Lazy roo....

[sweetleaf]

I have 1 Silkie rooster & 9 hens of various breeds & cross breeds. My rooster (Captain Von Trapp aka The Captain) has his 2 fave hens, the three of them hang out in a wee trio during the day, he shows very little interest in the other hens bar the occasional mating. He's a chicken of leisure.
Of the 7 hens left, 6 of them are reasonable shy & skittish. They are friendly enough, they approach me for food & follow me about when I do the washing but only 1 (my rescue hen Lady Sybil) is really ballsy. I have a small cat that has started harassing these other hens when the Captain is not around, which is a lot of the time. The only one he won't chase is Sybil because the last time he tried, she charged him. She was raised around cats & is not afraid but the others will run & this makes chasing the chooks a fun game for the wee cat.
Am I following the right train of thought by thinking about getting another, probably standard sized, rooster?
He is not an overly aggressive cat, Sybil charging at him clucking and flapping was enough to put him well off. He is also small & a standard sized roo would be quite intimidating to him. I think a rooster to keep an eye out for predators would be nice for the other hens & maybe help them relax a little? We have hawks around this area too...
Does anyone else have a bantam & a standard sized rooster? Is this a good idea? Does anyone have any recommendations for breed? I have a 1 year old so I have to take that in to consideration. Also, if chicks are hatched is it common for there to be issues between roos & the chicks of other roos?
Opinions welcomed.

 

[sourland]

My gut tells me that adding another rooster will cause more problems than it will solve. Incubating some eggs and 'growing' another rooster into the flock might cause fewer problems.

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

If you're seriously considering another rooster, with only 9 hens, I would consider getting another Silkie. Compared to other breeds I've had, they are lazy little guys. Most roos would over breed 4-5 hens if that's all they had, my Silkie boys can't seem to handle much more than that. I have no problems keeping 2 Silkies roosters with 6 hens or even splitting them off into pairs. Other breeds I've had would wear their hens out when they had 20.

Another thought, adding a second rooster may make your current rooster step up his game. Right now, all those hens are his, he's got no competition. Add another fellow and he may decide he doesn't want to share a single one of them. There are lots of things to consider here. They could split off into groups and coexist. One roo could end up the odd man out and be picked on by the whole flock. Or, they could decide to be buddies and double team your poor girls.

It could end up being great, or it could be a disaster so think about what you're willing to deal with and if you have them means to separate them if need be. Good luck to you!