FINALLY! Boys are separated!

[GreenGoddess]

Well, the snow didn't stop me! To jog your memory, I have 7 pullets and 4 roos! Yeah, I know.. The two barred rock roos were supposed to be pullets! Oh well... Well of course, I knew i had to do something so I put up an ad on craigslist.. Nothing! So, I still had some left over fencing and wood from last spring and thought I would put it to good use.. I had a rabbit hutch that I used as a brooder when my barred rocks were chicks.. I took all the wood on the inside out of it and split the hutch in two with a piece of plywood.. This gives each roo only 1" less than 4' space... I didn't think 1 inch would make that much difference.. Then I created a run extending off the coop as long as the already existing coop and used the fencing to split that down the middle also to make two runs.. These two roos can cannot get out nor can they fight with each other.. Of course, they did try and failed miserably! The only thing they can do is run up and down the runs yelling at each other.. But I figured at some point, they will realize it and just ignore each other... It's not pretty but it is very functional! Let me know what you think...

Front view of new runs with doors in place as well as main run

Side view of both pens and coops

Side view of coop

Close up view of both entrances to the coop

Penrod's side of the run

Turkey's side of the new run

Top of the new run.. Kind of a patch job but hey, it works!

Goddess

 

[LilBizzy]

I think you did a great job with materials at hand. Those 2 guys are lucky you care enough to keep them from killing each other!! It looks good!
I would make a suggestion- they can get their heads through the fence that seperates them- I have the same fence seperating my 2 guys, and they have done the staredown, but haven't had any problems, quite possibly because one is bantam, and one isn't, and they have never been together. BUT- I read on here someone who had 2 roos tearing each other up thru the fence. So since they already fight, it might be a good idea to try to chicken wire or put up a sturdier barrier. (but leave it to me to give advice I myself havent followed LOL)
I think you did good! It doesn't look slapped together sloppy! Nice work!!

 

[GreenGoddess]

LOL.. Thank you.. Honestly, it really wasn't these two roos that were fighting.. The production red in the pic and my primary roo were the ones that were fighting and my primary roo was starting to lose (as seen on his bloody comb).. The barred rock roo is just coming to age so he hadn't really started fighting with the older roos yet but wanted to nip it in the bud before he did.. I completely agree with the potential problem and if I start seeing a problem, i will definitely change the middle fencing once I get hold of some more.. I was at the time more worried about the two oldest roos but knew having three roos still would be a major problem for the 7 girls.. I am looking into getting some hatching eggs in a few weeks (just waiting for one of my girls to go broody) so I can have more pullets and then the two roos will have plenty of girls for each of them... Honestly, the only thing i am not happy with is the roof but I kinda ran out of the fencing I was using.. Will fix that problem later when materials permit..

Goddess

 

[8wishbonechicks]

I think the set up looks nice.Its better than having injured roos from fighting. We had to separate our roos. One of our roos would chase down the hens and grab and pull out the tail feathers so he can mate. The hens don't like him much. He stresses them out.I don't need a drop in egg production b/c of a rough sex rooster.

 

[GreenGoddess]

Yeah, this was happening with me also.. As soon as Clucky (primary roo) would walk away to check on one of the girls in the nest box or turn his back, Turkey (secondary roo) would jump on one of the girls and then the two roos would start fighting.. I know it was stressful on the girls and I am hoping this will boost egg production from 2-4 eggs a day to 5-7 a day but only time will tell... Right now they just have to all realize that they can't get to each other anymore.. lol

Goddess

 

[LilBizzy]

Ah, the roof of the run looks fine. You should see the one coop we built out of freecycle materials.It's not pretty, and the human door is barely big enough for my big butt to fit through( not to mention its a foot shorter than I am LOL)


8wishbonechicks .. I had to laugh at your post where it said " The girls dont like him". I have a rooster like that. The girls don't like him because he is quite rough. The poor girls were missing tail and neck feathers. I tried craigslist and local ads, but no one wants him.. Finally, he is a year old and starting to behave a little better!

 

[GreenGoddess]

Yeah, all of mine was freecycle materials too.. Hey, the way I see it, as long as it's functional, it's good! You should see the clothesline i built.. I put two 2x4 posts in the ground with a section of 1x6 attached to make a "T" on each... Then put polyester or cotton (can't remember which) in three lines across... I did a really good job on it considering the fact that one of the 4x4's were bowed!! ROFL.. Here's a pic to show you!

Goddess

 

[MiniBeesKnees]

I separated my boys into separate rooster jails in the coop...and everything was fine. Until...
The hens started showing signs of wanting to go broody so I put the hens in with the roosters of their breed. Everything was fine. Until...
After a few days I let the hens of one breed and the two roosters of the same breed out to range.
I stayed out there a half hour or so and everything was fine...one roo would chase the other twenty feet or so but that was all. The head rooster would chase the other rooster away from the girls, but not attack him.

A couple hours later I went out to close everyone in and one of the free roos, and one of the caged roos had gone at one another and it looked like a bloodbath in there. They had ignored one another until I went inside the house. There was plenty of room for the caged roo to keep out of the reach of the free roo so he had to cooperate in this bloody fight to be injured. He had to stick his head through the cage to fight. They fought through the 2 by 4 inch welded wire that the cage is made from. The hens were nowhere around when this happened...they (and the other roo) were still out free ranging. The head roo took it upon himself to abandon the girls to the other roo of his breed and go into the coop by himself to attack the caged roo who is like twice his size.

By now I had expected to start moving the roos into separate A frames without any common walls but the weather is not cooperating. So all the roos are now back in separate jails in the coop but 2 x 4 inch welded wire will not keep mine from each other. The jails have no common walls. If I have any loose roos in the future I'm either going to have to use hardware cloth for jail cells, or close the jails in with tarps, or close the coop so the ranging roo can't come inside the coop where the jails are.

So...I guess the advice I pass on is you can't trust them. Two roos separated by only 2 x 4 inch welded wire have no sense of self preservation at all.
Terry in Tennessee

 

[GreenGoddess]

I'm definitely going to start looking for more fencing, even if it's only 1x1.. At least that will stop them better than the fencing I had.. I just know I had to do something fast because my main roo's comb was all torn up but intact and one of my poor br pullets lost more than half of her comb.. It was definitely a quick fix and not a perfect solution... Sorry to hear about your poor boy.. Hope they are doing much better now.. So far (knock on wood) the boys are doing well.. My br keeps sticking his head through the fencing but Turkey pretty much ignores him unless he decided to "chase" him up and down the run which is pretty funny to watch because the br acts as if he's running for his life.. I went out there last night and the br was roosting but Turkey was in the coop facing out of it just sitting there like he was keeping a "look out".. They both looked calm as could be.. So, we will see how it goes..

Goddess

 

[MiniBeesKnees]

A good solution is a double layer of chicken wire fencing. It's cheap. In a double layer the holes will not line up right so the places they can stick their heads through are neither symetrical, or big enough.
Terry in TN