Young Introductions

[MWSIFarm]

Hey all,

Ive done a bit of poking around the site but haven't been able to find the specific info related to my current issue,

A bit of backstory......

last week my partner found some Silkie hens for sale that we are due to pick up on Friday, By chance i stumbled across a lady who was giving away Silkie Cockerels. So we jumped at the chance and took 2 of them (even though they were free we traded her a bottle of wine!).

After 2 days of trying to get them out of the coop and into the run a Goshawk came down and killed one. We were pretty gutted. The one left, poor guy, was terrified for days but has since calmed down. They lady told us we can go and pick up another of his brothers. But its probably a few weeks away.........

My questions are about the integration of some new birds....... The cockerels are about 4 months old, they have grown a bit but arn't crowing yet........

When we get the Pullets, can we just put them in the coop with the one rooster or should we keep them separate in the coop just until they are used to each other, I understand it takes about a week or so with adults?

When we pick the guys brother up will he remember its his brother and be ok with him coming straight into the coop or do we need to re-introduce him as well?

Thanks! (Also forgive the rookie if this is in the wrong spot!)

 

[Tonyroo]

Do not get another cockerel. Having 2 will be to much to deal with when they go into there hormone phase.

With the hens you should quarantine them in a separate area away from the cockerel for 2 to 3 weeks.

It's to make sure there completely healthy. But that's your decision if you want to do that. It's only for your own benefit.

You should integrate the hen and cockerel under supervision. The cockerel should stay in a cage or dog carrier inside the coop at night to get both groups use to each other. You can let him out during the day.

Try to keep a watchful eye for injuries or illness.

 

[Smileybans]

Here’s a good article about quarantine
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...nderestimated-part-of-raising-chickens.67097/

 

[MWSIFarm]

Thanks for the advice!

The lady we got the Cockerels from had a very large run, like ours and had many different breeds and roosters all around looking quite nice and freindly...... is it a case of having enough hens or is more than 1 rooster in a flock a bad idea? Or is it easier when they are different breeds and have hens their own breed in as well?

 

[aart]

Thanks for the advice!

The lady we got the Cockerels from had a very large run, like ours and had many different breeds and roosters all around looking quite nice and freindly...... is it a case of having enough hens or is more than 1 rooster in a flock a bad idea? Or is it easier when they are different breeds and have hens their own breed in as well?

Multiple males can work, or be disastrous.
If you're just starting keeping chickens I would not suggest you have multiple males, or maybe none.

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC.

Here are some useful articles on integration:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/my-coop-brooder-and-integration.74591/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/introducing-new-chickens-using-the-“see-but-don’t-touch”-method.67839/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/adding-to-your-flock.47756/

The 1 rooster for every 10 hens is for efficiency in pen breeding. It's no guarantee of the boys getting along or of them not wearing the feathers out on the hens.

For a first flock just one boy is all you need (and maybe more than you need).

 

[Ridgerunner]

last week my partner found some Silkie hens for sale that we are due to pick up on Friday,
When we get the Pullets,
The cockerels are about 4 months old

How old are the girls? Immature teenage boys don't act like mature roosters, immature teenage girls don't at like mature hens. Age can have a big impact on how they act with each other.

Sometimes mature hens terrorize immature boys. Sometimes teenage boys terrorize mature hens. Immature pullets aren't likely to terrorize teenage boys once the boys' hormones hit the boys can terrorize them. Sometimes things go so smoothly you don't see a hint of a problem. There is nothing consistent about it.

can we just put them in the coop with the one rooster or should we keep them separate in the coop just until they are used to each other, I understand it takes about a week or so with adults?

One way chickens have learned to live together in a flock is that when there is conflict the weaker runs away and may avoid the stronger. Once chickens are integrated there is often little conflict so they usually don't need as much room. When you are integrating there is often conflict as they sort the pecking order and just get used to being with strangers. It usually takes more room to integrate.

When they (boys and girls and especially boys and girls together) go through puberty there is often conflict. That may be between boys only, girls only, or between boys and girls. A lot of this can be due to the boys' hormones getting the better of them, whether with each other, immature pullets, or mature hens. The girls also mature at different rates and will determine which is dominant, even if no boys are around. The possibility of conflict in an all girl flock is there but boys added to the mix are usually much worse.

Sometimes you don't see any of this. Integration can go really smoothly, no drama at all. How much room they have can be really important to this. There are tricks you can use that can make the space that you have of higher quality so it's not just pure square feet, but if you free range or have a lot of room where they can go to get away and stay away things often go much better.

a Goshawk came down and killed one.

This tells me you are going to be really reluctant to give them a lot of room. You'll probably want something covered. I totally understand that.

