roo to hen ratio to ensure fertile eggs?

[spish]

im wondering how many hens i should keep per roo to ensure a good supply of fertile eggs? i have around 80 hens of laying age and 5 roos, all mingling together....no eggs for 2 months, until today when i got two eggs (a marans and i think brahma)

just wondering what the likelyhood of these eggs being fertile are? do i need to up the roo count maybe?

 

[Fred's Hens]

More roosters isn't going to increase you egg laying.
Your ratio is 16 hens per rooster, which is a wee bit light, but introducing new roos at this point might be "exciting", to say the least.

There is also no certainty that every hen is liked by her rooster. Just saying. Your egg production will increase with good, layer food, limited corn and scratch, and increasing daylight which is coming now.

 

[spish]

i know more roos wont increase egg production

i want to increase the chances that eggs i do collect will be fertile

 

[7L Farm]

I have 10 pullets & one cockerel. All eggs are fertile.

 

[Cranman]

This is a good question....my follow up question would be, if your ratio is good is it a safe assumption that all eggs are fertile? My rooster seems quite frisky but it's hard to know if he courts all the ladies often?

 

[Fred's Hens]

If your ratio is 6-8 per rooster, it is quite likely your fertile rate is high. It is seldom 100% simply because Roosters "favor" some hens over others. A ratio of 10-14 to one increases the chances of having some infertile eggs. So many hens, so little time.

 

[cletus the rooster]

there have been a few threads about this.4 hens to 1 roo is what your ratio needs to be

 

[greenriver]

May I ask why you want fertile eggs? I mean if you are breeding and want to sell fertile eggs I would set up with many more roosters than 80/5. If you want to hatch your own then you are in good shape. There will be duds for sure but plenty of loaded ones to keep you busy.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Quote:
Every roo is different, as are breeds, but a 4 to 1 ratio can mean bare backs and hens worn out by a roo. That is a very low ratio, imo.

 

[cletus the rooster]

the OP wanted a ratio to ensure fertility.