Breeding Black Bantam Ameraucanas

[AmeraucanaLover 2011]

Hi everyone!
I have a question, I have begun breeding Black Bantam Ameraucanas and and I'm not sure what the best breeding plan is for the upcoming year.
I currently have two cockerels, five pullets and three 2 month old Ameraucana chicks. I believe two of the chicks are males, and the other one is a female. I don't have a huge coop for them, meaning I can only keep up to three males. What do you all think is a good plan for breeding? Do I have multiple females with each male or do I only have one or two with each?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

What are your goals? Are you breeding to the SOP or only trying to get as many chicks as possible in the shortest amount of time? Have you tested the fertility of your males at all? How many coops do you have?

 

[AmeraucanaLover 2011]

I guess I should have provided more information, I'm sorry.
I'm trying to breed to the SOP, I only have one coop unfortunately.
It is 4 feet by 4 feet, and has two levels. The bottom level is a main coop, opening up to a fenced in run. The top level is two 2 feet by 4 feet cages, one of the cages can have a divider put in to make two 2 feet by 2 feet cages.
I hope to build another coop next spring/summer.

I know one of my males is fertile, but I'm not sure about the other.
Overall I'm trying to breed for quality, not quantity.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

A 2x2' cage is only big enough for one LF bird, do not know about bantams. What kind of flooring do the top cages have?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

So the top cages would not have access to a run?

 

[AmeraucanaLover 2011]

Just plywood. No, the coop cages unfortunately don't have access to the run.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Plywood is much better than hardware cloth on their feet so I'm glad of that. Others may disagree but I think you're going to be limited by the size of your cages. You may only be able to put a single pair in the 2x2 cage, for example, and that may be awfully hard on the hen. If at all possible I would encourage you to build bigger or rehome most of the cockerels, keeping only your best specimen for breeding. Good breeders do a lot of culling in order to improve their stock, you really have to be able to cull ruthlessly. If you can't do that you're already sunk.

 

[AmeraucanaLover 2011]

Thanks, that's good to know. I will try to build a bigger coop for them. I can cull if needed, but will try to make them a larger space first.