New Rooster Owner

[ColonelMustard]

Hello everyone.
I am completely new to chickens - a rooster wandered onto our property about two weeks ago. I haven't been able to locate his owner so I figured at this point he's most likely not getting claimed.
He's a polish rooster, very cautious but not aggressive. I've been able to pick him up twice a day to take him to and from the enclosure I set up with no issues.
I would greatly appreciate any advice on owning a rooster, as well as any notes on his current enclosure.

 

[N F C]

He's a handsome guy, are planning on keeping him? If so, you'll want to give him a coop that will protect him from predators. What are you feeding him? Will you be getting him a flock of ladies so he isn't lonely?

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello and welcome to BYC!

Handsome fella! ❤ As @N F C mentioned above, he is going to need a fully enclosed coop as night time predators will get him at some point, not to mention he needs a place to get out if the weather. Feed him a balanced diet of some sort of "all flock" type of feed, unlike layer feed which has high calcium levels he doesn't need since doesn't lay eggs.

Good luck with your boy!

 

[Tookie]

Hello, and welcome to BYC! We're so glad you joined us!

 

[ColonelMustard]

He's a handsome guy, are planning on keeping him? If so, you'll want to give him a coop that will protect him from predators. What are you feeding him? Will you be getting him a flock of ladies so he isn't lonely?

I am! Couldn't resist his charm lol.

I have the base of a coop someone else started making and lots of wood scattered around so I'm going to start working on his coop soon. For now he's spending the nights in a large dog crate within a fenced in patio.

He's been eating chicken scratch since I found him - tomorrow I get paid so I can buy some proper chicken feed. Any advice or is most chicken feed similar?

I am very open to getting him some company but of course I'll need to finish the coop first. I do have some questions in that area as well.

How many hens would you recommend as a minimum to keep him happy?
Should they also be Polish chickens or are other breeds okay?

Thank you for your response!

 

[ColonelMustard]

Hello and welcome to BYC!

Handsome fella! ❤ As @N F C mentioned above, he is going to need a fully enclosed coop as night time predators will get him at some point, not to mention he needs a place to get out if the weather. Feed him a balanced diet of some sort of "all flock" type of feed, unlike layer feed which has high calcium levels he doesn't need since doesn't lay eggs.

Good luck with your boy!

Thank you for the advice on feed, very appreciated!
For now he's safe at night (dog crate in a fenced in patio) but I am starting on the coop soon! That tarp won't last for long lol

 

[Kenneth Zweerink]

Welcome to BackYard Chickens. The Best of Luck with your Beautiful Rooster! And a Big Hello from Eastern Nebraska.

 

[N F C]

I am! Couldn't resist his charm lol.

I have the base of a coop someone else started making and lots of wood scattered around so I'm going to start working on his coop soon. For now he's spending the nights in a large dog crate within a fenced in patio.

He's been eating chicken scratch since I found him - tomorrow I get paid so I can buy some proper chicken feed. Any advice or is most chicken feed similar?

I am very open to getting him some company but of course I'll need to finish the coop first. I do have some questions in that area as well.

How many hens would you recommend as a minimum to keep him happy?
Should they also be Polish chickens or are other breeds okay?

Thank you for your response!

As @TwoCrows said, he'll need an all-flock feed (not layer feed which has calcium in it). If you aren't sure what that is, someone at a farm store like TSC should be able to help you pick it out. Forget the scratch he's been getting, that's like chicken candy and should be a very rare treat, if given at all.

As for how many ladies, if he were mine, I'd start with 5-6 and see how it goes. You want enough so he doesn't over-mate with a favorite girl and cause her problems.

To get a broad understanding about roosters, this link will take you to an excellent article about them: understanding-your-rooster.75056

 

[ColonelMustard]

As @TwoCrows said, he'll need an all-flock feed (not layer feed which has calcium in it). If you aren't sure what that is, someone at a farm store like TSC should be able to help you pick it out. Forget the scratch he's been getting, that's like chicken candy and should be a very rare treat, if given at all.

As for how many ladies, if he were mine, I'd start with 5-6 and see how it goes. You want enough so he doesn't over-mate with a favorite girl and cause her problems.

To get a broad understanding about roosters, this link will take you to an excellent article about them: understanding-your-rooster.75056

Great advice, thank you very much!

 

[FunClucks]

I am! Couldn't resist his charm lol.

I have the base of a coop someone else started making and lots of wood scattered around so I'm going to start working on his coop soon. For now he's spending the nights in a large dog crate within a fenced in patio.

He's been eating chicken scratch since I found him - tomorrow I get paid so I can buy some proper chicken feed. Any advice or is most chicken feed similar?

I am very open to getting him some company but of course I'll need to finish the coop first. I do have some questions in that area as well.

How many hens would you recommend as a minimum to keep him happy?
Should they also be Polish chickens or are other breeds okay?

Thank you for your response!

I think he's a buff laced polish! Gorgeous!!!

16% protein is a minimum in the all-flock feed, but higher is better (to support molting and good nutrition and health) I feed my male/female flock 20% protein Purina Flockraiser and have been quite happy with it, but there are many other good options depending on where you live.

Any treats, including scratch, should only be 10% of his diet, tops, although you'll find varying opinions on this.

To understand rooster behavior, check out some of the Articles and threads by RoostersAreAwesome and Shadrach to get you started (the Search function on this site is pretty good). Hopefully he's over 1 year old and his personality is already set, because he sounds pretty sweet. Around 6months to a year, some roosters can have a drastic personality change and turn mean (due to hormones), so keep an eye out for that. Hopefully, you got a good roo, and will have no issues with him.

How many hens to get him? Anywhere between 3-10 hens, it depends on how much space they have (recommend minimum of 15 square feet per chicken if you have them in a large enclosure all day with no coop access), how you keep them (confined or free range), and whether the hens can get away if they don't want to mate. Chicken saddles can help if there's issues with feather breakage due to mating. It's okay to keep him for a bit and learn about roosters and mixed flock dynamics first prior to getting pullets/hens for him.

Congratulations on starting your chicken journey! So glad you rescued this darling boy!