Why are my Roos ganging up on my hens

[ohiobirdmom]

I have a flock of 45 chickens all together. 6 Roos 39 hens. Some are pullets. My Roos always gang up on my hens every time they "mount" and they all take turns and I've lost 4 birds because of this. This morning I lost my ameraucana pullet because of it. And I've lost 3 hens already laying because of it. Can anyone tell me why they're doing this? And how I can stop them?

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

They're doing it because young cockerels are hormone driven little jerks. You can stop them by putting them all in a stew pot, finding them a new home or providing them separate housing from the pullets. Or, you can wait them out, hope they get over it and possibly loose more girls.

This is a difficult thing to deal with, I've been there. Your flock will be so peaceful once they're removed. Best of luck to you.

 

[ohiobirdmom]

Oh nice! Thanks for that. They were about 10-11 weeks when we got them in October. Would they have enough meat on them yet? And I've tried finding a new home with no luck. I've separated them from my girls and they just go at each other. I'm tired of losing girls. And it's a little heartbreaking to see them all pile up on top of one girl. Ive heard of too many roosters too. Could that be a problem too?

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

Too many roosters is definitely the issue. And yep, at this age, I'd be setting aside a day to butcher them.

 

[ohiobirdmom]

Well thank you! I will let my fiancé know that's what we need to do. This brings me to another question.my girls are free range most of the time and I have 2 boys that are very good about keeping my girls where they're supposed to be. Should I keep just the 2 or go ahead and get rid of all of them?

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

Thats totally up to you. If those boys aren't being pests, keep them. If they act up, you can always send them to freezer camp later...

 

[ohiobirdmom]

Alright. Thanks for the advice. I guess we'll be eating fresh chicken here soon.