What rooster breeds do best at watching over a flock?

[CHICKENX2005]

Tote with windows and baby hatches inside the coop.View attachment 3774438Whole thing tucked under the nest boxes. Adults won't let babies outside until they deem them big enough/temp warm enough/babies know alert sounds? for them to venture outside.

View attachment 3774445View attachment 3774446These babies came from feed store.

This is smart. I like this idea.

 

[nuthatched]

It doesn't matter. Hens are completely capable of watching out for themselves. A rooster won't change anything except that you'll need a constant supply as predators will likely pick the rooster off first since he'll be standing there yelling.

 

[rural mouse]

This is smart. I like this idea.

They babies demonstrated this morning that the adults had taught them how to drink out of the nipple waterer. The white thing is a 2nd heating pad I hung so the babies had a warming spot outside the tote. In the past, as they start trying to sleep on nest boxes and/or on the roost, i move the heating pad to join them.
Pics from last year's babies. In June, so warmer temps

Heating pad became a perch

Exploring while adults are outside/coming in to lay eggs

Including the roosts....4 feet up. They use the pallet ladder to get up.

And exploring outside. The adults keep them close to the coop/ push them back inside

 

[rural mouse]

It doesn't matter. Hens are completely capable of watching out for themselves. A rooster won't change anything except that you'll need a constant supply as predators will likely pick the rooster off first since he'll be standing there yelling.

Depends upon the predator. They have a call for bird in the air, a different call (quieter) for dangerous bird in the air. When they use it EVERYONE freezes. There's yet another call for animal on the ground. And they use some of the noisy ones for "HUMAN, COME HEEEEELLLLLPPPPPP!" The crowing call is "All is well"

 

[nuthatched]

Depends upon the predator. They have a call for bird in the air, a different call (quieter) for dangerous bird in the air. When they use it EVERYONE freezes. There's yet another call for animal on the ground. And they use some of the noisy ones for "HUMAN, COME HEEEEELLLLLPPPPPP!" The crowing call is "All is well"

All the roosters have is a (usually) deeper voice to sound the alarm. Though the aerial predator *squark* is humorous.

 

[Apis mellifera]

Other good roosters I’ve had include Plymouth Rocks and Chanteclers.

Whether they're hatched in an incubator or under a hen my Chantecler roosters also have been great. I had a roo die fighting a Redtail hawk.

 

[fluffycrow]

I've kept roosterless free range groups for a few years, as well as years with roosters in the free range groups. I've yet to find a hen that will do everything a rooster does to keep his group safe

 

[No Coop No Problem]

Best flock protectors I've had so far have been Sumatra, Cubalaya and Fayoumi. My Sumatra fought a hawk a few days ago and he's always watching for predators

 

[p4PaDuck]

This goes against everything I’ve learned and probably you have learned about australorps. I had an extremely friendly rooster named pirate that was by far the friendliest chicken I’ve ever met but, he also protected his girls very well. He did fight once but not ever agai but he did warn the hens (chickens and ducks) against possible threats when they were free ranging. I would recommend australorps to beginners. Very nice and pretty, and was gentle with the girls. I miss him so much.

 

[Bean1028]

So, I know this is an old thread, but maybe someone will see this. Personally, we've had a Buff Orpington rooster, Black Ameraucana roosters, a Dark Brahma rooster & an Ayman Cemani rooster. As far as a flock watcher, I'd say the Ayman Cemani hands down. Ours is 9 months old, we've only had him for 3 months & he was a solo bird from for 4 months (without hens, previous owner), but let me tell you what. This guy flies up & roosts ontop of the door frame (7ft up) every night to watch over the 14 week old flock in the next run & make sure they all get into their coop safe. He is the most alert rooster we've had to predators, if he makes a certain sound EVERY chicken we have in all 5 runs immediately disappear under their coops!! I have heard similar stories from other Cemani owners as well. The only downside is his bites are pathetic. I'm not trying to raise an aggressive bird, I'm just saying he's not the one I'd want to see go up against a predator, poor thing...
From experience my second pick would be Ameraucanas...true Ameraucanas, not EEs. We've had a few and they are very predator aware also. My Black Ameraucana rooster who had a broken upper beak at the time (poor thing has crossbeak, very susceptible to injuries) saved our Orpington hen from a Coopers Hawk early one morning. The hawk had her too, poor thing had claw marks from her chest to her tail where it had cut her feathers. Neither one of these roosters has ever shown any aggression towards humans either, in fact my 6 year old carries the BA around whenever she wants...and he let's her.