Hens aren’t accepting new rooster. I need a protector

[Finnfarm]

What kind of rooster?

How old are the hens? And the rooster? If this is just day 2 or 3, this is normal. They'll get used to one another in a few weeks

Do your chickens free range?

Thank you for replying. Hens and rooster will be a year in the spring. He is about a month older. Yes they free range in the summer. Not right now bc the hawks are so bad

 

[Finnfarm]

Welcome to BYC! So sorry to hear about your present predicament though!

How old is your rooster and what breed is he? How old are the hens and what breeds are they? As RodNTN said, if this is just the first few days, it is fairly normal behavior, particularly if the roo is young/small.

Thank you for replying. He is a lavender Orpington he will be a year old this spring. So will the hens, they are Isa Brown/sex links

 

[Chelsa'sChicks]

Not a problem! Hope it helps!

 

[Finnfarm]

Sounds like you are not entirely familiar with the process of integation in a flock setting. I would suggest you do some reading on it to better understand what you (and more impirtantly, the birds) are experiencing and how you can help them. The questions posed above are good ones.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post & reply. I’m new to this & trying my best. I did do research

 

[Finnfarm]

If you just put him in with them, there will be an adjustment period. Depending on ages of the birds, it may take a bit longer. If he's not a mature rooster and these are mature hens, you just stuck a teenage boy into a flock of middle aged women. If he's also mature, he will eventually earn their respect. Chickens don't do well with change or other chickens just suddenly appearing. They are very territorial.

Personally, if you are having that much trouble with hawks, I wouldn't rely just on a rooster to protect my hens. He may be a good warning system (a dominant hen can to the same), he may lead the way to cover (again, something a dominant hen could do), and he may even give his life protecting them. But then what? You're out a rooster and would have to go through the integration thing all over again if you want another one for protection. You may want to consider putting them in a covered run for a while until the hawks give up and leave.

What is their range area like? Is there plenty of cover for them to go hide? Shrubs, bushes, pallets on cement blocks... anything they can get under if a hawk comes around would be helpful. One day when I was out with the flock, a buzzard flew over. (No threat to the chickens, but they didn't know that.) I looked around and *POOF* there was not a chicken to be seen. They disappeared so fast, I didn't even see it happen. In my opinion, that's better protection for them than a rooster.

Thank you reading my post & taking the time to reply. I had them separated for awhile before I put him in there.
I did not have my run covered the first time I lost a chicken I’m ashamed to say- I just didn’t know.
As soon as that happened I covered my run w an aviary net. I thought all was good but the hawk found a weak spot & got another one. After reading on here it sounded like getting a rooster was the way to go. I definitely don’t want my rooster to lose his life protecting them. Just like I don’t want to lose any hens.
Along w the aviary net, and getting a rooster we are moving them to a shed & building a smaller more secure run. This run will have either hardware cloth or chicken wire on top.

 

[Finnfarm]

Personally, I have had good luck with with protection from day time predators with a good rooster. However all roosters are not good. A rooster is really not worth much protection until he is about 1 year old. When you approach the coop/run set up, he should be the first to see you. His head should come up, and he should be alert as he assesses the situation. Not all roosters do this. He should stay out of your space, and be good to his hens.

If the hens have never had a rooster, or are older than the rooster, there will be a settling in period. Give him two weeks- not what you want, look around some more. My hens have always been in love by morning!

Mrs K

Thank you so much for replying. My rooster will be 1 this spring. He is coming to the gate every time I go in so that’s good news

 

[Finnfarm]

My young rooster is getting a lesson in how to treat a lady for sure. He's trying all kinds of sneaky teenager stuff like sneaking up behind them to try and mate. The other mature hens immediately come to the rescue and peck him off! One hen challenged him and they both puffed up and said, "you want to box, LET'S GO! That hen put the rooster in his place. Having older hens that stand up to the new rooster to let him know the lay of the land is good I think!

Most rooster will eventually become king of the flock! But it just takes time! My young rooster still stays clear of the old hens unless he's trying to sneak up on them!

But he looses every battle so far! But he's young and dumb! The old gals are just showing him the ropes of living with them!

While out free ranging he is always looking up and alerts to big birds overhead etc... He's getting the hang of it!

Thank you for reading & replying to my post

 

[aart]

but I think eventually the hawks would catch on that the thing isn't moving.

True Dat!

I have a lot of hawks around here, so I built this and it works great.
At least a dozen bounce off each year, then stand there going "WTH!"

 

[chickens really]

Hello...First he needs to woo the ladies. He will do fine. Just leave them to figure things out. He will make the trill Call and all Hens will Run for cover..

 

[Naser]

By the way Isa Browns aren't the best breed for escaping from predators, if you have such a hawk problem, fast hens like white leghorns have better chance