RIR, BR, and Buff Orps will probably get along of they grow up together. You are dealing with individuals and the individual personality is much more important than the breed. You might want to follow the link in my signature to get my ideas on room. I think how much room they have makes a big difference in how they get along and it makes even more difference in how hard you have to work.
What are you planning to do with the males? You can normally sell pure chicks easier that crosses and maybe even get more money for them. But over the long term half of what you hatch will be males. You need a plan for those.
When crossing a Buff Orp rooster with those hens you will be able to tell which chicks are pure Buff Orp the first generation. After that, you will not be sure. The only way to be able to tell the pure Buff Orps apart in the following generations is to only keep Buff Orps in your breeding flock. If you are going to mix flocks, why not just start with only Buff Orps?
How many hens a rooster can keep fertile depends on different things, mainly the vitality of the rooster but the hens also have a part to play. Once mated a hen will usually lay fertile eggs for two weeks or more so a rooster only has to mate with each hen once every two weeks to keep all eggs fertile. Most young active roosters can easily handle 20 or more hens in a flock. Some less active roosters, especially older ones, don’t do nearly as well. It depends on your individuals but one rooster with 14 hens is reasonable.
What are you planning to do with the males? You can normally sell pure chicks easier that crosses and maybe even get more money for them. But over the long term half of what you hatch will be males. You need a plan for those.
When crossing a Buff Orp rooster with those hens you will be able to tell which chicks are pure Buff Orp the first generation. After that, you will not be sure. The only way to be able to tell the pure Buff Orps apart in the following generations is to only keep Buff Orps in your breeding flock. If you are going to mix flocks, why not just start with only Buff Orps?
How many hens a rooster can keep fertile depends on different things, mainly the vitality of the rooster but the hens also have a part to play. Once mated a hen will usually lay fertile eggs for two weeks or more so a rooster only has to mate with each hen once every two weeks to keep all eggs fertile. Most young active roosters can easily handle 20 or more hens in a flock. Some less active roosters, especially older ones, don’t do nearly as well. It depends on your individuals but one rooster with 14 hens is reasonable.
