I've read many of the posts and advice on integrating roosters (e.g., wait until they are the same size, try not to do it unless absolutely necessary, let them get to know each other through a fence or other division first, etc.). I still have a couple of concerns that haven't been answered and I was hoping that someone here could help.
I have one rooster who is the established roo, but he is only 5 months old. My flock is very young. He is a cochin frizzle and lives with some polish and silkie pullets. I have a handful of new young Polish chickens and had thought that they were all pullets. One of them is now clearly a roo. The new roo is about 6 weeks olds, so still much younger than the other rooster. The established flock live in a coop in the back of a barn. They walk through the barn to get to the yard but I close their coop door at night so they are separated until I let them out
The new Polish pullets and the one cockerel are in a 5 x 5 pen near the coop, so the established flock see them but can't get to them everyday when they walk out to the yard. They are also close enough so that they can see each other. My plan had been to slowly move the pen closer to the coop as the new chickens get older. When they are about the same size I was planning on putting the pen with the new chickens inside the coop so they could get used to each other but couldn't hurt each other.
I'm wondering if this is a good idea to try to integrate the new young roo, even if I wait until he is the same size as the other. I may have to have 2 separate coops, but I was hoping not to. None of the advice I read involved roosters that were as young as the two that I have, only adult roosters. I was hoping that because they are young that it might be easier but I wanted to see what folks on here thought first. Do you have any advice about this?
Thank you! I really appreciate any advice on this!
I have one rooster who is the established roo, but he is only 5 months old. My flock is very young. He is a cochin frizzle and lives with some polish and silkie pullets. I have a handful of new young Polish chickens and had thought that they were all pullets. One of them is now clearly a roo. The new roo is about 6 weeks olds, so still much younger than the other rooster. The established flock live in a coop in the back of a barn. They walk through the barn to get to the yard but I close their coop door at night so they are separated until I let them out
The new Polish pullets and the one cockerel are in a 5 x 5 pen near the coop, so the established flock see them but can't get to them everyday when they walk out to the yard. They are also close enough so that they can see each other. My plan had been to slowly move the pen closer to the coop as the new chickens get older. When they are about the same size I was planning on putting the pen with the new chickens inside the coop so they could get used to each other but couldn't hurt each other.
I'm wondering if this is a good idea to try to integrate the new young roo, even if I wait until he is the same size as the other. I may have to have 2 separate coops, but I was hoping not to. None of the advice I read involved roosters that were as young as the two that I have, only adult roosters. I was hoping that because they are young that it might be easier but I wanted to see what folks on here thought first. Do you have any advice about this?
Thank you! I really appreciate any advice on this!
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