how many hens works for one rooster?

[Henna56]

I have 2 hens, one who requires more care (no top beak). My friend would like to give me her rooster--he will probably be killed if I don't take him. He does not appear aggressive to people or hens---

will adding a rooster be too much stress and upset for my 2 hens?- will he be constantly after them and not leave them alone? I do not want to have to get any more hens to keep him happy -I do not have the space ( small coop) or time or $ for any more hens although I could possibly fit in one healthy rooster IF it would benefit my hens, NOT stress them! thanks!

 

[chooks4life]

I have 2 hens, one who requires more care (no top beak). My friend would like to give me her rooster--he will probably be killed if I don't take him. He does not appear aggressive to people or hens---

will adding a rooster be too much stress and upset for my 2 hens?- will he be constantly after them and not leave them alone? I do not want to have to get any more hens to keep him happy -I do not have the space ( small coop) or time or $ for any more hens although I could possibly fit in one healthy rooster IF it would benefit my hens, NOT stress them! thanks!

Nobody can offer you any guarantees, sorry. It all depends on him and your hens. If he's not nasty to hens even one hen will be enough. If he's nasty to hens 100 hens won't be enough to magically make him nice to them because that's not how it works --- a nasty rooster doesn't become nice just because you give him more hens to abuse, he just targets as many as he can manage to abuse and the rest are left alone because he doesn't have the time of day to abuse them too. Crap maths, that is, attempting to satiate a bully's desire to harm by giving them more victims. LOL!

I'd try him out and tell my friend that if he doesn't work out, for the sake of the hens he'll have to be rehomed again after his trial period. There's a chance he's one of those who is intolerant to special needs animals, in which case your damaged hen could be bullied or even killed. There's a chance neither of your hens is rooster-tolerant, a very high risk in fact if they're layer breeds of a commercial type which came from a hatchery and have never seen male chickens after puberty. If so, they may fight him, or just permanently tolerate him but never appreciate him, an unhappy situation for all involved.

If his instinct levels are very low, all he'll want to do is mate, fight, etc. If his instinct levels are higher, he may do any or all of the following: feed them, find nests for them, guard them, etc. as well as mate. A good rooster is always worth it, a bad one, never.

Best wishes to you and your hens. Hope he works out for you and them.

 

[Henna56]

he does not abuse the 4 hens he has now--but he has a lot more space there. anyway thanks--i don't think I can chance it...the two hens get along really well now and all is peaceful

 

[chooks4life]

It's up to you, always good to have an 'exit plan' just in case it doesn't work out, but if you feel it's not a good idea you're most likely right. If your girls aren't used to a male there would possibly be a stressful introductory period. For my flock, roosters are important to overall quality of life, but for some flocks, they're only a hindrance no matter how nice they are. Ultimately your hens will be the deciding factor in whether or not even a good rooster can fit into the flock dynamics.

Best wishes.