My new white leghorn rooster. When will he breed??

[Jakrzz]

So after I lost a few hens to getting hit, eaten by coydogs, etc.. I've decided to keep my hens inside (meaning their large run and coop).

Now I want to babies! My neighbor has 60+ chickens and of those, 20 are roosters.
He let me borrow one for a few months so it and my hens can breed and have chicks!
I put him in that night while the hens were asleep and he hopped right up and slept with them. There have been no fights, pecking whatsoever! He's a sweetheart!
It's been 4 days now and I haven't noticed them 'doing it' yet.

So when do you guys think this is going to happen!

 

[BantamLover21]

So after I lost a few hens to getting hit, eaten by coydogs, etc.. I've decided to keep my hens inside (meaning their large run and coop).

Now I want to babies! My neighbor has 60+ chickens and of those, 20 are roosters.
He let me borrow one for a few months so it and my hens can breed and have chicks!
I put him in that night while the hens were asleep and he hopped right up and slept with them. There have been no fights, pecking whatsoever! He's a sweetheart!
It's been 4 days now and I haven't noticed them 'doing it' yet.

So when do you guys think this is going to happen!

How old is he? Roosters will almost always start breeding once the pass 7 months of age. You might just not see him breeding, as roosters don't always breed in front of people.

 

[Jakrzz]

Well the hens are about a year and 3 months old and the rooster is about 4 or so!

 

[BantamLover21]

Well the hens are about a year and 3 months old and the rooster is about 4 or so!

4 years? If so, that might explain his lack of interest in mating. Roosters are in their prime for the first 1-3 years. They may still be fertile after that, but they are no longer as vigorous as before.

 

[Jakrzz]

4 years? If so, that might explain his lack of interest in mating. Roosters are in their prime for the first 1-3 years. They may still be fertile after that, but they are no longer as vigorous as before.

Yes four years I believe..
My neighbor said he's 'almost middle age' so I'm assuming 3-5 years old. But that would make sense as to why he's not 'very interested'

 

[donrae]

You might look for a younger rooster. My Rocky is 5 years and he still likes to call the ladies for treats, etc, but I've not seen him breed a hen in forever.

Then again, once he was older than a year or so, he was such a gentleman I'd not often see him breed, anyway. But all my eggs were fertile and he was my only roo at that point, so he must have just been very discrete!

How many hens do you have? Have you checked eggs for a fertility bullseye?

 

[Jakrzz]

You might look for a younger rooster. My Rocky is 5 years and he still likes to call the ladies for treats, etc, but I've not seen him breed a hen in forever.

Then again, once he was older than a year or so, he was such a gentleman I'd not often see him breed, anyway. But all my eggs were fertile and he was my only roo at that point, so he must have just been very discrete!

How many hens do you have? Have you checked eggs for a fertility bullseye?

Well he's with a group of 8 hens. (3 RIR, 2 White Leghorns, 1 Brown Leghorn, and 1 brown and white leghorn mix)
We just got him 3 or so days ago and he seems settled in. I haven't seen him mount any of them... And I haven't checks for this 'bullseye' what's that mean?

 

[donrae]

A bulleye is a visual way to tell if the egg is fertile. I'm not sure where on here, maybe in the incubating section, there are great pictures of fertile vs non-fertile eggs. It can take a trained eye to see, though.

 

[Jakrzz]

A bulleye is a visual way to tell if the egg is fertile. I'm not sure where on here, maybe in the incubating section, there are great pictures of fertile vs non-fertile eggs. It can take a trained eye to see, though.

Alright thank you for the info! Ill try and keep an eye out!

 

[Bullitt]

Do you plan to use an incubator to hatch eggs, or do you have a broody hen?

From the breeds you listed, I am guessing that you do not have a broody hen. You might try to find a broody hen to hatch the eggs for you. Breeds like Buff Orpington, Silkie, Speckled Sussex, and Light Brahma are some that will go go broody. Maybe your neighbor has a broody hen you could borrow.