How many hens per rooster?

[minifarmkat]

We had a few surprises and we have four to five roosters with about fourty-one hens. We are trying to not rehome any of them, and we wanted to know if there would be enough hens for the lot of them. They are doing fine together now, but they are not fully grown yet. Will the continue to be fine together?

 

[roostersandhens]

I think you have enough hens you need about 8 - 12 hens per rooster I think your good!

 

[minifarmkat]

Ok thanks. That's what we were hoping for. We love them all so much!

 

[donrae]

By the numbers you should be fine, but no one can really predict how animals will get along, especially intact males when there are females to be had. You'll just have to keep an eye on how the roosters interact, and be sure specific hens don't get overmated. Space is going to be crucial with that many birds, do you free range? If not, how much space do you have:?

 

[minifarmkat]

We do free range most of the time other than that they are in a 16x16 enclosure. Mostly just early mornings and when we are not home. We live in the woods and there are too many things that can get them. We used to exclusively free range but we lost ten hens to a bobcat.

 

[Bullitt]

I am almost sure that the roosters will fight, especially when they are all locked in the 16x16 foot coop. That is what roosters usually do.

Also, the general rule of thumb is you need 4 square feet of coop space per grown chicken. That means you have enough space for 16 chickens when they are grown. You said you have to leave them in the coop sometimes when you are not home. If you leave them in the coop during the day for just a few hours while you are gone, I think you could have about 30 chickens in the coop you described.

You might think about having four flocks and four coops so each flock has its own space. This would probably eliminate most fighting between roosters.