HELP! How does anyone keep a rooster!?!

[MidMaineChick]

HELP! How does ANYONE keep roosters? We had 2 cockerels in our order of 6 'pullets' this spring. We tried putting the two roos in their own pen but they can still see the girls- so they were both unhappy, pacing, crowing, etc. all day long. We re-homed one in hopes of re-integrating the smaller, more docile roo in with our girls. We put them together yesterday and he TERRORIZED them all day! Just chasing and pinning and trying to mount. We separated for a bit around dinner time then put him in with the girls when they were all asleep. They slept together without incident and when we let them out this morning he was RIGHT back to attacking them.
I thought roosters could be GOOD for the girls. I'm not sure if he could protect them from anything- because all he is aware of is trying to mate! He is still a cockerel, just hatched may 6th, will this get better with age? Should I leave them together or keep him out till he's older or what?
I feel really sad for the hens AND the roo. I don't want him to be lonely but I can't have my ladies afraid all day long.
*Here's a picture of him from a month or so ago just for attention and 'cause he's pretty.

 

[Wolfefarmyard]

Hmmm, it's hard but they all just have to get used to each other. He may be really excited at first. But after a little while he should calm down and become part of the flock

 

[Little Chicken Girl]

HELP! How does ANYONE keep roosters? We had 2 cockerels in our order of 6 'pullets' this spring. We tried putting the two roos in their own pen but they can still see the girls- so they were both unhappy, pacing, crowing, etc. all day long. We re-homed one in hopes of re-integrating the smaller, more docile roo in with our girls. We put them together yesterday and he TERRORIZED them all day! Just chasing and pinning and trying to mount. We separated for a bit around dinner time then put him in with the girls when they were all asleep. They slept together without incident and when we let them out this morning he was RIGHT back to attacking them.
I thought roosters could be GOOD for the girls. I'm not sure if he could protect them from anything- because all he is aware of is trying to mate! He is still a cockerel, just hatched may 6th, will this get better with age? Should I leave them together or keep him out till he's older or what?
I feel really sad for the hens AND the roo. I don't want him to be lonely but I can't have my ladies afraid all day long.
*Here's a picture of him from a month or so ago just for attention and 'cause he's pretty.
View attachment 1122315

Roosters generally (from my experience) can be a little overly concerned with mounting for a short time when they first start and are establishing their authority... but that shouldn't last long... If your rooster has been over-mounting for awhile, time itself will be unlikely to mend the situation. However, There may be root causes to the over mounting that can be helped (only to some extent in some cases):

Roosters over mount when they are stressed. Stress in roosters/cockerels is caused by separation from flock (they will over mount for a day or two when reintroduced so, when you reintroduce them, do it outside or in a place that has a lot of space). Overcrowding is another cause of stress (overcrowding may also cause excessive crowing... How much square footage do they have access to during the daytime?).
Over mounting can also be caused by self-security issues (which is another stress contributor): When a rooster perceives a threat to his position as ruler of the roost, he may over mount his hens. Oftentimes, this insecurity is caused by two roosters in the same flock... How long ago did you re-home the other rooster? If it was not that long ago, he may still be unsure of his position and time could mend the issue (if that is the case).

I hope this helps ...but again, this is mostly based off of my personal experiences, I have no chicken physiology degrees or anything of that sort
I also hope you get to keep him, he is pretty. Is he an Easter Egger roo?

 

[Corrie W]

I'm not sure if this will help but we have 3 roosters and 7 hens, they're free range all day until they're ready to roost and I've noticed that's helped A LOT with the roosters attitudes. They would try a couple of times to mount and annoy the hens but once the hens had enough, they started taking up for themselves or would run away from them. Now, the roosters go out on their on . Sometimes I would step in and run them off but the longer they spent out in the yard, the happier they all seemed to be and the better they got along.

 

[Chickassan]

He's a teenager they do that. Early morning and late afternoon will be worse as testosterone is highest. This will last for maybe a few months maybe less. Time outs at his age just makes it worse when he's set free. Imo just let him work it out, or pen him until he's mature. Teenage roosters are a pain in the butt, but he's acting normally.

 

[Folly's place]

He's being an idiot teenager, and it will most likely get much better. The pullets mature later than the cockerels, and you don't have any mature hens to teach him polite behavior. As long as he's not actually injuring anyone, and is respectful of humans just give him more time to grow up. I've got three mature cock birds, and three cockerels, and they o have crowing contests! Mary

 

[Ridgerunner]

The only reason you need a rooster is if you want fertile eggs. There is no other reason that you have to have a rooster, everything else is personal preference.

You do not have a rooster, you have an immature cockerel and immature pullets. As others have said his behavior sounds pretty normal. As they mature into responsible adults the behavior will almost certainly change for the better but watching them go through puberty can be really rough.

Chickens are not human beings. What would be deplorable behavior for a teenage human boy is pretty normal flock behavior for a cockerel. Don’t put human emotions onto your chickens. They will grow up to be normal chickens.

Some people should not have cockerels or roosters. Emotionally they cannot handle it. You may be one of those. While your pullets may be unhappy for a bit if you get rid of him, they will quickly get over it and be quite happy without a male around. From reading your post you didn’t want one to start with. I suggest you get rid of him, end the drama, and enjoy your pullets. You’ll be happier in the long run and your pullets really won’t care.