This morning I found one of my roosters attacking the other...blood shed and I've separated them and rehomed the injured party to another location! I'm so sad because I've raised them since birth and I'm afraid he's not gonna make it through the new jersey winter without the others. He will be with another hen.
You know, that does happen with roosters. I'm so sorry. I used to incubate eggs, and I've raised a number of roosters. They really seem like your pets, they even like to set in your lap and have their head scratched. But once they mature, they can drastically change. Once you rehome a bird, you can't really control what happens to them, so you just have to pray for the best and let go, focusing on the chickens you do have. That's all I can say, and I suppose that's not so comforting, but sending you a cyber hug from me and with time, you'll feel better. Take care, Sharon
Sorry to hear about that. As the last poster said, this happens. All but the calmest breeds tend to kill each other off when they meet maturity, and even in the calmer breeds they needs lots of females and space to tolerate each other. Loval craig's lists are full of 'free to loving home' roosters because of this. In modern days it is hard to do what most owners would have done in the past, and that is to make rooster soup. Unless there is someone locally needing a rooster or you can start a 'parallel flock' I think you might be faced with a pretty hard decision. If you have the room though, another flock might be a good idea. Or getting more hens, one rooster to about 15-20 hens is thought to be the ratio depending on the breed.
Thank you!!! Letting go and focusing on my backyard flock is what seems best ! I have two eight week old hens in the bunny hutch with a heat lamp...any suggestions on that ?
Hello there and welcome to BYC! Sorry about your roosters. Sometimes after they grow up, they just don't get along. As for your 8 week olds, you can start to wean them off heat now. They are fully feathered and should be able to handle the cold temps. I would raise the lamp so that it only gives them a small bit of heat. Keep the lamp like this for one week and then remove it all together. If you are going to mix these two into an adult flock or any flock for that matter, you will need to wait until they are at least 3 months or more before you can mix them. For now you can keep them in a cage or small enclosure in the run and coop for the next month. Then in a month or so, you can mix them in. Make sure to put out extra food and water stations so these babies can eat and drink. The older flock members will try to run them off for a while and starve them out. Good luck and we do welcome you to our flock!
Thank you very much !! I have found this group to settle me mind about my chickens ! My hen isn't really accepting of the rooster left behind..she spent most her time with the injured rooster who is now gone...I hope everything pans out .....I have three kids too lol ty so much !!
A lot of people avoid the rooster combat issues by not keeping any. Hens will continue to lay eggs without a rooster they just won't be fertile eggs that can be hatched. Generally the girls are much happier when the rooster(s) are gone.
Welcome to BYC! Glad you decided to join our flock. The only reason you really need a rooster is to fertilize eggs for hatching, and 1 rooster can easily handle 10-12 hens in this regard. I currently have 25 hens in my flock and no roosters, and I get loads of eggs without the aggression, fights, biting and feather plucking, crowing in the middle of the night, reduced egg production, over-breeding and battering of hens that typically goes along with having roosters (especially too many). My hens are stress free and enjoying life without a rooster around. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. Good luck with your injured rooster.