Thinking about keeping a cockerel... a few questions, and is it worth it to YOU?

[Lemon-Drop]

Will he be with a flock or separated with conjugal visits?

I was thinking just staying in the flock... is that ok?

 

[FuzzyOwlFeet]

I love my roosters. Rhode Island Red's are horrible though, I will never get any of that breed again.
I've had decent luck with Silkie Roosters, I've got 3. They all have their individual personalities, but for the most part they are good with the hens and take care of them well.
They have "attitudes", but aren't aggressive. If I try to pet them they will bite me, but they have never chased, kicked, or gone out of their way to be mean.

Sometimes roosters just have bad tempers, and those are the ones you put down. Aggression is bad for the whole flock and you! If you raised him then you know he had a good life, but he has no purpose anymore and you'd be better without him.

I've never had any issues introducing a young rooster to a mixed age flock.

I had one flock with 14 hens and 2 roosters and it was great. I had another flock with 16 hens and 2 roosters and the hens' backs were bloody and featherless. It's something you have to keep an eye on, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. You'll need to watch your hens' wellbeing to see if 2 roosters will work or not, every flock is different.

 

[All4Eggz]

I love my roosters.
They are amazing on so many levels:
- They find food for their hens
- They help spot predators and sound the alarm to keep others safe
- They make it possible to hatch chicks from your own flock
- Usually they are just BEAUTIFUL
- They each have their own different way of doing things and each have their own personalities which makes your flock more unique
- Some of them have beautiful crows (but they might sound annoying to the neighbors)

Cons-
- Crows might get over the top
- Aggression may arise, which for me, is a good thing. It shows the rooster is more tough and will stand up to predators.
- They might injure your hens and chase them around


Silkies tend to be less agressive than most breeds.
I actually have a strange occurance.. my silkie is the ONLY rooster that attacks me and chases after me He does let me pick him up though
But with the other roosters (6) he is the lowest on the "pecking order". But some hens absolutely love him while some hate him.

I would totally get some roosters @Lemon-Drop !

For 13-15 hens, I'd recommend 2 roosters max, unless you plan on breeding. If you plan on breeding, I'd do 3, just so that fertility rates go up.

You never know how a rooster will end up. If you handle them a lot, they should be friendly. If not, they might attack.
It's chance. My bantam roosters are just the sweetest.. some even sleep in my lap!

Good luck and I hope you get some roosters!

 

[Lemon-Drop]

I love my roosters.
They are amazing on so many levels:
- They find food for their hens
- They help spot predators and sound the alarm to keep others safe
- They make it possible to hatch chicks from your own flock
- Usually they are just BEAUTIFUL
- They each have their own different way of doing things and each have their own personalities which makes your flock more unique
- Some of them have beautiful crows (but they might sound annoying to the neighbors)

Cons-
- Crows might get over the top
- Aggression may arise, which for me, is a good thing. It shows the rooster is more tough and will stand up to predators.
- They might injure your hens and chase them around


Silkies tend to be less agressive than most breeds.
I actually have a strange occurance.. my silkie is the ONLY rooster that attacks me and chases after me He does let me pick him up though
But with the other roosters (6) he is the lowest on the "pecking order". But some hens absolutely love him while some hate him.

I would totally get some roosters @Lemon-Drop !

For 13-15 hens, I'd recommend 2 roosters max, unless you plan on breeding. If you plan on breeding, I'd do 3, just so that fertility rates go up.

You never know how a rooster will end up. If you handle them a lot, they should be friendly. If not, they might attack.
It's chance. My bantam roosters are just the sweetest.. some even sleep in my lap!

Good luck and I hope you get some roosters!

Thank you! I would just be keeping the silkies that turn out to be roos, which I think is 1-2.

