Rooster not mating or crowing

[whyalla]

I have a 24 week old rooster, he hasn't started crowing or mating and is a little scared of the girls. He is a light Sussex and is bigger than all the hens and doesn't defend his territory either like the other roosters I've had in the past.

Will he ever start?
Would putting him a seperate cage for a couple of weeks help to change the pecking order?

The 3 older hens used to attack him when he was about 15weeks old so could this have something to do with it?

 

[Sjisty]

Just give him a little more time. He's still young.

 

[whyalla]

Will he stop being a sook around the hens?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Different cockerels mature at different rates. I’ve had a few as young as yours mature enough that he could make a flock master and control his flock, even with older hens in it. Very few. I’ve had some take 11 or 12 months to do that. Somewhere between 7 to 9 month is more normal with mine.

Part of it depends on your hens too. Some hens will squat for practically anything in spurs (which your cockerel probably doesn’t have much yet, by the way, he’s still quite young). But many older hens expect a male to show enough maturity to be a good father for their children before they willingly submit to him. If your older hens are not beating him up anymore (that’s pretty normal with a cockerel in with older hens), well that’s a good thing. Be patient, he will grow into the role of flock master. It might be a month from now, maybe several months.

If you are looking for fertile eggs, don’t assume yours are not fertile just because you don’t see him mating. Sometimes they will surprise you. Crack a few and look for the bull’s eye. You may find he is doing more than you think.

 

[whyalla]

Nah they definately not fertile as ive tryed them in the incubator, he still flinches when the older hens are too close to him, he is still very weary of them