Is this normal?

[Andrea PNW]

I'm trying to introduce 3 5mo hens to a 9mo drake. The hens have never been around a drake before and the violent ferocity in which he charges at them going in for the rape ---- both times I've tried to let them free range ---- it's so terrifying that I've had to intervene.

He charged after Winnie with his head down, mouth open and hissing a solid 20 yards with me running after him. When she slipped - he threw himself on top of her (on the grass) and pinned her neck and face into the grass and managed to rip out neck feathers. She was screaming so I put a stop to that.

He kept trying to charge again and again at any of my ladies but I inserted myself between them and him. Eventually he sulked off and wasn't even curious to be around them without the rape factor.

I know drakes can be rough but that seemed pretty extreme to me. He's not normally aggressive with his other hen but for some reason he is that way with my ladies.

One last note, this was not the first introduction. He's seen the new ladies practically daily for a solid month albeit thru a fence. He charged at them from his side of the fence then too.

 

[Mylied]

I'd wait until they are laying, if they're not. Maybe he views them as outsiders right now. My drake never took to a new hen I added. I finally decided to rehome the drake and get a new male duckling I can introduce when he's still young. My adult drake was good to his original 3 hens. But he'd bully, block her from food, pull feathers, and everything out of the new one. This went on for months. I tried slow intros and then just hoping they'd work it out. Anyway, maybe your guy will take to them once they are sexually mature. But drakes are enthusiastic when mating. Especially young drakes.

 

[Andrea PNW]

I'd wait until they are laying, if they're not. Maybe he views them as outsiders right now. My drake never took to a new hen I added. I finally decided to rehome the drake and get a new male duckling I can introduce when he's still young. My adult drake was good to his original 3 hens. But he'd bully, block her from food, pull feathers, and everything out of the new one. This went on for months. I tried slow intros and then just hoping they'd work it out. Anyway, maybe your guy will take to them once they are sexually mature. But drakes are enthusiastic when mating. Especially young drakes.

They aren't laying yet and I actually thought maybe he thought they were drakes and that's why he was charging and hissing until he went into full rape mode on Winnie.

He knows I'm the boss of the ladies and I eventually was able to stop him in his tracks by just yelling his name forcefully as soon as I could see him lower his head and get into charging position - and then he'd sort of snap out of it.

The ladies are curious but afraid of him so they just mill around my feet. He hangs back, comes a little closer and one of the ladies will be all "hi!" And then he'd charge.

I'll try again tomorrow I guess.