When we get the Pullets, can we just put them in the coop with the one rooster or should we keep them separate in the coop just until they are used to each other,

How big in feet or meters is your coop? How big is your run? The two together is how much room you have to work with. What do the coop and run look like, how are they tied together? Photos could be really helpful to see what you have to work with. How old will the girls be and how many? If he were a mature rooster I'd probably suggest you just put them together, especially if the girls are mature. That usually works. But he is an immature cockerel, it may not be that easy. So I would suggest you go more slowly.

As I said there are tricks you can use to help this go easier. People do this type of thing all the time. Some are easier than others but you can do it.

When we pick the guys brother up will he remember its his brother and be ok with him coming straight into the coop or do we need to re-introduce him as well?

Maybe, maybe not. Even if things go great at first as they mature the hormones might cause problems even if they had never been separated. You just don't know what will happen with living animals.

Why do you want the boys? What are your goals in regards to them? The only reason you need a rooster is if you want fertile eggs. Anything else is personal preference. Nothing wrong with personal preferences, I have a few myself. But that is a want, not a need. If you really want a second boy we can help you with that, but my feeling is that you are adding a complexity you don't need right now. Unless there is some strong compelling want I suggest you skip him for now.

I've tried to give you some reasons why I suggest what I do. As far as integrating the cockerel and the girls, I'd suggest going slowly and base your decisions on what you see, not so much on what a stranger over the internet like me tells you that you will see. I'd house him across wire from them for a while. The details of how to do that depends on what you have to work with.

 

[MWSIFarm]

Wow What wonderful replies and responses,

Okay ill answer all the questions above to give a more clear indication,

First I understand keeping a rooster can be tricky, We want one because we are planning on breeding some chickens as well as having layers, We want a sustainable way of having meat chickens as to avoid buying chicken from the supermarket, we are also eating more wild game (rabbits, Ducks and some bigger game) that we get from the land here so in an ideal world our purchased meat consumption would go to 0 but realistically starting with a few meat chickens is a great place to start.

Another important point is my Dad never let me have a rooster as a kid. And when dad says I can't do something as a kid I ALWAYS want to do it as an Adult

I don't need to worry about breeding plans because roosters here in my area are widely available and easy to get for free or very cheap, so interbreeding over the years won't be an issue.

We started with Silkies because we were told and read they are a very easy temperament chook to learn with (And the mrs thinks they are oh so cute and fluffy) and are good mothers when we try our hand at breeding them to get our flock numbers up. But we also want a flock of RIR to get our eggs and meat from there is no rush to do this as we still have lots to learn.

The girls we are getting are the same age as the boys about 4 months.

I am not reluctant to give them room after the hawk attack I'm just covering up the run now. The first section of it is about 5m x 8m (40m2 or 430ft2) (Including the coop which is 3x5) but the whole run is massive. About 30m x 8m 240m2 2583 ft2. Im building a system to be able to include and exclude them inn different sections so I can grow veggies in one area and let them dig a scratch in the others prepping it for plants the following seasons, each section will have a roll out net that clips to the fencing so that where ever they go they are covered over head and then rolled back so that the veggies can grow under full sun.

I can't wait to post some pictures here of the whole chicken/veggies setup! but its not quite photo ready yet!

Thanks again guys

 

[3KillerBs]

We want one because we are planning on breeding some chickens as well as having layers, We want a sustainable way of having meat chickens as to avoid buying chicken from the supermarket,

We started with Silkies because we were told and read they are a very easy temperament chook to learn with (And the mrs thinks they are oh so cute and fluffy) and are good mothers when we try our hand at breeding them to get our flock numbers up. But we also want a flock of RIR to get our eggs and meat from there is no rush to do this as we still have lots to learn.

I was glad to see the second quote after the first because Silkies as meat and egg producers isn't a realistic expectation -- them being small and tending to lay only a few eggs then go broody.



I would *love* to have a rotation pen/garden setup -- and may manage to get there at some point -- but at the moment I'm making deep litter compost in my Open Air coop and moving grow-outs, etc. around various parts of the yard to improve the soil.

I love my Premier 1 electric poultry netting for this purpose.

 

[MWSIFarm]

I was glad to see the second quote after the first because Silkies as meat and egg producers isn't a realistic expectation -- them being small and tending to lay only a few eggs then go broody.



I would *love* to have a rotation pen/garden setup -- and may manage to get there at some point -- but at the moment I'm making deep litter compost in my Open Air coop and moving grow-outs, etc. around various parts of the yard to improve the soil.

I love my Premier 1 electric poultry netting for this purpose.

Yeah we have big ideas and big plans but know its a lot of learning along the way and im sure we will make tons of mistakes. We have permanent wire fencing with a system of gates and runs for the exclusion and inclusion of of the chickens in different areas.