I have a flock of 21 hens (ages range 8 months to 6 years) plus a few pullets. They currently have only 1 rooster, an 18- month old who grew up in the flock. In the past, I've kept 2 roosters because they range in my backyard which spans 2 sides of my house and 1 rooster just can't keep that many hens together and watch for danger on both sides of the yard. For a variety of reasons, we've made the decision to remove the current rooster. I have a pair of bachelor roosters who I'd like to take his place. Most of my roosters have grown up in the flock. This will be my first time putting grown roosters in. I'd like to share my plan, and am open to feedback.
Some background on the roosters- These are my own home hatched roosters. They've lived on my property only so I'm not doing any quarentining. They are occasionally permitted to roam the property and occasionally venture over to the yard and see the flock through the fence. They do have a small amount of familiarity with each other. MJ is about 18 months old. He is the dominant rooster. Solo is about 8 months old. Solo ranged with this flock as a youngster, but has been living with MJ since he was about 3-4 months old. I know that all roosters are different, but both boys have the same father who was a mild-mannered guy and they both seem similiar in personality and attitude to him. MJ and Solo have never shown aggression toward one another, even when a few hens moved in next door to them. They seemed very content to hang out together and try to woo the ladies through the wire.
Here is my plan to integrate the new roosters. I figure repeating each "step" in the process for 2-3 days and not moving on to the next step unless things seem to be progressing well.
1. I'm going to start by putting both roosters in my garden area during the day, which shares 2 sides with the run & yard for a see/no touch experience.
2. Next, I'm going to let MJ range with the flock during the daytime. I may move a couple of the more sensitive/ fragile hens into the garden during this time so they aren't involved in any initial chaos.
3. Then I'm going to let both MJ & Solo range together with the flock.
4. If this is going well, then I'll move the roosters into the coop. I will ensure that the flock has maximum free-range time for these first few days as well, as I prefer they not be confined to the run while they're sorting things out.
My 2 main questions-
How long should I wait after removing the current rooster to begin introducing the new roos? Is there a period of time when some of his hens may continue to be loyal to him and more resistent to a new rooster? Will a week of roosterless time make them more receptive to new males?
What is the likelihood the 2 roosters will turn on each other?
While all of our birds and experiences are different, I always appreciate hearing, advice, suggestions, or personal experience for different ways I may want to consider integrating the new boys or things to be on the look out for.
My boys
MJ has the barring and Solo has the gorgeous green tail.
Some background on the roosters- These are my own home hatched roosters. They've lived on my property only so I'm not doing any quarentining. They are occasionally permitted to roam the property and occasionally venture over to the yard and see the flock through the fence. They do have a small amount of familiarity with each other. MJ is about 18 months old. He is the dominant rooster. Solo is about 8 months old. Solo ranged with this flock as a youngster, but has been living with MJ since he was about 3-4 months old. I know that all roosters are different, but both boys have the same father who was a mild-mannered guy and they both seem similiar in personality and attitude to him. MJ and Solo have never shown aggression toward one another, even when a few hens moved in next door to them. They seemed very content to hang out together and try to woo the ladies through the wire.
Here is my plan to integrate the new roosters. I figure repeating each "step" in the process for 2-3 days and not moving on to the next step unless things seem to be progressing well.
1. I'm going to start by putting both roosters in my garden area during the day, which shares 2 sides with the run & yard for a see/no touch experience.
2. Next, I'm going to let MJ range with the flock during the daytime. I may move a couple of the more sensitive/ fragile hens into the garden during this time so they aren't involved in any initial chaos.
3. Then I'm going to let both MJ & Solo range together with the flock.
4. If this is going well, then I'll move the roosters into the coop. I will ensure that the flock has maximum free-range time for these first few days as well, as I prefer they not be confined to the run while they're sorting things out.
My 2 main questions-
How long should I wait after removing the current rooster to begin introducing the new roos? Is there a period of time when some of his hens may continue to be loyal to him and more resistent to a new rooster? Will a week of roosterless time make them more receptive to new males?
What is the likelihood the 2 roosters will turn on each other?
While all of our birds and experiences are different, I always appreciate hearing, advice, suggestions, or personal experience for different ways I may want to consider integrating the new boys or things to be on the look out for.
My boys
MJ has the barring and Solo has the gorgeous green tail.
