Roosters...how many is too many?

[SandraGW]

Hello, I'm new here, and I only just began raising chickens in April. I currently have a small flock of 11 chickens, 5 are about 6 months old, 3 are around 5ish months, and 3 are about 2-3 months.

I'm unsure of the 3 youngest ones yet, as I don't quite know how to tell hen or roo apart until they are older, but from the 8 older ones, 4 of them are roosters. I currently have three laying hens, and I need to know what i should do about my roosters. I've tried rehoming one, but to no avail. If at all possible, I'd like to get rid of him without culling him. Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!

Have you tried putting an ad on freemarket or Craigslist. I re-homed a silky rooster this way (I live too close to downtown Minneapolis) and he's roaming with a flock an hour west of us now. Good luck!!!

 

[SamLockwood]

It depends on a lot of factors, including space, breed, individual bird temperament, and your tolerance for roosters behavior.

For some people one rooster is too many.

I've heard of people having as few as two hens per roo without major issues, myself I think it's more like 4 to 6 if you free range them and they can get away from each other.

However, the one thing with roosters is when they mature their pecking order disputes get deadly serious. At best you're going to get a lot of practice in wound care, at worst you're looking at crippled or dead roosters.

When my batch were between 9 and 15 months old the play fights got serious, one of which ended up being fatal.


I know most of the cockerels I "re-homed" ended up on somebody's dinner table, but it's less cruel than what they'll naturally do to each other.

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

the play fights got serious, one of which ended up being fatal.

What play fights?

There are no play fights with chickens. Every single fight is serious. When you are a chicken with a complex social hierarchy that makes your flockmates wants to beat you up, and you have hundreds of predators out there that could attach at any moment, you need to conserve your energy. There is no reason for play fighting when you are in that situation. People say they see their chicks play fighting, but if you notice, when they ram into each other's chests they actually hurt each other, because they fall and scream, and most of the time slash each other with their claws in the process. When a chick runs up to another and bites them on the head, neck, or anywhere else for that matter, they are certainly not playing either. I have hatched many eggs before, and the chicks come out ready to beat each other up. When one chick hatches, rests up for a few minutes, and sees another chick out of the egg, it makes its way to the chick, half-crawling and half-walking, and starts pecking its opponent forcefully.

Chicken life is brutal. Every ounce of energy needs to be conserved for life-or-death situations, which happen every day, all throughout the day. If you are weak, you get killed. It is as simple as that. There is no room for play fights in the chicken world.

 

[SamLockwood]

What play fights?

There are no play fights with chickens. Every single fight is serious. When you are a chicken with a complex social hierarchy that makes your flockmates wants to beat you up, and you have hundreds of predators out there that could attach at any moment, you need to conserve your energy. There is no reason for play fighting when you are in that situation. People say they see their chicks play fighting, but if you notice, when they ram into each other's chests they actually hurt each other, because they fall and scream, and most of the time slash each other with their claws in the process. When a chick runs up to another and bites them on the head, neck, or anywhere else for that matter, they are certainly not playing either. I have hatched many eggs before, and the chicks come out ready to beat each other up. When one chick hatches, rests up for a few minutes, and sees another chick out of the egg, it makes its way to the chick, half-crawling and half-walking, and starts pecking its opponent forcefully.

Chicken life is brutal. Every ounce of energy needs to be conserved for life-or-death situations, which happen every day, all throughout the day. If you are weak, you get killed. It is as simple as that. There is no room for play fights in the chicken world.

Well in

What play fights?

There are no play fights with chickens. Every single fight is serious. When you are a chicken with a complex social hierarchy that makes your flockmates wants to beat you up, and you have hundreds of predators out there that could attach at any moment, you need to conserve your energy. There is no reason for play fighting when you are in that situation. People say they see their chicks play fighting, but if you notice, when they ram into each other's chests they actually hurt each other, scream, and most of the time slash each other with their claws in the process. When a chick runs up to another and bites them on the head, neck, or anywhere else for that matter, they are certainly not playing either. I have hatched many eggs before, and the chicks come out ready to beat each other up. When one chick hatches, rests up for a few minutes, and sees another chick out of the egg, it makes its way to the chick, half-crawling and half-walking, and starts pecking its opponent forcefully.

Chicken life is brutal. Every ounce of energy needs to be conserved for life-or-death situations, which happen every day, all throughout the day. If you are weak, you get killed. It is as simple as that. There is no room for play fights in the chicken world.

I erased my original reply to your bizarre rant, and will just leave it at: As someone who has raised chickens and other poultry off and on for 40 years, and raised and hatched around 100 chicks and keets in the last 2 years alone, I will agree to disagree with you.

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

Well in

I erased my original reply to your bizarre rant, and will just leave it at: As someone who has raised chickens and other poultry off and on for 40 years, and raised and hatched around 100 chicks and keets in the last 2 years alone, I will agree to disagree with you.

Anyone who says chickens play fight is false. Play fighting does not involve painfully pecking at your flockmate and slashing them with your claws.

 

[McChooky]

We had to re-home him because he attacked people, but i do think he went to his new home pretty traumatized

I find it suspicious the guy I gave my rooster to says he's such a good boy because he chased my hens and tried to flog me whenever I intervened.Could his Rhode island reds be keeping him in line?LOL