What to doos with all these roos ??? The ones I'm keeping.

[Peeper7]

I've raised several breeds of chickens this year and would like to keep roosters from some of them. For instance I have some gorgeous polish cresteds-- but I also have standard breeds.

How do I keep these roosters until I need them for breeding? They are terrorizing the hens (the few I have in with the hens) so I want to keep them seperated. I'm sure I should seperate the standards from the bantams, but then what?

Do I have to individually cage or contain them? Wouldn't they fight if I kept them together.

would appreciate any ideas...

 

[bargain]

Fighting will depend on the size of your pen and the breeds you are raising....There will be a "top" rooster evolve in any size pen......We have about 15 roosters in a very large run...We have 2 turkeys in their that kinda break up the fussing.... We also have a lot of trees and some brush so the roosters can hide from each other....So far so good and do watch carefully!

Good luck!

 

[MrsChickendad]

We keep a bachelor pen for the extra boys. We try to put it where they have plenty of room and ideally cannot see the girls. They work out a pecking order after a day or so and don't seem to fight. I keep two bantam roosters with the 20 large fowl layers. They take care of the girls and are too little to fertilize the eggs, so it works out well.

 

[Peeper7]

Thank you!... I think I can work it out then. I may just let them continue to roam, catch them when I need them --but hate to loose to predators. Can't let the bantams range, right?. I do have the bantams in with my girls but they are still pretty aggressive.

 

[Germaine_11.20]

Quote:
Really, the bantam don't find a way to breed the LF hens?

 

[Peeper7]

Quote:
Really, the bantam don't find a way to breed the LF hens?

I know the bantams can't breed the hens, but they sure can chase, jump, and aggrevate them.

 

[Gonzo]

We got our chicks as day olds, several different breeds, and ended up with more guys than gals! Ours have a large coop and lots of room, but they would just "gang up" on the hens! It was horrible! Poor Mable is still bald on her head from the experience! I ended up thinning out the flock by only keep one rooster for each breed. It seems to have calmed things down a bit in the backyard. I was told by a friend whos had chickens since he was shorter than them that if you seperate the males they will fight and kill each other. But, I've also heard of people have succesful roo pens. IDK, maybe it all depends on the breed and temperment of the roo.