Raising a Rooster

[PolloGal]

I should explain, I'm sorry.
What you're doing is the see but no touch method, they can see him but not get at him. A 200 sq foot run is 33 sq feet per bird, not including him, that's plenty of room. He will likely have to roost separately for a while since they won't accept him right off. Is try to introduce a single bird but let me look in articles for information.

My older hens are almost 3 now. And one is even older and doesnt lay anymore. I didn’t want him to try to ‘mate’ with her or to ‘hurt’ any of the girls. It’s a large pen, but there is a large roost and another smaller coop in there…taking up some of the ground space. In the pen we are building, he will have a 10 x 20 area to himself…and likely one other rooster, and we will be able to control the time he spends with the hens and which hens…so we know what chicks we will have. I don’t really want to just let him loose with these girls now and move him again later…maybe stressing him more to be with different hens later??

 

[nuthatched]

My older hens are almost 3 now. And one is even older and doesnt lay anymore. I didn’t want him to try to ‘mate’ with her or to ‘hurt’ any of the girls. It’s a large pen, but there is a large roost and another smaller coop in there…taking up some of the ground space. In the pen we are building, he will have a 10 x 20 area to himself…and likely one other rooster, and we will be able to control the time he spends with the hens and which hens…so we know what chicks we will have. I don’t really want to just let him loose with these girls now and move him again later…maybe stressing him more to be with different hens later??

If you let the girls raise him, he won't hurt them since they'll teach him proper mating etiquette. They likely won't tolerate a randy, clumsy cockerel and beat him if he tries to force them. He might be on the edge of too old, it's usually better to put cockerels out with older girls sooner but I don't think he's beyond learning.
as for a second rooster, 9 times out of 10, putting two roos together will result in a blood bath, (and possibly an overmating of hens) especially with the influence of hens. You can create breeding pens, you can take the chosen hens and him to put them in.

 

[PolloGal]

If you let the girls raise him, he won't hurt them since they'll teach him proper mating etiquette. They likely won't tolerate a randy, clumsy cockerel and beat him if he tries to force them. He might be on the edge of too old, it's usually better to put cockerels out with older girls sooner but I don't think he's beyond learning.
as for a second rooster, 9 times out of 10, putting two roos together will result in a blood bath, (and possibly an overmating of hens) especially with the influence of hens. You can create breeding pens, you can take the chosen hens and him to put them in.

Thank you for helping me understand. This is my first rooster, so I only know what reading i have done…although a lot, it never takes place of it actually happening. I wasn’t sure i was going to mate him with the girls I have in my current pen. I was going to get other hens for that. But, by what you are saying…it sounds like he may be mean to younger hens than him, so maybe that won’t work. And you are thinking that 2 roosters can’t like peacefully in 200 sq ft or so? That’s a bummer. UGH I thought if they didn’t have hens in their pen, it could work out.

 

[nuthatched]

Thank you for helping me understand. This is my first rooster, so I only know what reading i have done…although a lot, it never takes place of it actually happening. I wasn’t sure i was going to mate him with the girls I have in my current pen. I was going to get other hens for that. But, by what you are saying…it sounds like he may be mean to younger hens than him, so maybe that won’t work. And you are thinking that 2 roosters can’t like peacefully in 200 sq ft or so? That’s a bummer. UGH I thought if they didn’t have hens in their pen, it could work out.

He won't be mean, per say, just inexperienced. But if he's raised with older girls, they'll teach him to be polite and then when you get more hens, he'll be a good gentlemen. It depends on the temperament of your roosters if they'll get along or not, they could get along but if they know hens are around, they'll likely fight, per instinct. You could have two flocks in two pens. I'd wait to make sure your current boy is a good one before making long term plans with second coops, if he forces the hens, shows aggression and is pigging with food, he needs to go.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

I really don't think he will be stressed by one group of hens now, and a different group later. Once mature, he'll be driven by primarily two things: spread his seed into as many hens as possible, and protect the flock. *Which* hens won't matter, as long as he's not fighting another rooster to mate with them.

In my experience, hens are much more accepting of a new rooster, and a rooster accepting of new hens, than hens-to-hens or roosters-to-roosters.

I've wondered in this thread why you don't just integrate him with your existing flock. As long as there are no other roosters yet, he should fit in just fine. There will be some pecking and smacking him around as the older girls teach him manners (BTW, he NEEDS this socialization training!), but they will work it out.

With the information you've now provided, I think he'd be FINE inside your electrified and fortified pen, now - if you can put his 4x4 pen inside their pen and his wooden box as well. If you can put the box inside the coop, so much the better. Use the see-don't-touch method for several days, then release him with close supervision to see how it goes. Provide him a separate roosting bar within the coop until he's earned his place in the flock.

At his age, he should be well equipped to handle temperature fluctuations already. He should adjust quickly.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

By the way, typically roosters don't beat a hen into submission to mate with her. It may appear brutal to human eyes, but it's not to them. If she doesn't want his affections, she will run away. He'll chase her a bit, but only until another hen catches his attention - then he's off to chase her instead. When a hen is agreeable, she'll squat down flat on the ground for him. He'll grab her neck with his beak and climb onto her back, and do the deed. They'll both shake their feathers back into place, and resume foraging.

