My poor hens will need hen saddles!

Deleted

 

Regardless of what you want to hear, you have a responsibility to your hens. With only 4 hens, even 1 rooster may overmate them, you'll just have to watch and see. If you just can't bear to get rid of the remaining roosters, you'll need to build separate housing for them. Roosters do well in a bachelor pad, with no access to females they usually keep the squabbles to a minimum. But you can't tease them by having the hens right close, either, that's just mean. So, take a good, hard look at your set-up and what your capabilities are, and decide what's really best for the birds you love so much. Is it living with you, or possibly living in a more appropriate home for them?

 

The set up you have won't work well. All of the birds will be unhappy, so they won't be the pets you love, they will be mean, bloody and picked on. You can't just wish they will all get along with chicken management.

Mrs K

 

Too many roosters for the hens.

Saddles are great. I have some with saddles because they are the rooster's favorites. The saddles don't impede their activities. Well, except the rooster has to work harder to mount them, but that is his problem.

Chris

 

I had 6 hens to 3 roosters in my first flock. They were all housed together. Since they were raised together there was an established pecking order. My whole little flock was a happy little system. Should it be done differently? Yes, probably, but the 6:2 ratio can work.