Bald Ladies/Horny Roo!

[Larkin]

I have a beautiful 1 year old EE rooster who has a flock of adoring, submissive ladies (14). Over half of the girls are a little over 2 years old and molted completely this past fall. He certainly has his favorites and their backs and heads show! They finally looked fluffy and vibrant yet, now when you look at them- they are bald backed, plucked head, hot messes!
So would making little saddles be the way to go or should I separate him? I'm getting 10 more layer chicks on Saturday, hoping that soon he'll have enough girls to spread the loving around! How many does a guy need, sheesh?!

 

[Larkin]

pictures added to post to show one of his favorites, Goldie!

 

[stoopid]

Oh my, poor girls. Have you checked his feet, maybe trim his spurs (if he has any), I can't tell in the pic.
You need some saddles!

 

[Larkin]

No spurs...YET! Will saddles help their wings too? You can see the "joints" are balding too

 

[stoopid]

Some people make a little wing on the saddle, that sticks out and covers better.
Check in the BST thread, in "other", we have peeps here that make them.

 

[Larkin]

thanks, I will definitely check it out. My dear mother may make them for me if I figure out a pattern for her! BTW, what sort of rooster is it in your profile/avatar picture? My rooster is a EE mixture (mom=EE, dad was barred rock/buff orpington mix) Yours is so pretty, I mean handsome!

 

[stoopid]

Thank you, that's my boy Clyde.
He is a French Black Copper Marans.
The pic is at a show, he didn't win anything there, but has gotten Best of Breed, and Best in Show.
I think you can find patterns on the internet, they are about the size of a potholder.
Good luck with the saddles! Alot of the people that make them have actually gone through the same as you, once they perfect the shape, they sell them.

 

[Jeffross1968]

Mine are getting pretty beat up too, but seriously, how many people use the saddles? Do most people just let it happen? Poor things...

 

[stoopid]

The problem is that some girls don't like wearing their saddles, and some of them will try their best to get them off.
You really need to watch them for a few days, or weeks, to make sure they fit correctly, and they don't get caught up in bushes or fencing.
It would break my heart to find a girl was strangled because she got twisted up wearing that saddle.
Sometimes it's better to leave them alone if that happens, just another dilemma of owning chickens, I guess...

 

[Larkin]

I'l like to know how many hens an lively rooster needs so that the loving is evened out.