keeping several roosters for breeding...

[Minky]

I would really like to have a few different roosters so I can breed and experiment with my egg colours. My flock free ranges from April-Nov.(20-30 hens depending) In winter we get lots of snow so they usually stay in the barn (their coop is a 1/3 of the barn).
So, how shall I keep my extra roosters?
Right now I have two large coops. One is for the whole flock and one rooster, the other I keep my spare roosters in. The one for the flock is in a barn its about 10 x15. The one outside is winter-proofed and is 11 x17.
I have found if they are all together in a coop from the beginning, they get along fine- but if I pull one out for 3 weeks to breed with a bunch of hens and then return him- wont he get killed?? I find they are just blood thirsty vicious animals (to each other)....I swapped out my roo a month ago because he was being so rough with my hens, and I had had enough-- I put him back in my roo coop- and before I could walk out of the coop he was being attacked by all of them. So now he is in my chicken tractor alone under a tarp, which is not ideal- and I feel a bit bad for him... but he is an a$$hole. So we will eat him... but moving forward... how should I manage the rooster rotation?
Thanks.

IDEAS-subdivide the 11 x 17 outdoor coop into a few smaller pens....but if I am to make a couple of extra pens inside the large 11 x17 outdoor "coop" will they fight through the chicken wire?
How big does a roo pen need to be? Can I ever let them out to free range? Maybe one day a week I can have roo day?
If I let everyone out together that will be chaos.

 

[Acre4Me]

Yes, they may fight through the chicken wire. But, you could put scrap wood up to prevent that, or double up on the wire so the openings are smaller. Individual pens will be the best option for your scenario.

also, you could approach your experiment on a yearly type basis. This year a particular rooster is with these females, then when light is less and hormones are low in the Late fall/winter, remove the males to create new pairings in late winter/spring. The roosters May be less inclined to fight to the extreme. The females can be fed a boosted nutritional feed to get them prepared for spring egg laying (Since you want to hatch their eggs), and then any residual sperm will be gone by the time they are paired with a new male.

 

[Minky]

Hi thanks for the ideas. And should I just get over the "lack of free ranging" guilt I feel for the unlucky roosters?
What sort of things do you add to your hens feed to boost for hatching eggs?

 

[Acre4Me]

Hi thanks for the ideas. And should I just get over the "lack of free ranging" guilt I feel for the unlucky roosters?
What sort of things do you add to your hens feed to boost for hatching eggs?

i know that people that breed to sell or to show and are serious about it will feed some boosting items in prep for spring laying and hatching eggs. There are certain nutrients that are known to help with healthy/vigorous chicks. However, I’m not breeding nor hatching eggs. Do a search in the breed forum and the feeding forum, and you’ll likely find some answers.

My flock is “free-ranging” in a large run. They have access to scratching around, to grass through the fence and lots of shade. However, they do get let out occasionally, but they have better coverage and shade in their run, lots of perches too, so their run is a bit superior to “free-ranging” in my yard. Plus, their chance of getting Ambushed and eaten alive by a predator is less in the run. Others have different set-ups where true free-range is great.

we just penned up a rooster -we portioned off two sections of our newly built compost area to pen two males. Sad for the one that is currently penned Bc he had just beaten the head male out of top spot. We don’t want to keep him long term, however, and he was way over mating the hens and pullets (like the energizer bunny), so He has a 6’x4’ pen with a roost and roof.