Roo vs Hen Ratios

[Pretty Pony]

I have 4 laying hens, 4 teenagers, and 8 that are < 6 months old. Will one Roo be happy with this group or should I have more than one?

 

[Mrs. K]

I would think one roo would be happy enough, but you might not have a real high fertility rate. How old is the roo?

Check your eggs and see if they are getting fertilized. the recommended is 10 hens to a roo, so you really need 4 more hens, to get one more roo. (Is that chicken math?) But you might also get a wreck going with roo's fighting if you try and add another one.

 

[Pretty Pony]

My last roo got attached by a dog, died two weeks later. I am getting a trio of SLW from the Foley line next week. The roo is young, so I don't expect much from him til late summer maybe?

 

[kano]

My roo is with 16 hens. I put 6 eggs under a broody. Results: 4 born, one dead in shell ( complete),and one unfertilized. I'm not good in %. He is 1 year old.



This is Armin....