One for young chickens too small to go with the main flock. Would extra roos be kept separate (from main flock and/or from each other??) until they're big enough to process? (cavemanrich, we are fine with sending them to freezer camp)

Depending on the feistiness and number of the cockerals you can raise them together with the females until a certain age (in my experience) about 7-9 weeks, when they probably start crowing.

I do have a flock of Bielefelders and NN/Bielefelder mix roo that are all raised together since they will be a breeding flock. So you need to know what your goal is to figure out what you need to do with your roos. Then also play it by ear, because they may not cooperate with your great plans.

We also keep roos separate until we plan a chicken dinner (a day or 3 before that we harvest the roo). They can be harvested small if you don't have a separate area and they are getting out of hand. Realize that even the small cockerals have lived longer, better lives than most roos. They can also prep your garden beds if you have a chicken tractor setup or similar. I have some working on my raised greenhouse beds that I have small hoop coops made with half a cattle panel on a wood frame with no bottom.

 

[ChicksnMore]

Thank you for that. I was getting overwhelmed with all of it. If I do this and end up with a few roos, if I decide I want to breed more, should I keep one or two roos and house them separately from the gals (if I want to still be able to interact with the gals)? How would that work when one wants to get fertilized eggs? Does one just let the roos out with the gals maybe when they are out of the run and roaming about? Will any of the ladies hatch them out or must it be done with an incubator? How do we know which eggs to collect for eating and which are fertile? Oh my, now it's getting complicated again just thinking about this.

I always keep at least two roos of any breed I want to have chicks from. Most roos raised together tend to get along fine as adults as well, though occasionally you get ones that don't. If they can't get along as adults, I watch to see which ones the aggressor and those roos go. I just think it keeps the flocks healthier. Letting a roo be the only roo in a flock usually makes them more fight prone. Sometimes you want to breed a specific roo to a specific hen though. I separate them out for breeding and afterwards the roo goes into a bachelor coop for a while with the roos I want him to get along with again. After a while I add them back with the ladies as a group and they do ok. They're roos that already knew each other and got along before the brief separation though.
I've never tried keeping roos separate and just letting them with the ladies when I want chicks. Its not a bad idea but not necessary... guessing you want a sweet, friendly flock and are wondering if that lets you have babies and your pet flock. I'd say it's worth trying. If you keep at least two roos, they'll have company so not too lonely.

 

[igorsMistress]

So if 1 rooster can change the dynamic of a flock, can the roo be housed separately (until needed for breeding) or does that make for an unhappy roo?

There’s a guy named Shadrach here on BYC that is truly a rooster whisperer. If you have questions about roosters he is absolutely the person that I would ask. He has had multiple flocks, he calls them tribes, on the property where he used to live. I have learned so much from him about chickens in general, but particularly roosters. He has a thread about ex battery hens now

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/shadrachs-ex-battery-and-rescued-chickens-thread.1502267/

 

[CaroleW]

There’s a guy named Shadrach here on BYC that is truly a rooster whisperer. If you have questions about roosters he is absolutely the person that I would ask. He has had multiple flocks, he calls them tribes, on the property where he used to live. I have learned so much from him about chickens in general, but particularly roosters. He has a thread about ex battery hens now

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/shadrachs-ex-battery-and-rescued-chickens-thread.1502267/

I'm entranced by his efforts and I'm only on page 9. Thanks for the link!

 

[igorsMistress]

I'm entranced by his efforts and I'm only on page 9. Thanks for the link!

Happy to help, he really is a gem.