Pecking order?

[Beckid974]

Is it possible to have no clear pecking order in a small flock (1 bantam roo and 4 full size hens all about 13-14 weeks)? No one really seems to be top bird yet. My roo is the biggest scared cat of them all, tho!

 

[ashlierami]

Is it possible to have no clear pecking order in a small flock (1 bantam roo and 4 full size hens all about 13-14 weeks)? No one really seems to be top bird yet. My roo is the biggest scared cat of them all, tho!

Lol this is funny. My roos are always top dog and the "macho Man" they don't like me to pet them and love them if the hens are present. But I do it anyways because I'm the top dog! There may be no clear pecking order right now if they arent sexually mature and laying eggs and such.

 

[Beckid974]

Lol this is funny. My roos are always top dog and the "macho Man" they don't like me to pet them and love them if the hens are present. But I do it anyways because I'm the top dog! There may be no clear pecking order right now if they arent sexually mature and laying eggs and such.

Lil Bit will hide behind the girls when I go in the coop and stays as far away as he can in the run. First one to run in the coop if there is something unknown outside. He's lucky he's turning into a handsome boy lol.

 

[ashlierami]

Lil Bit will hide behind the girls when I go in the coop and stays as far away as he can in the run. First one to run in the coop if there is something unknown outside. He's lucky he's turning into a handsome boy lol.

Bless him he's still just a boy in his mind sounds like or he's a really soft rooster. I've never had a boy be this way mine were always rude and jeaous. Even as chicks they wanted all the attention and food. If I go outside with anything in my hand even if it's trash they want to see it and test it and make sure I'm not lying that it's not food. Once they mature he will probably grow out of this since he will be feeling himself and he will have all those girls. Maybe he feels this way since he's a bantam and the others are smaller. That doesn't matter but I mean maybe he sees the size difference. There should definitely be pecking order when everyone is mature. The roo will be top and the hens will have their order amongst themselves.

 

[Orpingtons43]

My rooster/Cockeral likes to “inspect” all of the eggs as I gather them. He will move his head to look at all of the angles of the eggs. He is very sweet and loves his ladies!!

 

[Ridgerunner]

You are dealing with living animals. Each one has its own personality and each flock has its own dynamics. Each flock will be unique, don't expect them to all be the same. Sometimes the pecking order is extremely clear, sometimes not so much.

You are still dealing with juveniles. They have been working on the pecking order since they were baby chicks. Sometimes settling the pecking order is so peaceful you don't notice what is going on. Sometimes it gets violent. Sounds like you have been lucky and yours has been really peaceful so far.

Chickens mature at different rates. As yours go through adolescence the pecking order might change. Hopefully that will continue to be peaceful for you.

When he eventually matures that cockerel will probably become the dominant flock master and perform his duties. Those should include keeping the eggs fertile ( I know he is bantam and they are full sized, he'll still try and will probably succeed), finding them food, keeping a watch for predators, and keeping peace in his flock.

You will still have a dominant hen, even after they all mature from cockerel and pullets into rooster and hens. He will probably be at the top of it, but not until he matures enough to assert himself. It's also possible the dominant hen will outrank him in some things, such as she may sleep where she wants to instead of him.

Chicken society can get pretty complex. But the goal of their interaction is to have a peaceful flock. They may or may not have a rough time through adolescence but usually they sort it out. Hopefully yours continues to be peaceful.

 

[Beckid974]

We have three younger chicks still in brooder. Provided none turn out to be roos, I expect the peace to at least briefly end once they are added to the flock, but I hope not.

 

[Ridgerunner]

One of the tricks to having a peaceful integration is to have a lot of room, a lot more than that 4 sq ft in the coop and 10 in the run you often read on here. With enough room it is often pretty peaceful. If you don't have enough room it can get a lot trickier, especially when you have a difference in maturity level like you do.

A lot of us integrate young chicks all the time with little or no drama, sometimes without a lot of extra room though that makes it harder. If you can tell us about your facilities, like size of coop and run in feet, and maybe photos of how they are configured we may be able to give specific suggestions. What are the ages of the younger ones also?

Another issue may be your expectations of what a successful integration looks like. Until the pullets mature enough to force their way into the pecking order do not expect them to be lovey dovey. The younger ones will probably form a sub-flock and avoid the more mature ones. Usually with pullets that's about when they start to lay. Until then a successful integration means they are not hurting each other.

 

[Beckid974]

Not hurting each other is also my idea of success. I know there will be squabbles and probably hurt egos for a bit. The brooder chicks are about 4-5 weeks so they will be ready soon, just still trying to decide if any are roos. If they are roos, they will have to go because i know we don't have enough hens for that many roos. The coop is a little more than 5x10 with a 10x10 run. They are connected with a ramp/tunnel. I will have to get pics later.

 

[Ridgerunner]

At that age this time of year in WV they can go outside now. Those photos will be interesting, I may have done something similar to that ramp/tunnel for my grow-out coop. That room is not great but it's not horrible either. I think you will be OK.