Roo/Hen Ratios

[enggass]

I know the standard ratio is 1 Roo to 10 hens, but is that just the recommended max?
Is there a problem if there is 1 Roo to say 6 or 7 hens?
What happens if you have 1 Roo to say 15 hens?

 

[BarredBuff]

1 roo to 15 hens is fine.

 

[PepsNick]

It all sounds good to me. I guess the RECOMMENDED would be 1 roo for every 10 hens... but I really think that that's a little much. And if you only have one roo in all, than any number of hens will work.

 

[gryeyes]

Basically, a one to ten roo/hen ratio is to ensure a couple of things: fertility for breeding (more hens and one roo might not be able to cover them all), and to spread out the rooster love so a few number of hens don't get bare backs (roosters are active fellas).

Lots of folks have fifty hens and one rooster, and some have many more roosters.

 

[tornado8070]

According to the old timers around this area 1 roo to 7 hens is ideal, but can vary some because some may be more or less agressive breeding than others.

 

[mississippifarmboy]

We run one roo to five hens, but I've run as many as 15 or so hens to one roo in our free range chickens and a few hens still hide nests and hatch out chicks.

 

[Yazzo]

You can have 1 rooster and 1 hen together, no problem. It really just depends on the rooster. I have 5 roosters with a couple dozen hens right now and it works out great! There's a recommended ratio, but it really varies a LOT. You just have to see what works for you. One rooster and 6 or 20 hens should work fine.