Brother Roosters Fighting

[artvandolay]

Hello,

I just got home from vacation and noticed that one of my Serama roosters breaks was cracked.

Later today, he was bloodied and his brother, I think, was fighting with him and so he's bruised up.

Should I separate them now or is it bad enough he may need treatment as well? Suggestions. TIA

I think with the blood, the other hens may start attacking him now.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'd separate them.

Clean off the blood, see that they are drinking o.k. then offer a bit of wet feed.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

First of all, yes, you should definitely separate him. Chickens are quite mean to their own kind, and likely won’t leave him alone. His wounds don’t look too serious, just on the surface, I should think. They should heal up all right if you clean them. Do you have both roosters in with the hens? What’s your rooster to hen ratio? Unfortunately, once they start fighting, they might not stop, and you may have to rehome one.

 

[artvandolay]

First of all, yes, you should definitely separate him. Chickens are quite mean to their own kind, and likely won’t leave him alone. His wounds don’t look too serious, just on the surface, I should think. They should heal up all right if you clean them. Do you have both roosters in with the hens? What’s your rooster to hen ratio? Unfortunately, once they start fighting, they might not stop, and you may have to rehome one.

Yes, there are mostly hens, but only 2 Serama hens. There are like 12 total but that may not be enough. I need to rehome one of them I think.

 

[Mrs. K]

Animal husbandry is about managing livestock for the peace and well being of the whole. Animals exposed to constant fighting are stressed and do poorly.

You need to change something. I would expect this to get worse. Perhaps I am wrong, but it looks in the pictures as if they are in the backyard, in a truly backyard set up. Multiple roosters need a lot of space, IMO more than a backyard ranging.

If your entire flock is this age, I would recommend removing both of them. They are your birds, and you could try keeping 1. Or you could separate the cockerels, and see how that goes. They have been known to fight through a fence.

But you do need to do something different.

Mrs K

ps - I see that you have 12 hens, so probably a bigger set up than I thought. But overall, you still need to try some changes, see how it goes, and adjust if needed.

 

[artvandolay]

Animal husbandry is about managing livestock for the peace and well being of the whole. Animals exposed to constant fighting are stressed and do poorly.

You need to change something. I would expect this to get worse. Perhaps I am wrong, but it looks in the pictures as if they are in the backyard, in a truly backyard set up. Multiple roosters need a lot of space, IMO more than a backyard ranging.

If your entire flock is this age, I would recommend removing both of them. They are your birds, and you could try keeping 1. Or you could separate the cockerels, and see how that goes. They have been known to fight through a fence.

But you do need to do something different.

Mrs K

ps - I see that you have 12 hens, so probably a bigger set up than I thought. But overall, you still need to try some changes, see how it goes, and adjust if needed.

Thanks. They have an adequate amount of space based on recommendations of 8 sq. feet per chicken and more than.

I was hoping that if they were raised together they wouldn't fight, but that doesn't look like that will be the case, so I will probably rehome one of them.

I think 1 is fine.

 

[Mrs. K]

Sometimes being raised together works, and a lot of times it doesn't. Cockerels and roosters are a crapshoot.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

Yes, I’d rehome one of the boys. Once the hurt one is healed, he should be gorgeous, and I hope you can find a home for one of them quickly. All you have to decide now is which one to keep…

 

[artvandolay]

Sometimes being raised together works, and a lot of times it doesn't. Cockerels and roosters are a crapshoot.

I've learned. I was hoping for a get-along gang.

 

[artvandolay]

Yes, I’d rehome one of the boys. Once the hurt one is healed, he should be gorgeous, and I hope you can find a home for one of them quickly. All you have to decide now is which one to keep…

He is and he's smaller than his brother, but I think his brother is more colorful. It's interesting that the beat-up one was the dominant one crowing first for weeks and running around, now the other is bigger and badder I guess. He is crowing more now.