Crowing! Oh no...

[BugNthugs]

So I just discovered my hen is crowing in the morning and recently her tail feather have been getting bigger. Crap. So now what? I have a rooster and he is sleeping with my other two hens at night and mingling all day. Is this okay? I didn't want a rooster. I haven't gotten any eggs yet either. The blue laced red is 8 months and the barred rocks is 7 months. The white langshan is 8 months old. Also, I hear the girls sqwaking a lot in the back yard. I haven't caught them fighting in months, they are usually all friends, but it seems something is going on.

Thanks

 

[BugNthugs]

okay, i just went out there and caught Polly (the rooster I shall now call Pollo) was picking on one of my hens while the other one squwaked in the corner. I separated them... :-/

 

[teach1rusl]

Well, he probably wasn't "picking on her," he was probably attempting to mate, which often begins with the male grabbing neck feathers. Your cockerel must be very slow to mature if you're just noticing mating behaviors now... Unless he's yanking out feathers or actually injuring a pullet, you probably don't need to separate them. One young, hormonal rooster/cockerel may be a bit too much for two pullets/hens though, at least at this point. As he matures, he'll (hopefully) learn to be more mannerly and gentle. Or you can rehome him...

 

[Choco Maran]

If the hens are out free ranging during the day they are laying outside some where more than likely and you just have not found where they are laying. I all ways sperate my hens and roosters. I don't like the way they pluck all the feather out of the backs, they look unhealthy.