Rooster territorial about coop - integrating chicks

[Agathe]

We are currently integrating 7 week old chicks with our grown flock. We've moved the chicks into the run in a separate pen. They spend time together outdoors and have so for a couple of weeks. No chasing but the adults as expected prefer the chicks to keep to themselves and not get too close. Lately though the chicks have started wandering off into the main coop. Our rooster doesn't seem to like this and always spots them, even from afar. He will go to let them know they're trespassing and the hens will follow after and stand outside the coop to see what's going on. So it tends to cause a bit of drama. No injuries or anything like that, just scared chicks. It worries me because the chicks will eventually move into the coop with the adults so the rooster will sooner or later have to accept their presence there, but will he? Is it normal for a rooster to be territorial about the coop and will this calm down eventually? He is a great rooster, tends to the hens and is super friendly to humans.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

I personally have never had integration problems with my sweet roosters (other than with another cockerel/rooster). They have always been quick to make sure chicks, especially pullets and a new hen are ushered into the flock with as little drama as possible. That's their job.

Your rooster is being territorial. May I presume these are not broody hatched chicks but chicks you either incubated artificially or purchased from a feed store?

I personally have great roosters who are quick to integrate...but I tend to broody hatch, so the whole flock, while of course hazing the youngsters so they learn their manners, let them run amongst the flock. The rooster (both of mine) are quick to integrate the chicks.

Just tonight I had 6 of my 6 week old chicks burrow under the fence that divides my two coops and ended up in the opposite coop with a different rooster. All were roosting on the roosts quite contented with the rooster keeping a watchful eye on both. (Never mind this totally screwed with my "brown Barnevelder line" vs my "blue Cream Legbar line." (LOL). But the Barney rooster was fine with the CL chicks not his own.

So generally roosters *should* be quick to integrate new chicks, especially pullets.

However your boy sees these as interlopers. Keep showing the chicks to the flock with a fence in between to acclimate all, or at least free ranging with plenty of hiding places. Your boy *should* accept the pullets without question. Roosters *should* want to make sure the new girls are part of their flock. (Young cockerels are generally ignored until age of sexual maturity where they then can be chased away by the senior rooster).

So I would say while perhaps not entirely uncommon, with purchased or unfamiliar chicks, it is not showing the signs of a good rooster leader. I can't say if he will chill in time. Hopefully he will especially as he begins to see the chicks becoming pullets....any cockerels again could pose a problem. (I have to keep my roosters separate for the first year).

LofMc

 

[Agathe]

I personally have never had integration problems with my sweet roosters (other than with another cockerel/rooster). They have always been quick to make sure chicks, especially pullets and a new hen are ushered into the flock with as little drama as possible. That's their job.

Your rooster is being territorial. May I presume these are not broody hatched chicks but chicks you either incubated artificially or purchased from a feed store?

I personally have great roosters who are quick to integrate...but I tend to broody hatch, so the whole flock, while of course hazing the youngsters so they learn their manners, let them run amongst the flock. The rooster (both of mine) are quick to integrate the chicks.

Just tonight I had 6 of my 6 week old chicks burrow under the fence that divides my two coops and ended up in the opposite coop with a different rooster. All were roosting on the roosts quite contented with the rooster keeping a watchful eye on both. (Never mind this totally screwed with my "brown Barnevelder line" vs my "blue Cream Legbar line." (LOL). But the Barney rooster was fine with the CL chicks not his own.

So generally roosters *should* be quick to integrate new chicks, especially pullets.

However your boy sees these as interlopers. Keep showing the chicks to the flock with a fence in between to acclimate all, or at least free ranging with plenty of hiding places. Your boy *should* accept the pullets without question. Roosters *should* want to make sure the new girls are part of their flock. (Young cockerels are generally ignored until age of sexual maturity where they then can be chased away by the senior rooster).

So I would say while perhaps not entirely uncommon, with purchased or unfamiliar chicks, it is not showing the signs of a good rooster leader. I can't say if he will chill in time. Hopefully he will especially as he begins to see the chicks becoming pullets....any cockerels again could pose a problem. (I have to keep my roosters separate for the first year).

LofMc

Oh, shoot. I wasn't sure what to expect from the rooster, but he doesn't seem to do much to help integrate them. They are chicks we've hatched ourselves, no broody hen so far. There should be no roosters, I've taken them out, but then I can't be 100% sure yet that I haven't missed any. I'm prepared to keep them separately until the new ones get ready to lay, but I'd really prefer to have them live together before winter. He's otherwise the perfect rooster.

 

[Agathe]

I checked photos of last year's chicks the same age and I really don't think there are any roosters of the bunch. All the males had much bigger combs by 7 weeks.

 

[Shadrach]

We are currently integrating 7 week old chicks with our grown flock. We've moved the chicks into the run in a separate pen. They spend time together outdoors and have so for a couple of weeks. No chasing but the adults as expected prefer the chicks to keep to themselves and not get too close. Lately though the chicks have started wandering off into the main coop. Our rooster doesn't seem to like this and always spots them, even from afar. He will go to let them know they're trespassing and the hens will follow after and stand outside the coop to see what's going on. So it tends to cause a bit of drama. No injuries or anything like that, just scared chicks. It worries me because the chicks will eventually move into the coop with the adults so the rooster will sooner or later have to accept their presence there, but will he? Is it normal for a rooster to be territorial about the coop and will this calm down eventually? He is a great rooster, tends to the hens and is super friendly to humans.

We've moved the chicks into the run in a separate pen.

I don't understand this bit. If they are in a seperate run and pen, how are they getting to the coop where your rooster sleeps?

Has your rooster had a chance to imprint the chicks?
That's the first thing. Until he does this the chicks are interlopers and are likely to remain such until they start to lay eggs.
While not the end of the world, it's very important step in integration.

All the roosters I've known, all free range bar one and over one hundred of them inspect the coop before the hens go in. In fact, a rooster should call his hens to roost.

Yes it is normal for a rooster to be territorial about his coop, and his hens, and his run. It's the his bit that's important. When the chicks are his chicks, then things change.

 

[Agathe]

I don't understand this bit. If they are in a seperate run and pen, how are they getting to the coop where your rooster sleeps?

Has your rooster had a chance to imprint the chicks?
That's the first thing. Until he does this the chicks are interlopers and are likely to remain such until they start to lay eggs.
While not the end of the world, it's very important step in integration.

All the roosters I've known, all free range bar one and over one hundred of them inspect the coop before the hens go in. In fact, a rooster should call his hens to roost.

Yes it is normal for a rooster to be territorial about his coop, and his hens, and his run. It's the his bit that's important. When the chicks are his chicks, then things change.

What does it mean to imprint the chicks? I haven't heard this expression before. (I'm Norwegian.) They've been living together side by side since the chicks were about 3,5 weeks, the chicks even lived in the coop for the first week or two in a rabbit cage. The pen the chicks are in now is a small one placed inside the run of the grown ups, so they spend time together outside but sleep in different coops. I open the chick pen when I'm able to keep an eye on them so they can hang out in the same area and get used to each other, and aside from that they are always able to see each other when they're not cooped up for the night. It's been fairly unproblematic so far.