Should young roosters be separated from hens?

[Jen E in PA]

I have two very big Easter Egger cockerels (6 months) that are currently separated in their own coop and run adjacent to the coop where my hens and older bantam rooster reside. I know my flock of 9 hens is too small to handle all of that adolescent rooster energy. The hens are absolutely terrified and overwhelmed. While I’m planning to increase my flock size by about 15 hens, it’s going to be a while - chicks are on order for late April. These cockerels pace around their run and crow all day. They aren’t fighting, but they sure seem pent up. I let them free range, but all they do is walk the perimeter of the run where the hens are. On the rare occasion when I’ve allowed them to go out with the hens they are pretty brutal in their approach to mating. The hens end up trying to run away and hide back in the coop. So, my questions are… will they grow out of this and learn to mate less aggressively (like our older bantam rooster)? Can I separate them from the flock and successfully reintroduce them later? Should they be housed in a coop further away where they can’t see the hens? I know I could rehome or cull them, but I really like these fellas, so I want to give it a good try.

 

[krissyweso]

In my experience, it has not worked to introduce 2 cockerels to my existing flock with one rooster.

I had hatched three silkie eggs last summer, and, of course, they were all roos. I rehomed one, and tried to keep two, but it was not a successful endeavor. Not only did they really do a doozy on my hens' neck, back, and wing feathers, they would really beat up their dad (the OG rooster). They would get along for days, then all of a sudden decide to beat him to a bloody pulp. I had to rehome both of them, too.

I would say, if you want to try, start out with saddles on all of your hens to protect them. And keep a good eye on the flock incase they go after your existing roo.

 

[SourRoses]

Keeping them separate is a good idea. We've done that for quite a few.
At 9 months to a year-old, cockerels will have either settled down or you will know they never will. One indicator can be tidbiting (treat call) ... if they don't lie about it (that's a thing), and they don't eat it themselves. I've seen cockerels make that transition where they just leave it untouched in hopes the girls will come out for it. That's when you know they've started thinking. They also spend more time lying next to the pen rather than pacing, and the girls will tell you they like him by lying next to him a lot.

Still, your older roo would be in danger of being overthrown and injured. It's a sad thing for an older boy.
Maybe consider keeping 2 separate flocks when the young boys are ready?