How many roosters to start with?

[Major_in_MS]

Also that's a beautiful rooster. I love how he has 2 different. I think 1 of the hatcheries I was looking at had some orpingtons labeled as like "black into blue/gray", something like that, is that what your rooster is, his coloration?

He is quite striking. He is a Blue (BBS) Orpington from Meyer Hatchery.

 

[wrathsfarm]

I'm hoping that maybe if I give my neighbors eggs that will help them overlook any noise the rooster(s) may make

Good neighbors and good fences go along way. I walked over to mine and handed her a dozen Marans eggs (my darkest) and told her I had 3 boys (now 2) and she replied "oh I love hearing the crows", so I was happy to hear that. But I explained my intentions that with breeding they come and go. But she actually sits out back and watches my flocks. And she loves the eggs.

Someone mentioned earlier in my post that having a secondary pen/coop would be a good idea, so I've been working out the details on that, trying to anyway because I have no idea how big it should be, I was thinking maybe big enough to fit 3-4 chickens, but I'm not sure if that's to big or to little, and trying to figure out if it should be close to the main coop/run or if it should be out of sight of the main coop? Also how long should I plan to use it if I have to pull the rooster from the hens, a day, week, month?

That's sounds about good for size if you can swing. Others might have opinions but here's mine. I have 3 flocks (Marans, mixed and Bantams). 4 runs so 1 is extra I close off when needed. I have 3 main coops and 2 others I use for brooder chicks/growouts or separations But, 4 of them are in my pole barn so their unconventional and don't need to be predator proof. The 2 extras have popdoor pass thru and line of site to one of the main coops (Marans). This way I can separate boys, or chicks, to line of site to pullets or main flock as the need arises.

When I'm growing out my birds at the first sign of haywire I separate the boys out away from the pullets and he's done til all pullets are laying minimum. I've learned keeping cockerels away from pullets until 8 months old is best for stress and growth vigor. So I could use one of the spare coop/run for a bachelor flock til I decide keepers and culls if needed.
I'm getting ready to also build a breeder pen for individual test mating in my Marans so there's no mix of eggs.
I'm just getting started in this breeding so take it for what it is and others might suggest better options for your plans. This is what I'm doing at the moment.

 

[NatJ]

I will definitely keep that in mind, incase I do get a welsummer rooster. It sounds like if I do ever want to breed some sexlinks a welsummer would likely be the best rooster for that. I've tried looking it up and haven't found any instances where a barred rock roo would be able to.

Correct, a Barred Rock rooster is not a good choice if you want to breed Sexlinks. He has all the genes you want in the mother of a sexlink, but is all wrong as the father.

Rhode Island Reds are a common choice of rooster for producing sexlinks. They have the right genes to produce gold/silver sexlinks ("Red Sexlinks) and barred/not-barred sexlinks ("Black Sexlinks" and "Blue Sexlinks"), and also fast/slow feathering sexlinks ("feather sexing" or "wing sexing" are terms for sorting chicks by this method).

Welsummers have the same gold and not-barred genes as Rhode Island Reds, so they should work equally well. Plenty of other rooster breeds will also work.

A Rhode Island Red rooster will probably produce daughters that lay more eggs, while a Welsummer should produce daughters that lay darker brown eggs. Chicks will have slightly different color/patterning at maturity if you choose one rooster breed or the other, but that shouldn't affect your ability to sex them by color.

Would a welsummer rooster x cuckoo maran hen result in sexlinks? I know there is some difference as far as barred and cuckoo goes, but I'm curious if cuckoo would be able to make sexlinks the way a barred hen would?

Yes, that would work fine. Cuckoo Marans have the same barring gene that Barred Rocks do. The sexing is not affected by the genes that determine whether the chicken has tidy white bars or messy cuckoo patterning.

 

[DarkAngel77]

He is quite striking. He is a Blue (BBS) Orpington from Meyer Hatchery.

I will have to look into them, my son is wanting a blue chicken (I'm letting my each of my children pick out their own chicken or color) and originally I was thinking a sapphire gem but I think a blue orpington would probably be a better choice.

 

[DarkAngel77]

Good neighbors and good fences go along way. I walked over to mine and handed her a dozen Marans eggs (my darkest) and told her I had 3 boys (now 2) and she replied "oh I love hearing the crows", so I was happy to hear that. But I explained my intentions that with breeding they come and go. But she actually sits out back and watches my flocks. And she loves the eggs.

