I have 4 hens that live by themselves and a rooster that lives with my goat. originally i didn't put them together because in the past when i had chickens the rooster tore them up. The rooster i have now is pretty friendly and the four hens are laying eggs. I would like to raise chicks by spring and am wondering the best way to introduce them? The hens are about 1 1/2 years old. Also would it possibly make the rooster mean and is it a bad idea since i only have four hens?
As with any introductions of chickens its gonna be rough. The pecking order has to be reset and the top hen will attack the roo.They will settle down after a few days to a week.
I usually introduce chickens that are outside of the flock at night while the rest of the flock is sleeping. 1 roo to i think 7 hens would be the maximum ratio if you're looking for fertility. 1 to 4 would be perfect. currently we have 2 roos and 8 hens and they are working out fine. The only issue would be if you have say 1 cochin and the rest are a lighter breed, the cochin hen would most likely get more attention because they don't move quite as fast. but this is assuming your roo is active (sometimes they don't have as much interest) In that case its pretty easy to find another rooster. Are you trying to breed a specific breed or the barnyard classic? (one of my favorites)
