Is a rooster/cockerell fertile before he starts crowing?

[BoereMeisie]

Hello everyone! I got the most beautiful pair of Rhode Island Reds on Saturday, so proud of my beautiful birds. They are both around 20 weeks old, and the Rooster, Captain Morgan, is not crowing yet, but he started mating my hens as if it's his last day yesterday. I would just like to know if he would be fertile if he's not crowing yet! When he hears the neighbour's rooster (far away, but audible) he opens his mouth as if to crow, but nothing comes out! Maybe he had a silencer installed...

 

[DTchickens]

Depends on the rooster. I have seen some birds crow early enough I doubt he was fertile, those little Fayoumi's for example crowing at 5 weeks. Other birds may not crow until they are nearly a year old but are probably fertile beforehand. I've always thought generally speaking that once they start trying to top hens (usually about 5-6 months) they are fertile; hens usually start laying at that age too for many breeds.

God bless,
Daniel.

 

[BoereMeisie]

Thanks for the reply Well, I hope he is fertile as we're moving towards summer here on this side of the world and I would like to start incubating some chicks soon... I will crack open an egg in a few days to see if he's hitting the mark

 

[BoereMeisie]

He hit the mark!!!