Rooster and hen integration to existing flock

[Plants_Pets_Projects]

I need some advice!

My neighbor is moving and has all but abandoned her rooster and 2 hens. I go over every day and care for them and I am planning to bring them to my house this weekend since she's not doing anything to find them a new home. I tried, but there haven't been any takers. The rooster, Buddy, is 4-5yrs and the hens are around 5yrs, so they're all mature and docile. Buddy has never challenged me and rarely mates the girls.

I have 9 sassy spoiled hens that are just over a year old and 2 cockerels that are 9 weeks old (that's what I get for giving my broody hen a couple eggs to hatch). My hens aren't super fond of the boys, and we had planned on rehoming them as soon as we can.

I don't free-range but my runs are pretty large and separated with hardware cloth. My concern is there will be fence fighting between Buddy and the cockerels (say, that's a good band name!) and I'm wondering if I should wait to bring the trio over until my boys are gone. We do plan on being home so we can supervise for the first few days, but we can't be there all day long.

Any advice? Has anyone been in the same situation?

 

[Ridgerunner]

2 cockerels that are 9 weeks old

Immature baby cockerels like these are not going to be fighting a mature rooster. Like any chicks they will probably be terrorized by the mature rooster and hens. They are probably scared of your current hens as hens often beat up younger chicks, whether the chicks are male or female.

I don't free-range but my runs are pretty large and separated with hardware cloth.

I don't know how many posts on here have said "I have plenty of room" but when we dig into it deeper their behavioral problems are caused by overcrowding. How big in feet are your runs?

Any advice?

Try harder to rehome those boys. Their young age is a disadvantage. You are going to rehome them anyway so get it over with. That's as much for your peace of mind as anything else.

 

[Plants_Pets_Projects]

Immature baby cockerels like these are not going to be fighting a mature rooster. Like any chicks they will probably be terrorized by the mature rooster and hens. They are probably scared of your current hens as hens often beat up younger chicks, whether the chicks are male or female.

This makes sense. Momma protected them for a while, but she's way over it.

I don't know how many posts on here have said "I have plenty of room" but when we dig into it deeper their behavioral problems are caused by overcrowding. How big in feet are your runs?

Total run space is 750 sq ft. While I separate them, each will get half.

Try harder to rehome those boys. Their young age is a disadvantage. You are going to rehome them anyway so get it over with. That's as much for your peace of mind as anything else.

I just put the feelers out a couple days ago. I'm not going to give up on rehoming them very easily.