Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[chickflick]

 

[robyn8]

My 5.5 month old silkie just started crowing. She was supposed to be a pullet. I have 4 BO pullets , 1 BO cockerel and the silkie. All we're raised together from day 1. No fighting so far. The BO has mounted the girls some but seems to have laid off when we got the real cold weather. I am not opposed to keeping both boys if they live in harmony but my husband doesn't want to build another coop. I was planning to get some more ladies this spring. Would 6 more full size pullets be a good number to start with? I had thought about 3-4 full size and 3 bantams but now Im leery of ending up with more roos.

 

[aart]

My 5.5 month old silkie just started crowing. She was supposed to be a pullet. I have 4 BO pullets , 1 BO cockerel and the silkie. All we're raised together from day 1. No fighting so far. The BO has mounted the girls some but seems to have laid off when we got the real cold weather. I am not opposed to keeping both boys if they live in harmony but my husband doesn't want to build another coop. I was planning to get some more ladies this spring. Would 6 more full size pullets be a good number to start with? I had thought about 3-4 full size and 3 bantams but now Im leery of ending up with more roos.

Do you have room for more birds?
Adding females does not always solve the 'multiple males' problems.
It may be months before you know if these two males will get along and/or be too much for your 4 females.

A harmonious male to female ratio depends on your goals, your space, and the demeanor of your birds.

Time to think about your goals, fight off the 'chicken math addition', and assess what you really want for a flock.

 

[robyn8]

Yes I think we do have space for more. I was always planning for 10-12 birds but wanted to start with fewer the first year while we are learning. The coop is 8x8 with a 8x12 covered run. I plan to free range in the spring. So you'd recommend waiting to see how the boys get along then? Even if we have to rehome one boy I'd still want more hens this spring. I guess I was more wondering how many to get.

 

[birdman55]

Check out the forum below and follow my journey. Pic heavy

 

[aart]

Yes I think we do have space for more. I was always planning for 10-12 birds but wanted to start with fewer the first year while we are learning. The coop is 8x8 with a 8x12 covered run. I plan to free range in the spring. So you'd recommend waiting to see how the boys get along then? Even if we have to rehome one boy I'd still want more hens this spring. I guess I was more wondering how many to get.

Sounds like a prety good number for your coop.
Keep in mind integrating new birds can take 'extra' space......
....tho I had great success brooding chicks in coop and integrating at 4 weeks,
much smoother than integrating older birds.

Ya never know about those boys.....they may get along fine, they may not.
They may get along until one day they don't.
I've found that multiple males behave differently together than when they are apart, which makes it hard to assess them.
Have had all h3ll break loose with multiple cockerels, then removed all but one and the remaining calms right down.
I eat the extras at 13-16 weeks, before they get into the trouble age.
Highly recommend having a wire crate or spearate encosure ready to isolate, cause when it goes bad it usually happens fast.

 

[robyn8]

Thanks for the advice! I'm in the process of finding a dog crate currently. If I saw the silkie crowing (it sounded more like screaming but based on some videos I found online I'm pretty sure it was a beginner crow) is it 100% certain he's a boy? Not just a girl playing pretend, lol? It'd be so much easier if she was really a girl.

 

[1muttsfan]

Raz, as judges are elected officials, they do not need to be burdened with knowledge, they just need to be popular. Kind of sounds familiar, doesn't it?

 

[Folly's place]

Your Silkie is a boy if there's any crowing at all, and it sounds awful as they start. All good advise above, and it won't be clear until spring if the two cockerels can get along, or if either will be polite and worth keeping. I've currently got two cocks, three cockerels, and 43 females, and by spring, really don't expect all there boys to play well together. We'll see how it goes, but I anticipate rehoming at least one or two of them. Mary

 

[RaZ]

Raz, as judges are elected officials, they do not need to be burdened with knowledge, they just need to be popular. Kind of sounds familiar, doesn't it?

I know. A lot of shady business involved in getting elected. And be careful what you say, they do monitor this site.