Too many drakes and roosters??? Help!

[Chixnbacn]

Everyone coops together and they seem to like it that way, but I have close to 100 chickens and about 33 ducks, I have counted 6 roosters now or more and about the same in drakes. I think I have wayyyy too many males, the problem is my kids are so attached to them, would you just say well were a farm and have to do hard things? Try to rehome them? Idk, I lean towards freezer camping them. Suggestions? I know that I want to keep Bard, and Whisper Dan, and our drake Ankeligon, and my friends drake but those are the only 4 Im personally thinking of keeping

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Six roosters for a hundred hens is not too much. Nor necessarily six drakes for thirty three hen ducks. Are they injuring the girls? Injuring each other? if you're not seeing injuries or bare backs then you're probably OK. If they were all raised together they should have settled their pecking orders by now so fighting should only be an occasional thing. There's always a wise guy who tries to woo someone else's girl!

If you're not planning on hatching or selling fertile eggs the boys are unimportant so can all be culled, moved out, whatever. If you're free ranging it's nice to have a few roosters/drakes about to look after the girls. Don't be afraid to cull those who are too hard on their girls, too aggressive, etc. Especially with small children mean roosters can be a danger.

 

[Chixnbacn]

Six roosters for a hundred hens is not too much. Nor necessarily six drakes for thirty three hen ducks. Are they injuring the girls? Injuring each other? if you're not seeing injuries or bare backs then you're probably OK. If they were all raised together they should have settled their pecking orders by now so fighting should only be an occasional thing. There's always a wise guy who tries to woo someone else's girl!

If you're not planning on hatching or selling fertile eggs the boys are unimportant so can all be culled, moved out, whatever. If you're free ranging it's nice to have a few roosters/drakes about to look after the girls. Don't be afraid to cull those who are too hard on their girls, too aggressive, etc. Especially with small children mean roosters can be a danger.

Thank you. We have 80 acres but this year we plan to expand the run and keep them in it instead of free range because theyve destroyed my gardens and dug up my foundation last year. The duck drakes except ankeligon have been really irritating to him and to the females, and we have one problem rooster that beats on the females , maybe we will leave the rest, thank you for your insight! My littlest is 11 so Im not so worried about him but other kids that visit, yes