For people who keep a bachelor pen, can you ad new roosters?

[jenniferlamar70]

Just wondering if I keep a flock of roosters in my bachelor pen can I introduce new roosters later or only have the ones I start with? Thanks.

 

[sebloc]

I don't have much experience when it comes to this type of stuff, but here I go.

I wouldn't add any more roosters then you need to. All they'll do is fight. If you want to pull some out and replace them. I'm not sure how that would work out. Just make sure whatever you're putting in is around the same age, if not, a little younger then the rest of the females.

 

[SD Bird Lady]

I think a great deal depends on your bachelors. I had 20 cockerels in my "butcher pen" I had a few trouble makers and once I got rid of them it was basically peaceful, didn't matter who came and went. That being said, I never added completely new birds; just rotated the same ones. I'm interested to see what others think!

 

[jenniferlamar70]

I don't have much experience when it comes to this type of stuff, but here I go.

I wouldn't add any more roosters then you need to. All they'll do is fight. If you want to pull some out and replace them. I'm not sure how that would work out. Just make sure whatever you're putting in is around the same age, if not, a little younger then the rest of the females.

This is a bachelor pen so no females will be in there ever. This is just a place for my roosters to live out their lives instead of going to freezer camp.

I think a great deal depends on your bachelors. I had 20 cockerels in my "butcher pen" I had a few trouble makers and once I got rid of them it was basically peaceful, didn't matter who came and went. That being said, I never added completely new birds; just rotated the same ones. I'm interested to see what others think!

I've been doing alot of hatching and I want to keep my roosters. Right now we have 6 olive egger cockerels about 7 weeks old and 1 eater egger cockerel. They have been together since hatch. I've done more hatching and have some other cockerels a few weeks younger. I don't have room for everyone in my main flock so I need to put the into the bachelor pad once they are big enough to go out. Trying to see if it's possible or not..

 

[sebloc]

Had me confused

 

[centrarchid]

When adding new roosters to a bachelor group, try to rearrange thinks like feeder and waterer position and whatever structures you have in the pen. Objective is to get so established roosters think they are in a new situation. This should increase fighting among the established birds. While this fighting is going on add the new roosters. They will get into the fighting as well but they will not be targeted by an established group that will attack them everywhere they go.


Adult roosters are more problematic. Once you start talking bachelor pens, more birds are better assuming they are not overly confined (area per bird too small). Also introducing multiple new birds better than doing one. Adding a fulling mature rooster in with younger males can have a stabilizing effect. Do not do with with game chickens.

 

[jenniferlamar70]

Had me confused 

Lol its ok. No worries.

When adding new roosters to a bachelor group, try to rearrange thinks like feeder and waterer position and whatever structures you have in the pen. Objective is to get so established roosters think they are in a new situation. This should increase fighting among the established birds. While this fighting is going on add the new roosters. They will get into the fighting as well but they will not be targeted by an established group that will attack them everywhere they go.


Adult roosters are more problematic. Once you start talking bachelor pens, more birds are better assuming they are not overly confined (area per bird too small). Also introducing multiple new birds better than doing one. Adding a fulling mature rooster in with younger males can have a stabilizing effect. Do not do with with game chickens.

Would it be better to add them in a free range situation?

 

[centrarchid]

Free-range setting will allow losers to get away although you will have trouble getting them to return to provided roost the following evening. I have played around with confined and free-range introductions and found on the whole the confined approach is better. It does require some supervision. I would also do it later in the day and rearrange roost sites as well otherwise low ranking birds will be sleeping on the ground.

 

[jenniferlamar70]

Free-range setting will allow losers to get away although you will have trouble getting them to return to provided roost the following evening. I have played around with confined and free-range introductions and found on the whole the confined approach is better. It does require some supervision. I would also do it later in the day and rearrange roost sites as well otherwise low ranking birds will be sleeping on the ground.

Does size and age make a difference? Will it be easier to add the younger ones?

 

[centrarchid]

Does size and age make a difference? Will it be easier to add the younger ones?

Age very much makes a difference, hence the reason the term "rooster" is not all that helpful. Even cock and cockerel to vague. I would break it down into juvenile, cockerel coming into adult feathering (stag), and cockerel in adult feathering (bullstag) and cock (greater than 18 months and in at least the second adult feather set). The older the birds are the more difficult the initial introductions and greater the capacity to cause damage. Although the same older birds more apt to settle into a stable social grouping while younger birds have changes that change motivations with respect to social status.


I do not usually consider size as my brids vary little in that regard.


Younger birds can be easier to add if their voices have not changed to adult tone. I can add juvenile cockerels to game cock breeding pen without trouble so long as the younger bird does not get sassy even for a moment.


It easiest to start with all juveniles but reality does not often allow. To stabilize for younger males, I place on full adult in with them where he disrupts all full on fights between younger birds sometimes by display only. That is an approach that hold only until younger birds 7 to 9 months old.