That's sounds about good for size if you can swing. Others might have opinions but here's mine. I have 3 flocks (Marans, mixed and Bantams). 4 runs so 1 is extra I close off when needed. I have 3 main coops and 2 others I use for brooder chicks/growouts or separations But, 4 of them are in my pole barn so their unconventional and don't need to be predator proof. The 2 extras have popdoor pass thru and line of site to one of the main coops (Marans). This way I can separate boys, or chicks, to line of site to pullets or main flock as the need arises.

When I'm growing out my birds at the first sign of haywire I separate the boys out away from the pullets and he's done til all pullets are laying minimum. I've learned keeping cockerels away from pullets until 8 months old is best for stress and growth vigor. So I could use one of the spare coop/run for a bachelor flock til I decide keepers and culls if needed.
I'm getting ready to also build a breeder pen for individual test mating in my Marans so there's no mix of eggs.
I'm just getting started in this breeding so take it for what it is and others might suggest better options for your plans. This is what I'm doing at the moment.

Sounds like you have a really good neighbor. I keep reading in many posts (not just on here but also on fb) that some people have neighbors who complain and call in on roosters for being to loud.
We are hoping to have a pretty strong fence (I have a nephew who helps build fences on farms/ranches that is going to help me build my fence, so I'm pretty confident it will forsure be done right and not only keep chickens in but hopefully keep predators out).

 

[DarkAngel77]

Correct, a Barred Rock rooster is not a good choice if you want to breed Sexlinks. He has all the genes you want in the mother of a sexlink, but is all wrong as the father.

Rhode Island Reds are a common choice of rooster for producing sexlinks. They have the right genes to produce gold/silver sexlinks ("Red Sexlinks) and barred/not-barred sexlinks ("Black Sexlinks" and "Blue Sexlinks"), and also fast/slow feathering sexlinks ("feather sexing" or "wing sexing" are terms for sorting chicks by this method).

Welsummers have the same gold and not-barred genes as Rhode Island Reds, so they should work equally well. Plenty of other rooster breeds will also work.

A Rhode Island Red rooster will probably produce daughters that lay more eggs, while a Welsummer should produce daughters that lay darker brown eggs. Chicks will have slightly different color/patterning at maturity if you choose one rooster breed or the other, but that shouldn't affect your ability to sex them by color.


Yes, that would work fine. Cuckoo Marans have the same barring gene that Barred Rocks do. The sexing is not affected by the genes that determine whether the chicken has tidy white bars or messy cuckoo patterning.

I'm wanting to avoid RIR especially the roosters, I just don't feel like they would be a good fit and in my experience of being around them they tend to get moody, just not a breed I'd want around my children especially just starting out and getting them used to chickens, maybe after a few years after we all get the hang of it we might get a couple just to see.

That's good to know about the cuckoo marans/cuckoo coloration.

 

[dekel18042]

Hi, I'm a bit new to this, I grew up with chickens but haven't had any since being an adult. This spring I plan to change that.

My question is how many roosters should I start with? I know the general number is 1 roo for every 10 or so hens, I'm planning to get about 10-12 hens so I know in theory 1 rooster. I'm just wondering if it would be better to get 2-3 roosters just incase the 1 is aggressive towards humans or the hens, or just isn't the right fit for the flock in general?

If you do recommend getting 2-3, should I get different breeds or go with the same breed?

Also, just out of curiosity what breed of rooster(s) do you have and would you recommend that breed?

I'm wanting a barred rock rooster, simply because I had several growing up and they were always nice (from what I remember) and so having a nice/non human aggressive flock is very important to me.

i would start with no roosters (unless you start with adult hens) because if you start with chicks you are in all probability going to get an "oops" rooster. Also once you have your hens you can figure out what would be the best fit for them.
I know when I do hatches I usually do very small ones so I don't get over run with boys and I keep the nice ones (The vast majority, almost all,)are nice until I find someone looking for a rooster.
Often in areas where there are small flocks there are nice roosters being rehomed. Or someone got an "oops" roosters where roosters aren't allowed. The advantage of this is you can know the personality of the one you are getting and how he is with people, other pets and hens.
I have never had a people aggressive Ameraucana or Easter Egger rooster. I plan to hatch a few eggs this spring to get more blue or olive eggers and will keep the boys until I can hopefully find them a home.

