Need help with bringing in roos

silkensunlight

In the Brooder
7 Years
Jul 27, 2012
58
0
29
Tamworth, Ontario, Canada
Hi all. I have a flock of hens (37). They are all RSL. DH knows a couple who have a few roos to give away or trade for hens. We don't know the breed or socialization of the roos but we know they were bought straight run and the folks got 4 roos and one hen. These guys are still young, less than a year old. I'm wondering if they would make a good match for my hens. I think it would be a good trade if I could get two roos for a hen. I have little kids though and my last roo did a number on my son so I'm a bit nervous. I don't think the actual breed of these guys is known. Hopefully tomorrow we'll be going to see them. Gimme all the info you folks can please!
 
Most people like 1 rooster per 10 hens. I raise American Games and I have run 1 cock for 30 hens on a free range yard with no problems. Are they in a pen? If so, I would just get one rooster and let him settle the pecking order. If it is free range, then two roosters would suffice. I dont have this luxury with my games, as only one cock will be tolerated. As far as the problem with your son, please dont take this the wrong way. Most problems we have with any animals, we create ourselves. I train horses and dogs and find this to be most prevalent. You have to think like the rooster. Does he feel that you or your son is a threat to himself or his flock?.Chickens are prey more than predator, and their actions are for survival. The rooster may not understand you picking up the hens, gathering eggs , etc.To add to this,you have to factor in his previous environment and personality. Take time to get to know him, and give him space.You will teach one another,and your relationship will be one of mutual respect. I have raised thousands of gamecocks the last 40 years and have only had a handful that were truly just MEAN. I believe they had some sort of mental deficiency. My oldest gamecock was 28 yrs old and we shared some great memories! He got so old he went blind and I would have to put him on the roost pole at night and get him off in the morning. I still have some of his offspring! If you do not have a rooster now and are eating the eggs you are cheating yourself! Fertile eggs are a live cell, therefore better for you. Crack open a egg from the supermarket and you will see they are fertilized. Let me know if I can be of any more assistance.
 
My hens have two houses that they share and a large run but I also free range some of the time. So they have a lot of area to cover. I live on about an acre. When they were younger I wasn't free ranging so a rooster wasn't a big deal but now that they are able to roam I thought it may be best to have some flock protection. With there being so many hens I figure two roos that are familiar with each other all ready would probably work. I want to do my research before coming to a decision for sure. Luckily the roos are owned by a friend of ours so we can certainly spend some time with them to get to know a bit about their personalities. The last time I had a roo it came with an established flock so there was no introducing to be done. He was just terribly mean to people. Full on flogging to the point he would knock ya over and everything! I'm not worried about the fluffing up and that sort of thing. It's his job to protect the girls.
 

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