Introduce a rooster to an established flock -not going well!

[Hummingbird Hollow]

On two occasions I have successfully added two new pullets to an established flock of hens. I now want to introduce a young rooster (11 weeks) to a flock that has 5 13-month-old hens, 2 8-month-old hens and 2 11-week-old pullets.

Should I proceed the same way as I did with the pullets or is there a different/better way to add a rooster to the flock? Anything different I need to be concerned about?

 

[teach1rusl]

Everyone seems to do this differently, but I like to do it the same way I do pullets, through the safety of wire first so that everyone gets a little time to adjust to seeing one another....

 

[silkiechicken]

At 11 weeks, the rooster will be much like the pullets in demeanor. If putting them together that young, do it your preferred way for pullets. If that was a 7 or 8mo rooster.... just toss em in, he'll put the girls in line right away and will likly be able to "beat out" the current head "roo" without issue.

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

thanks

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

We're a couple of days in, and I'm not sure it's going very well. I have a very generous chicken run...a 6'X9' enclosure with an additional 4'X8' under the chicken coop as well as an attached, un-covered run that adds another 300 square feet of space. Poor Waldo (named after the Waldo Canyon Fire) spends all day hiding in the far corner of the extended run, hiding behind a tree stump and some lumber that is stacked against the side of the garage. I've brought food and water over to his little corner because he seems afraid to approach the other two feeders I have set out.

Every night so far, I've had to play "Where's Waldo". I've gone out after dark and found him huddled in that corner and picked him up and carried him to the coop. In the morning he waits for everyone else to exit, waits about 10 minutes and then makes a dash out to his corner.

The funny thing is, he's already considerably bigger than all of the hens and quite a studly looking fellow. I also find it funny that while he hides in the corner, he still crows from that location. Seem's a bit silly to go through all that effort to hide, just to announce your hiding place so loudly.

Any suggestions.

 

[silkiechicken]

At 11 weeks they are still all very young. A 11 week old rooster barely knows he's a rooster. At 16-20 weeks though, he'd probably strut in and do his things. The adult girls probably know he's a boy so are doing the best to beat the snot out of him to smash his pride so to say. I let babies and adults free roam, but I don't have fences to contain the birds so they can get away from each other. You can let the boy just deal with it till he finds out he's a big boy, or put him back in his own digs till he knows he is a boy and will just put allthe girls in their place. As long as he eats and grows, just his ego might have some dents.

 

[darin367]

waldo will be fine...... he might seem like a wimp at the moment, but he'll grow into his manhood.... i've always found that a few hiding places in the run is a good thing.... let him hide...... he'll be fine!!!!!

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

Yeah! Waldo was in the coop tonight when I went out to shut the pop door and take in the feeder. I let everyone out to free range for several hours and he came out of his hiding place and scratched around a bit with the two pullets. I guess that gave him the confidence to come inside for the night. He was hiding under the egg boxes, but that is still so much better than out in the far corner of the run. What a brave boy!