 

[MTKitty]

Hi, I'm a bit new to this, I grew up with chickens but haven't had any since being an adult. This spring I plan to change that.

My question is how many roosters should I start with? I know the general number is 1 roo for every 10 or so hens, I'm planning to get about 10-12 hens so I know in theory 1 rooster. I'm just wondering if it would be better to get 2-3 roosters just incase the 1 is aggressive towards humans or the hens, or just isn't the right fit for the flock in general?

If you do recommend getting 2-3, should I get different breeds or go with the same breed?

Also, just out of curiosity what breed of rooster(s) do you have and would you recommend that breed?

I'm wanting a barred rock rooster, simply because I had several growing up and they were always nice (from what I remember) and so having a nice/non human aggressive flock is very important to me.

When I started my flock, I ordered 2 males and 14 females. I did this to guard against missexed chicks. As it turned out, the hatchery tossed in one extra female, but that was offset by a missexed female in the batch.

Eventually, one roo was too rough w/the females, so he was rehomed. The second had a chronic respiratory problem and was left gasping when the third rooster started establishing dominance. I put the second one down.

My one rooster is good w/the hens, good at sounding the alarm, and doesn’t act like a jerk when I go in the pen. I have his son to succeed him and a batch of new hens coming this summer.

As long as the roosters get along, I’ll probably spare the older boy when I start culling my older hens. My roosters are the same breed, but I will have three different breeds among the hens - although, that was never my intention.

 

[Mark Park]

Hi, I'm a bit new to this, I grew up with chickens but haven't had any since being an adult. This spring I plan to change that.

My question is how many roosters should I start with? I know the general number is 1 roo for every 10 or so hens, I'm planning to get about 10-12 hens so I know in theory 1 rooster. I'm just wondering if it would be better to get 2-3 roosters just incase the 1 is aggressive towards humans or the hens, or just isn't the right fit for the flock in general?

If you do recommend getting 2-3, should I get different breeds or go with the same breed?

Also, just out of curiosity what breed of rooster(s) do you have and would you recommend that breed?

I'm wanting a barred rock rooster, simply because I had several growing up and they were always nice (from what I remember) and so having a nice/non human aggressive flock is very important to me.

The thing with roosters is if they are an aggressive breed rhey kill each other. Most of the ones I have had have done this. The exception was the Rhode Island Reds. By far the most aggressive was the Copper Black Marans.

I would get two. This way they compete a bit and don't get lazy, plus if one dies you still have another

 

[DavidT1954]

Hi, I'm a bit new to this, I grew up with chickens but haven't had any since being an adult. This spring I plan to change that.

My question is how many roosters should I start with? I know the general number is 1 roo for every 10 or so hens, I'm planning to get about 10-12 hens so I know in theory 1 rooster. I'm just wondering if it would be better to get 2-3 roosters just incase the 1 is aggressive towards humans or the hens, or just isn't the right fit for the flock in general?

If you do recommend getting 2-3, should I get different breeds or go with the same breed?

Also, just out of curiosity what breed of rooster(s) do you have and would you recommend that breed?

I'm wanting a barred rock rooster, simply because I had several growing up and they were always nice (from what I remember) and so having a nice/non human aggressive flock is very important to me.

I recommend ZERO roosters unless you are planning on raising hatch-lings. 2-3 roosters is even way worse as that allows them practice fighting with each other. They tend to get meaner and take the fun out of visiting with your hens... or even collecting eggs, as you will always have to make sure they are not sneaking up behind you to attack. We started with 14 hens and three roosters. The roosters were welsummers,,, the hens welsummers, bard rocks, and australorps. The roosters will constantly challenge each other (and you) to see who is the dominate alpha. Seems they only work together when combining to attack me. As far as hen protection goes.. my experience is that my roosters are the first to skedaddle when chaotic danger approaches. They are also capable of tearing up the back of the hens when mating (we had to buy a couple of our hens protective saddles).
We paired the roosters down to one, and finally got rid of the last rooster a few months back. WAY more enjoyment visiting the hens these days, and my wife and kids can sit in the coop area without fear of being attacked.