Little Rooster Big Hens?

[hollandhens24]

My sister inherited a flock and became a first time chicken keeper. She is going to add a cockerel to help keep an eye on her 9 girls. It’s our understanding that they (hens) once had a rooster who has since become compost due to his human aggression. Would it be considered… unkind, for lack of a better word, to slip the new cockerel into the coop at night and just allow things to unfold and sort themselves out naturally? Just curious if anyone has had luck with this method?

Also, her neighbor has a free range flock probably 300 yards away, across a hay field. Both her and her neighbors flock have easy access to the hay field. What are the chances that the neighbors rooster gathers up her flock to join his, if she doesn’t get a rooster of her own? Would they leave their current coop if it’s all they’ve known as their home base? Would having a rooster help keep the flocks separate?

 

[Mother of Chaos]

My sister inherited a flock and became a first time chicken keeper. She is going to add a cockerel to help keep an eye on her 9 girls. It’s our understanding that they (hens) once had a rooster who has since become compost due to his human aggression. Would it be considered… unkind, for lack of a better word, to slip the new cockerel into the coop at night and just allow things to unfold and sort themselves out naturally? Just curious if anyone has had luck with this method?

Also, her neighbor has a free range flock probably 300 yards away, across a hay field. Both her and her neighbors flock have easy access to the hay field. What are the chances that the neighbors rooster gathers up her flock to join his, if she doesn’t get a rooster of her own? Would they leave their current coop if it’s all they’ve known as their home base? Would having a rooster help keep the flocks separate?

As she is a new chicken keeper, I would STRONGLY recommend that she hold off on adding a rooster until after the first year.

Nine girls bring plenty of drama on their own. She really ought to get familiar with just general chicken raising before throwing in the rooster wildcard. Roos can be great (some), good (many), and awful (too many.)

@Mrs. K