New to Chickens and want advice on breeding

[N F C]

Best of luck with your projects (and be prepared with a plan for all the excess males)!

 

[sourland]

Good morning and welcome to BYC. Whatever breed rooster you choose, one will be more than enough for that size flock.

 

[333113]

I just noticed that feathersite.com has pages devoted to mixed breeds:
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/ChickMixG/BRKMixed.html
Thanks for making me look! They are so beautiful!

BTW, I have several flocks with multiple roosters, and they work things out. But you will want to watch out for too many hens together. Being at the bottom of the pecking order of 8 hens is no fun!

 

[drumstick diva]

 

[Claires Poultry]

Hello and welcome to BYC!
We're so glad to have you here with us!
Thank you for joining our wonderful community of fellow poultry enthusiasts!

 

[rjohns39]

Hi and welcome to BYC We're so happy you've decided to join us

 

[comish83]

Hi! Welcome to BYC!

Will you be keeping your cockerels in a bachelor pad when they hit the hormonal stage? I think if you have 3 cockerels in with 10 pullets when the hormones kick in, you will have some over mating and fighting between the cockerels.

I'm about to have this situation myself and I'm setting up my bachelor pad early. Then they can have conjugal visits with my hens and pullets.

BTW, they are pullets and cockerels until they are a year old, then they are hens and roosters, or cocks.

Thanks for the info! Plan is to build two mobile chicken tractors that also have a coop so I would be able to use them as chicken tractors for meat birds or breeding pens. Thanks again!

 

[333113]

I always tell people who are starting out with chickens, you may also want to be on the lookout for a large dog crate or better yet a carrier. They can be really cheap at garage sales or the Goodwill store, or free at the curb. Chickens are amazing athletes, and they do get injured on occasion. Also, predators are just like us, in that everybody likes the taste of chicken, so hunt injuries can occur. It's great to have a sheltered spot like a dog carrier where you can isolate a bird or two until they recover from their adventures. And, if everybody is healthy, a carrier is a great way to insulate a hen and her chicks, or provide a protected spot for your hens to lay.