How many Rossters is okay

[John Roth]

I have 17 hens and 3 roosters. Should I bring it down? Because the hens are are clearly get over bred.

 

[GitaBooks]

I would suggest getting rid of one. One rooster per 8-12 hens is a good ratio. I have around 30 adult chickens, perhaps more, with 4 of them being adult roosters (two silkies, a Plymouth Rock and a OEGB roo). I wanted a bantam roo, a silkie roo and a standard roo, but I couldn't bring myself to get rid of or eat my silkies, and the two get along anyways.

Best of luck!

 

[keesmom]

If the hens are showing wear then remove at least 1 if not 2 males.

 

[GitaBooks]

If the hens are showing wear then remove at least 1 if not 2 males.

Agreed. I just remove one rooster (I had five, now have four) and already, after just a couple weeks, the hens feathers are growing back in!

 

[Mrs. K]

How old is the flock, the hens and the roos?

If the hens are all pullets, I would pull two roosters, and really maybe all three roosters if they are the same age as the pullets. If the hens are mature and laying then I would pull one and see how it goes. If it is still too much then pull two.

I think roosters work best in a multigenerational flock, and then you can have more roosters. The younger roosters grow up in a flock where the older birds are bigger than them and thump manners into them. It is not 100% sure, as sometimes the dynamics don't work out between roosters, it is just more apt to work out.

If this is just a flock where you are just getting started, and the roosters and pullets are all the same age, then I would cull all three roosters for right now. The roosters get bigger and mature more quickly and just make like hell for the pullets who are not ready yet. Later on, when your hens are mature you can add a rooster back into the flock if you want to, roosters are always cheap and easy to come by.

Mrs K

 

[John Roth]

Yes my flock is a range of age. I just got a new rooster. He is big barred rock. The hens love him. But he breeds them a lot. But some he doesn't even touch. Why is that?

 

[Mrs. K]

Hmmm... I am a bit confused. Did you have two roosters in the flock, and then add this one? Is there, was there any rooster fighting? If all the roosters are overbreeding, they are in competition for the hens with each other. This generally leads to fighting until the roosters get the hierarchy worked out, but can reappear.

Roosters breed chickens to show dominance. Now if your roosters are young as in less than a year old, the sexual drive is intense, and either the hens that are not getting overbred, probably fall into two groups, either they are older and more aggressive, and he is not yet dancing, his technique is poor, and they are not having it. They won't squat for him,he is a bit intimidated, so he can aggressively get the ones he can breed, or the hen is agreeing to it, so there is no challenge and he does not have to keep proving himself. Sometimes a rooster will pick a favorite, and get that one often.

Of course, lack of space and lack of hideouts can have an effect too.

However, the main point of your post is that your flock is not peaceful. When tension start to rise in my flock, culling is the answer. Cull one rooster, wait a week, if things are better, ok, if not, cull again maybe looking at your hens closely, besides looking at the roosters. It is worth the difficulties of culling to have a healthy and happy flock. Not all birds will fit into your set up.

MrsK

 

[John Roth]

When I first brought in my barred rock he quickly fought them and won. My birds free range around my farm. And yes the other 2 roosters are a year old now

 

[Pekin Bantam]

I have heard anything between 5 hens per rooster to 10 hens per Rooster. It sounds like you need to remove one rooster. Hope it helps.