Is my Roo too big for my hens?

[CrockpotsMama]

Hello All,

I am still unsure if my Rooster is a Black Jersey Giant or a Black Australorp. Either way, I am curious if he is to big for my hens. Right now I do only have 3 hens with him and I have decided to seperate them during the days. I rotate them free-range and confined. The ladies have feather loss and I have made saddles for them. I am going to be trimming spurs and nails this weekend. It seems as though when he mates them, he flatens them out and cannot keep good balance, it is very wabbly!

I am worried this is not a good thing and can be causing more trouble than it should be.

Also, I was wondering why he gets along great with my EE until my "Alpha Hen" decides to beat her up, then they will all pin her down and it seems to take forever. I cannot stand to see this happen, she knows shes last in pecking order, but the beatings continue.

Also, they are all 1 year old this spring, if it helps?

ANY help or advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks and have a great day!

 

[FireTigeris]

Alpha hen wants him to favor her, if she cowls the omega hen enough she might avoid him and let the alpha hen breed more...

its a evolution type thing, each hen wants her genes to pass-

Interesting side note: the more related two birds are the more they are likely to cooperate... so the more babies you have the more likely you are to get food shared or be protected by 'your' flock

(however in artificial situations non related bluejays cooperate also http://www.sciencemag.org/content/298/5601/2216 )

 

[chicmom]

Oh, your coop is cute! What you describe is typical mating. A more submissive hen will flatten herself out to make things easy for the rooster, while an uncooperative hen will squawk and try to get away, resulting in scratches and feather loss. Some roosters are more rough than others too, and will pull out the neck feathers of the hens, and peck them. It really can look awkward and rough. A good roo to hen ratio is one rooster to nine hens. Your three gals are probably being over mated, thus the missing feathers.......

I personally wouldn't keep a rooster with just a few hens, if you're not interested in fertile eggs and hatching. I did try breeding a bit, but it's just not my cup of tea.......Ahh, roosters can be very protective and also they're beautiful.....

Your idea of separating them and rotating the free range time is a good idea, plus the hen saddles....trimming...Very good ideas if you want to keep him.

Perhaps you could get a few more ladies for him to enjoy......

 

[CrockpotsMama]

Quote:
Thank you both for your replies. I do have 5 pullets little over a month old right now. I am still looking to purchase a few more ladies very soon. I love my rooster! so if there is any way I can keep him, I'll exhaust all my options first.

Thanks for complimenting my coop. Since I let them free-range daily, I haven't made my run any bigger, but in the next few months, I will have to. I can't seem to stop with the chickens!

 

[Pinky]

I've noticed that my larger chickens like RIR have a harder time getting the hang of mounting hens than my lighter leghorn and game roosters.