do specific breeds of chicken have a different rooster-to-hen ratio?

[CardinaltheRedRabbit]

I'm hatching chickens and have gotten almost entirely roosters, are there different breeds i should look into that produce more hens than roosters? I currently have Barred Rocks, Buff Orphingtons, Easter eggers and a little white hen i plan to incubate an egg from. which should i take eggs from for more hens rather than roosters?

 

[artbykarenehaley]

Oh I can definitely understand wanting better male to female ratios!

On average, you have a 50/50 chance of getting males or females. Averaging out of 100 eggs. Realistically not everyone will be hatching 100 eggs at a time so the results can be less statistically predictable. Sometimes you get more of one, and other times more of the other.

What kind of roosters do you have?
If you have a red roo like a rhode island red, or a gold roo like a buff Orpington, and cross him with your barred rock hens, you can tell when they hatch which gender they are. The males will have a white head spot an the females will be all black. That way you could sell the males early on to someone looking to raise males for meat.

Your odds will be the same, but you will know day of hatching who is a pullet and who isn't, and make arrangements for the males much earlier on.

There is anecdotal evidence that certain hens tend to produce one sex of chicks more often than the other. I don't know that it has been studied in a scientific manner, just that a few members here have that lucky hen who gives them more pullets than cockerels.

Whether you have a special hen like that would have to be discovered by you through trial and error. You'd be hatching chicks, noting how many were male or female, and keeping track of who is the mother hen. If your current hatches were from your birds, think about who was mom, who was dad, and what their results were (if you can). Then try other hens that you didn't hatch from, and see what happens.

 

[gimmie birdies]

If you get a catalog from Cackle they have on the descriptions the hen to rooster ratio.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

If you get a catalog from Cackle they have on the descriptions the hen to rooster ratio.

That is the breeding ratio they maintain solelt for fertility, not the hatching ratios

 

[CardinaltheRedRabbit]

Oh I can definitely understand wanting better male to female ratios!

On average, you have a 50/50 chance of getting males or females. Averaging out of 100 eggs. Realistically not everyone will be hatching 100 eggs at a time so the results can be less statistically predictable. Sometimes you get more of one, and other times more of the other.

What kind of roosters do you have?
If you have a red roo like a rhode island red, or a gold roo like a buff Orpington, and cross him with your barred rock hens, you can tell when they hatch which gender they are. The males will have a white head spot an the females will be all black. That way you could sell the males early on to someone looking to raise males for meat.

Your odds will be the same, but you will know day of hatching who is a pullet and who isn't, and make arrangements for the males much earlier on.

There is anecdotal evidence that certain hens tend to produce one sex of chicks more often than the other. I don't know that it has been studied in a scientific manner, just that a few members here have that lucky hen who gives them more pullets than cockerels.

Whether you have a special hen like that would have to be discovered by you through trial and error. You'd be hatching chicks, noting how many were male or female, and keeping track of who is the mother hen. If your current hatches were from your birds, think about who was mom, who was dad, and what their results were (if you can). Then try other hens that you didn't hatch from, and see what happens.

ahh thank you! i currently have an older easter egger, would the same thing still work for him?
here's a pic of him, I have two others that are his breed and two are half, but aren't fully grown

i was able to hatch two barred rock hens (the others were half buff orphington and ended up being all males) a while back and they didn't have spots on their head so im assuming but i just wanted to make sure lol

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Probably not since who knows what

ahh thank you! i currently have an older easter egger, would the same thing still work for him?
here's a pic of him, I have two others that are his breed and two are half, but aren't fully grown
View attachment 3308939

i was able to hatch two barred rock hens (the others were half buff orphington and ended up being all males) a while back and they didn't have spots on their head so im assuming but i just wanted to make sure lol

can be in his background. Sexlinking needs specific genes to work. One wrong gene and you end up growing attached to a male posing as a female. Ask me how I know

 

[16 and me]

I'm hatching chickens and have gotten almost entirely roosters, are there different breeds i should look into that produce more hens than roosters? I currently have Barred Rocks, Buff Orphingtons, Easter eggers and a little white hen i plan to incubate an egg from. which should i take eggs from for more hens rather than roosters?

I feel your pain. Just got a batch of 5 cocks to 1 pullet. It sire would be helpful to have a hen that has a pullet gene!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I have a few gals that lean male heavy and used to have one that leaned pullet heavy. Everyone else seems to be roughly 50-50

 

[CardinaltheRedRabbit]

Probably not since who knows what

can be in his background. Sexlinking needs specific genes to work. One wrong gene and you end up growing attached to a male posing as a female. Ask me how I know

im pretty ok with having a bunch of roosters as long as it doesnt effect the flock, so i'd be alright with them posing as females when their males(in fact i'd kinda prefer that over them being as they are), im not entirely sure if that could negatively impact the flock tho so im interestedd in learning as much as i can about this!

 

[Tonyroo]

My two hatch from one hen this year.

1st batch was 6 eggs, 1 female 5 males.

2nd batch was 12 eggs, 2 males 10 females.