How do you get the rooster in the mood?

[lalyswishytail]

This is a dumb question, but how do you get a rooster to mate with a chicken? I'm thinking about trying to raise chicks. I don't' want to buy eggs and I don't want to buy an incubator. I'm not sure where to find the basic information for this topic because most of the posts start with incubating, hatching, or egg selecting. I need to know the first step... you know, before the chicken lays an egg. Then could someone point me in the right direction of what to do once fertilized eggs have been layed? Can't I just let the mama chicken sit on her eggs until they hatch?

 

[RocketDad]

Roosters ARE in the mood, just by virtue of being roosters.

Hens will sit on eggs if they're in the mood to do so (search for "broody) even if the eggs aren't fertile.

 

[sourland]

Be aware that not all breeds will go broody. Research and make sure you have or get breeds that are known to go broody.

 

[elmo]

Our chickens are broody breeds, so what I did was just stop collecting the eggs they laid daily, but let them accumulate in the nests. Once around 7 or 8 eggs had accumulated in one nest, the first hen went broody. The other two went broody as soon as a similar number of eggs had piled up in other nests. The third one had to wait a little while longer to reach that number because by that time, she was the only one left laying! We only have the three hens, although with some luck we should have more pretty soon.

 

[Rammy]

Do what I do to get my significant other in the mood............have the hen show up with beer and nothing on under her feathers!!

Rammy

 

[babsbag]

Roosters are ALWAYS in the mood, at least my 2 are. Poor hens.

 

[tammyd57]

Once the rooster and hen are both sexually mature enough to mate, there is no 'getting in the mood' they just mate & mate & mate, from 12 to 500 times a day, until your hen's feathers are all worn off usually.

 

[gryeyes]

I'd like to get my rooster OUT of the mood, and so would a couple of his "favorite" hens!

Now that I have an automatic door to the Big Chicken coop, I don't have to watch him nail as many hens as he can as soon as they come out of the coop in the mornings. When I had to open the door for them, I always thought, goodness, let her get a beak full of water first, or bring her a worm or something!

 

[tammyd57]

The roo I have now NEVER mates a hen in front of me. If I didn't see the evidence of bare backed hens and fertile eggs, I wouldn't know he was doing his job. I never see him eat either, he always waits until the girls are done and cleans up anything left. When I throw in some BOSS or greens he always calls them over to it and watches them eat. He's a real gentleman!

 

[arabianequine]

You want my roos they don't stop poor girls back I am gonna buy some back protectors. I just got rid of one unnecessary meany buff orp roo....I had two.....a bit better now.