- Apr 19, 2009
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We have a silkie roo...he's pretty good...although we let a mama silkie hatch out an egg recently and that chick has come into his own (yup HIS own...he cockadoodle dooed for the first time this morning confirming what I had suspected)
ANYHOW, our dog got to our flock and so it's pretty teeny...can he remain until the baby chicks we have in the brooder are older? Or will he start to fight with his father in the very near future???
What is left of the flock:
Silkie roo (dad)
Silkie hen (mom)
Silkie roo (son)
Silver laced Wyndotte hen
a RIR & a GLW in the brooder (so far pretty convinced they are girls)
Right now he (the teenage roo) is a loner...he's not really chasing the hens yet...and he steers clear of most of the flock...although they don't peck him or make him steer clear...he comes to the feeders when they feed and he snuggles up with them at night, but for the most part he likes to hang out in the coop and on the edge of the coop door...where the others like to hang out on the ground. When they are out of the run free ranging he forages at a distance from the other three, but when I toss some leafy greens or fruit he comes running with the rest of them.
I guess my questions are:
1) how long until he might start fighting his father for rights to the hens?
2) is it possible to have two roos and only four hens? (two hens for a while...only two are mature now and two that will come into their own around Dec/Jan I think)
3) should I start looking for a home for him, wait it out, cook him up, get rid of his father (or whoever ends up being the more aggressive?)
NOT SURE WHAT TO DO NOW??? Advice please
ANYHOW, our dog got to our flock and so it's pretty teeny...can he remain until the baby chicks we have in the brooder are older? Or will he start to fight with his father in the very near future???
What is left of the flock:
Silkie roo (dad)
Silkie hen (mom)
Silkie roo (son)
Silver laced Wyndotte hen
a RIR & a GLW in the brooder (so far pretty convinced they are girls)
Right now he (the teenage roo) is a loner...he's not really chasing the hens yet...and he steers clear of most of the flock...although they don't peck him or make him steer clear...he comes to the feeders when they feed and he snuggles up with them at night, but for the most part he likes to hang out in the coop and on the edge of the coop door...where the others like to hang out on the ground. When they are out of the run free ranging he forages at a distance from the other three, but when I toss some leafy greens or fruit he comes running with the rest of them.
I guess my questions are:
1) how long until he might start fighting his father for rights to the hens?
2) is it possible to have two roos and only four hens? (two hens for a while...only two are mature now and two that will come into their own around Dec/Jan I think)
3) should I start looking for a home for him, wait it out, cook him up, get rid of his father (or whoever ends up being the more aggressive?)
NOT SURE WHAT TO DO NOW??? Advice please
