Reintroducing rooster to his hens after illness...

[SidpudtheChickenMama]

I'm so grateful for this amazing forum and its people! The wisdom on here helped me tremendously when I pulled my rooster from the coop after finding him with his eyes shut and gasping for air last week. I'm not 100% sure what made him sick, but it came on fast, and he's almost back to his usual self after 2 doses of LA200, probiotics, vitamins, fluids (I was giving them to him via syringe for the first 24 hours) and rest. The main coop has been thoroughly cleaned & disinfected in his absence and his flock of 10 hens has been completely fine during all of this. I even put permethrin down in case we are dealing with lice/mites even though I didn't find any.

I'm hoping to reintroduce him back to his ladies soon, but I'm concerned that after being away for almost a week, they will bully him. Should I do the dog crate method, or should I just place him in the coop at night when everyone is asleep? I know how to reintroduce hens, but I'm not sure if it changes for an established rooster? He's almost 1.5 years old, and he's been an excellent rooster to his ladies (and to us). I'm really hoping they don't gang up on him.

Any advice is much appreciated! Thank you!

 

[sourland]

If possible, I would separate the coop giving him his own section for a day or two. I would then add the hens to his section one at a time over a period of time. That may or may not be necessary depending upon the temperament of the hens involved and the fact that he has been their 'leader' for 1.5 years.