Breeding Question.

[Below frigid]

I have a Broody that just hatched 8 adopted eggs. Planning on keeping a roo or two. Is it a problem for the the step hen since she is raising them like her own? I know they are not related by blood but it seems a little weird having one of the babies mate with their step mom. Will she remember it as one of her own after it's mature?

 

[lazy gardener]

No. Not an issue. Even if it were to be a cockerel from one of her own eggs. Animal kingdom does not operate under the morals that guide humans.

 

[Zoomie]

No. Chickens are not humans, and they have no idea about our own sexual taboos or any of that. In the animal world, when a male is ready to mate, and a female is ready to mate, they do so. They do not sit down first and work out what their relationship is.

I had a friend who wanted to raise goats and got a bunch, but her facility was really flimsy. The first year, the buck broke out and bred all the does. The second year, the buck broke out and bred all the does... which included his daughters. She was SHOCKED! But that is what animals are like. The third year, the buck broke out and bred all the does, which by then included the original does, his daughters and his granddaughters. FINALLY, my friend realized she had to do something. Most of those goats (by now, she had over a hundred goats) were loaded onto a trailer and headed for, well, "goaty heaven", I guess. The meat market, anyway. Lesson learned: you have to have really good fences or a really good facility, or the same thing will happen to any other animal.

As a general rule and taking one thing with another, chickens are not as prone to problems with this type of breeding arrangement as mammals are. However a very clever breeder will make a careful plan on how and when the birds are bred. It sounds to me like you are fine. That cockerel will grow up to rule his roost, and his adoptive hen will not have any idea about any of that: when she is ready to breed and when he is ready to breed, they will do so.

 

[Michael Hua]

I would say not a problem.

 

[Below frigid]

No deformed face's or funny sounding squawks from the offspring? Lol. So just turn the roos lose and don't worry about it!

 

[Below frigid]

Oh yeah their not related by blood, no worries!

 

[chickens really]

Oh yeah their not related by blood, no worries!

Even if they were...Not a big deal...

 

[jane s chickens]

I have 2 breeding pens, and when I am preparing to hatch eggs I separate a roo & 8 hens in each of the pens for 30 days before I collect eggs for incubation.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I have a Broody that just hatched 8 adopted eggs. Planning on keeping a roo or two. Is it a problem for the the step hen since she is raising them like her own? I know they are not related by blood but it seems a little weird having one of the babies mate with their step mom. Will she remember it as one of her own after it's mature?

Well, you have gotten some good responses... and I was going to skip replying, but... I couldn't since the term STEP HEN made me SMILE!

Anyways, I do agree that the animal world doesn't operate the same as humans. In breeds where it is MORE important for inbreeding NOT to take place... There are dynamics that drive the young males away and the breeding the females to their fathers is not as much of an issue as breeding to their brothers would be. ANYTIME you see a pure bred dog or other... there WAS inbreeding used to make that breed. Some species will start to show signs of inbreeding sooner than others. In cat's it make the kinked tail that people often think is broken.

In chickens, decreased fertility and hatchability would be indicators of too much, too close (brother to sister) inbreeding.

That being said... no way in HELL would I just let a bunch of cockerels take advantage of ANY hen. mum or not. She may have an upper hand with her place in the pecking order. Personally (depending on how many)... I would make sure and have a place for the extra cockerels to go once they reach breeding age. Not because of inbreeding (line breeding for those of us who do it), but for the safety of the hen.

It takes several generations of CLOSE (brother to sister) inbreeding for deformities and decreased hatchability to show up. Son to mother and father to daughter are actually the correct way to do it, is my CURRENT understanding. And I will note that SOME deformities can be brought on by incubation errors.

So I also would suspect the boys to try breeding their sisters WAY before mum... sisters are on their same level in the pecking order and much easier targets than the older ladies. Simply don't hatch the eggs from the sisters.

Whether or not there is any immorality (and there isn't)... flock dynamics will play a major roll. Too many boys results in competitive mating and a poor situation for ANY females involved. So depending on how many boys verses girls you end up with would be what dictates the scenario that would play out at my place.

I had one incident during my first round with straight run chicks, that resulted in way more boys than girls BEFORE I had a separation plan. That will NEVER happen again here, and I have an exit plan for all boys now. I keep a stag pen where they go once they start trying to mate until I decide whether to sell, breed, or eat... Silkies included!

I have had one Silkie start crowing between 4-5 weeks, and another that started trying to mate by 8 weeks! All situations will be unique. Hopefully you have gotten enough answers to feel comfortable with whatever you choose.

 

[lazy gardener]

One warning regarding any breeding within a flock: Never allow a defective bird to play in the gene pool.

Wry tail, poor layer, weak feathers, prone to illness, foul temper or aggressive. Those birds should not be allowed to carry their genetics forward.