The neighbors won't be annoyed (hopefully) because other people have roosters in the neighborhood that crow at 4 am. (I love it though)

 

[cherrynberry]

I love my roosters.
They are amazing on so many levels:
- They find food for their hens
- They help spot predators and sound the alarm to keep others safe
- They make it possible to hatch chicks from your own flock
- Usually they are just BEAUTIFUL
- They each have their own different way of doing things and each have their own personalities which makes your flock more unique
- Some of them have beautiful crows (but they might sound annoying to the neighbors)

Cons-
- Crows might get over the top
- Aggression may arise, which for me, is a good thing. It shows the rooster is more tough and will stand up to predators.
- They might injure your hens and chase them around


Silkies tend to be less agressive than most breeds.
I actually have a strange occurance.. my silkie is the ONLY rooster that attacks me and chases after me He does let me pick him up though
But with the other roosters (6) he is the lowest on the "pecking order". But some hens absolutely love him while some hate him.

I would totally get some roosters @Lemon-Drop !

For 13-15 hens, I'd recommend 2 roosters max, unless you plan on breeding. If you plan on breeding, I'd do 3, just so that fertility rates go up.

You never know how a rooster will end up. If you handle them a lot, they should be friendly. If not, they might attack.
It's chance. My bantam roosters are just the sweetest.. some even sleep in my lap!

Good luck and I hope you get some roosters!

I dont think 3 roosters should be in a flock with 13-15 hens, even for breeding. Our one rooster to 14 hens give us an 100% fertility rate (so far). And he does overmate 2 of our hens, so I personally think 2 is the MAX, there will be roosters that dont mate as much/are more gentle, but I dont think 3 is needed.

 

[All4Eggz]

Thank you! I would just be keeping the silkies that turn out to be roos, which I think is 1-2.

The neighbors won't be annoyed (hopefully) because other people have roosters in the neighborhood that crow at 4 am. (I love it though)

Great! Glad to hear it.

At correct sexing time, post some pics of the silkies and we'll try and tell you which ones are roos.

And make sure and get some pics of your flock for us excited to see them

 

[Capto Veritas]

Is a rooster/cockerel worth it to you?

I have 3 silkies that are only 3 weeks but I am starting to suspect I have 1-2 cockerels at least.

I am technically allowed to have a rooster (according by to town laws) but I am unsure if it will actually be a good commitment for both me and the flock.

A few questions:

Are silkie roosters nicer than most? (I had a really bad experience with an aggressive RIR rooster who kept flogging me)

Will a silkie rooster be bullied by other breeds in a mixed breed flock? (I have a Brahma, Australorp, Orpington, Barred Rock, Barnevelder, Speckled Sussex, Sapphire Gem, Silkies, Welsummer, and a few other breeds totaling to 13 pullets/hens NOT including the 3 silkies.)

How many roosters should I have for 13-15 hens?

Would 2 roosters be too many for 14 hens?

Is it actually beneficial to keep a rooster?

Will a silkie rooster attack me or be pretty docile?

Is it ok/hard to integrate a rooster into a mixed age/breed flock? I have all different breeds (besides silkies) and 3 year old hens, 1 year old hens, and 3 month old hens.

I know a lot of these depends on the rooster itself, I’m just curious what you have experienced.

I will probably have more questions, but thanks for taking your time

You should have 1 rooster for every 10 hens. For the amount or birds you have, you could probably get away with 2.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I was thinking just staying in the flock... is that ok?

Its fine. 8* of mine are like that now. But they may need more watching because they regard the hens as theirs, when they're really yours

 

[Lemon-Drop]

Great! Glad to hear it.

At correct sexing time, post some pics of the silkies and we'll try and tell you which ones are roos.

And make sure and get some pics of your flock for us excited to see them

I will! Heres a thread I made when I first got them for anyone who wanted to guess the genders (I do know its much too early! Just for fun!)
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...the-genders-of-the-silkies-for-fun-😁.1468704/

When do you want photos of the rest of the flock?

 

[All4Eggz]

I dont think 3 roosters should be in a flock with 13-15 hens, even for breeding. Our one rooster to 14 hens give us an 100% fertility rate (so far). And he does overmate 2 of our hens, so I personally think 2 is the MAX, there will be roosters that dont mate as much/are more gentle, but I dont think 3 is needed.

My cousin had a 1-22 ratio, with 100% hatch rate as well.
Anything can happen. It was just an idea if Lemmon-Drop wanted a higher chance of fertility.
I recommended this because silkies are on the docile cside, as they are bantmas, and should do fine. If it was three standads (even though silkies are pretty big), then I wouldn't have recommended it.

Thanks for your comment