Rooster Concerns

[rckitzmiller]

We have a flock with 21 hens and three roosters. For a while everyone got along reasonably, they had an established pecking order, and all the roosters had their own group of ladies. Now, the top rooster, Lucky (a Buff Orpington that we spared from a group of rosters that we butchered because he was such a good rooster) has started attacking the other roosters when they are mating a hen. Lucky will race over from wherever he is in the large run and shove the mating rooster off the hen and then mate the hen. He does this frequently and will sometimes return to the same hen again. My poor ladies are getting worn out from being mated consecutively like this and the other two roosters are being bullied. I am ready to add Lucky to the freezer with his brothers, but was wondering about your thoughts on the matter. I have kept roosters with my girls for a long time and have never seen this behavior before.

 

[Acre4Me]

Not surprising. I’ve seen this happen here. You may need to choose just one male. He’s a good one, dominant, and doing his job. As long as he leaves you alone, your dominant one can stay. But, if you want a different one, you’ll have to take out the dominant rooster to see how the others act.

 

[sloanbychoice]

Unfortunately, this is the story of most people who try to keep that many roosters with their flock. A good ratio is typically at least ten hens, sometimes more, to each rooster.
I think you’ll have to pick one.

 

[Mrs. K]

Always solve for peace in the flock. But before you do anything permanent, you might try it a few ways first. Because one the things with multiple roosters, is that when you remove one, it often changes the behavior of the others.

I think I would try removing the other two roosters first - maybe 3-4 days. See how the flock reacts...if you like that, go with that. If you are not sure, then remove the BO, letting the pair back in...see if they will work well together. If not, and they may not, then pick one of them, and try that.

Mrs K