What age for Roos to get busy?

[yajra]

My Roos were born roughly April 26th if this year. Started doing their juvenile crowing at about 7-8 weeks.(pathetically cute, btw.)

Yesterday, sitting at roughly 2.5 months old, just as I was telling the wife that our Roos are to young to be mating, so known of the eggs we have started getting should be babies, my wife stated “you mean like that?”. I turned around literally right behind me, junior roo up and at it in one of the older hens we have.

Well then.

They a little young or is 2.5 months not unheard of?

 

[MeanCheek]

My Roos were born roughly April 26th if this year. Started doing their juvenile crowing at about 7-8 weeks.(pathetically cute, btw.)

Yesterday, sitting at roughly 2.5 months old, just as I was telling the wife that our Roos are to young to be mating, so known of the eggs we have started getting should be babies, my wife stated “you mean like that?”. I turned around literally right behind me, junior roo up and at it in one of the older hens we have.

Well then.

They a little young or is 2.5 months not unheard of?

I've read of some that have fathered chicks even younger than that. What breed? Some breeds mature much faster than others.

 

[yajra]

I've read of some that have fathered chicks even younger than that. What breed? Some breeds mature much faster than others.

The Roos are Danish Brown Leghorns.

And they certainly have looked roo like since about 5-6 weeks.

 

[Tonyroo]

Only way to know is to break the egg and inspect the yolk. Otherwise, there not experienced to get proper fertilization to occur.

My own rooster took 7 to 9 months to successfully fertilize every egg that the hens laid.

 

[Battlepants]

I would agree with Tonyroo, gotta break a couple eggs to check for fertilization. He may be trying his best, but fertilization is tricky business and he's probably not going to get it right for some time. And this also assumes he is even physically capable of fertilization at this age.

 

[NatJ]

They a little young or is 2.5 months not unheard of?

It sounds fairly normal to me, for a fast-maturing breed.
But some cockerels mature much more slowly than others, so it is also common for some of them to wait 6+ months.

But even if the cockerels are mating, you won't know if the eggs are fertile unless you check. Sometimes it takes them a while to get the technique right.

 

[3KillerBs]

Wonderful that the hens are letting him.

A couple of my hens will squat for just about anything, but most of them are vehement about not mating with the young cockerels.

 

[yajra]

1) will have to check eggs, off to google we go.

2) he’s just an early riser. Heh. Was just shocked, didn’t think they would start as young as that.