Seeing their bare backs and worrying about it is the price we pay for allowing them to breed - their perfectly natural behavior.

 

[PolloGal]

Thank you for your help everyone. I have a few things to think about that I hadn’t thought to do. Thanks for that…I needed some other ideas. I appreciate it.

 

[Auntiejessi3]

I introduced a 13 week old cockerel to my 6 ladies (my ladies range from 2 1/2 yrs down to 10 months old) about 18 weeks ago (no other rooster in my flock). I had him separated by some netting in the run for about 6 hrs, none of my ladies really paid him any mind, so I took down the netting. There was a bit of chasing and a peck here and there, but then it was done. Since then, they have continued to teach him chicken manners even though he is quite a bit larger than most of them. He's a good boy that gives them their space and me my space. I highly recommend letting the ladies mold him as best they can. You've got some great advice from @nuthatched and @BarnyardChaos, make a decision that works best for you, your situation, and your flock. Wishing you the best!

 

[Ridgerunner]

You have provided a lot more information. I'm not going to try to unpack a lot of it but this will still be a long post.

On the room issue. One way chickens have learned to live in a flock is that in case of conflict the weaker runs away from the stronger and avoids them. This has nothing to do with square feet per chicken but is more about can they get away if they run and can they avoid them once they get away. Clutter, things that break line of sight, can improve the quality of the space you do have. Once they are fully integrated there is usually very little conflict so they can live much closer together, but things like different maturity levels, multiple males, and integration can greatly increase the need for more room.

I don't see a mature hen brutalizing a cockerel or pullet as Miss Henrietta's School of Etiquette for Wayward Boys and Girls. I see it as a fight for dominance. If the cockerel is in puberty it can be even more vicious because he might fight back but even without that extra factor it can be deadly. Mature hens do not always brutalize immature cockerels and pullets but sometimes they do. We have techniques we use to minimize the chance for violence when we integrate, whether immature or mature chickens. They don't always work but many are often successful.

Your cockerel is 11 weeks old, he may or may not be in puberty. If he is not yet in puberty the older hens will likely treat him like they would a single pullet that age if you try to integrate him. Some of the tricks to integration are to house them across wire for a while (days or weeks) so they get used to each other and have separate feeding and watering stations, hopefully out of line of sight to each other. Adding clutter may improve the quality of what room you do have. At night don't try to force them to roost together. As long as it is predator safe and not in my nests I don't care where mine sleep during integration. Sometimes this integration goes so smoothly you wonder what all of the fuss and worry was about, sometimes it can be pretty rough, but if you are patient it usually works out.

If he is in puberty this changes. Many different things can happen. It may still go very smoothly but usually there is drama. He may ignore them and they may ignore him at first. He is still very young. At some point he will try to mate with some of them. Some hens may let him. Many are likely to run away. He may let them go or he may chase them. If he chases he may soon quit and let them go. Or he may chase them down and force them to mate. As mentioned above, that is usually not as horrible as it looks like. Any time there is violence involved there is the risk of injury but I've never had a hen or pullet actually injured during that. It's possible one or more of the hens may fight back and win.

I've had a five-month-old cockerel take over a flock of mature hens with no drama. He had a strong personality and the hens, especially the dominant hen, was OK with him taking over. That is unusual at that age. I had a cockerel wait until he was 11 months old before he took over. He was pretty much a wimp and the dominant hen was really stubborn. She did not want to give up being the flock master. They had some pretty vicious fights for a couple of days before she gave up. No one was hurt so I left them to it. They became best buddies when they finally sorted it but it could have easily ended with a serious injury instead. Before that final fight several of the hens would mate with that cockerel willingly but if the dominant hen saw them she'd run over and knock him off. No fighting, she'd just knock him off to show she was still the boss. He'd run away. When he finally did not run away was when they started fighting.

Most of my cockerels take over the flock of mature hens when the cockerels are about 7 months old. It is usually a pretty peaceful takeover. I think a lot of it has to do with the personality of the individual cockerel. The personality of the hens, especially the dominant hen, has a lot to do with it also. A 10 x 20 area isn't horrible, many people have less, but I have over 3,000 square feet available to them and the weather so it is always available. I think having more room makes a difference in why I so seldom see drama.

In your situation I would try to integrate that cockerel to the hens. Sometimes it is extremely easy. But I'd have a way to separate him if it gets violent. You never know what you will actually see. I suggest you make your decisions by what you see instead of what a stranger over the internet like me tells you. Each chicken has its own personality, each flock has its own dynamics, and those dynamics can change by adding or removing one individual or one individual maturing.

 

[McChooky]

You need separate pens for breeding because moving the hens and roosters around disrupts the pecking order. If you keep the roosters separate they can't fight and if kept inside they won't crow as much.