Hens rejecting NEWLY dominate rooster

[Ks1063]

I had two roosters. I rehomed the dominant roo because I wanted babies from the other roo. All of the hens run/stay away from him. How long does it take for the hens to accept him? I'm also afraid to let them free range, because they won't get near him.

 

[Red Mangrove]

Depends on the males age. My hens reject most roosters until they're around a year of age. Even then they're very picky. I would expect it to take a few months

 

[Shadrach]

Apparently your hens have other ideas of what makes a rooster worth breeding with. They usually do and they are usually right.
Lesson learn't perhaps. Keep the rooster that the hens prefer is the rule. Too late now.

 

[fluffycrow]

9 times out of 10 hens know best. Give them time, they will accept him at some point

 

[Ridgerunner]

How old are they? This sounds like behaviors between immature pullets and cockerels, not mature chickens. Are the girls laying eggs yet?

If you want to assure that the new boy is the father of the chicks you need to wait about 4 weeks from when the other boy mated with them to clear his sperm out of their system. Sounds like you have some time to wait anyway but a month may not be long enough for them to mature.

The girls have a part to play in this. The mating act is about dominance. If they are not old enough want their eggs fertilized the pullets are not ready to be dominated so they run away. Some may even fight back.

Once they become mature (usually when pullets start laying eggs) they expect a male to act like a respectable father to their potential chicks. Some boys mature a lot earlier than others. An immature brat has trouble meeting those requirements but usually when he matures the girls will accept him.

I may be totally wrong by assuming they are still immature juveniles so I can only guess but this sounds so typical of immature juveniles. I don't know how mature any of them are but if they are still young you just need to give them time.

 

[Ks1063]

How old are they? This sounds like behaviors between immature pullets and cockerels, not mature chickens. Are the girls laying eggs yet?

If you want to assure that the new boy is the father of the chicks you need to wait about 4 weeks from when the other boy mated with them to clear his sperm out of their system. Sounds like you have some time to wait anyway but a month may not be long enough for them to mature.

The girls have a part to play in this. The mating act is about dominance. If they are not old enough want their eggs fertilized the pullets are not ready to be dominated so they run away. Some may even fight back.

Once they become mature (usually when pullets start laying eggs) they expect a male to act like a respectable father to their potential chicks. Some boys mature a lot earlier than others. An immature brat has trouble meeting those requirements but usually when he matures the girls will accept him.

I may be totally wrong by assuming they are still immature juveniles so I can only guess but this sounds so typical of immature juveniles. I don't know how mature any of them are but if they are still young you just need to give them time.

They're all about 1 1/2 years old. Both rooster's are the same age as the hens. The one roo kept all the hens for himself. Maybe they'll warm up to this roo when they realize the other one isn't coming back. Thanks for all the replies!

 

[Ridgerunner]

That totally destroyed my theory, didn't it.

I don't know how this will play out. Can you tell which hen is dominant? If you can I'd probably isolate her for a week or so and see what happens but not for a week or so. Give them time to sort it out.