Chook Me!

How many roosters should I have for a flock?

I was wondering if too many roosters would cause to much trouble. I heard that you should keep like 3-4, but i already have around 8, and not to much hen.

Public Comments

1. You don't need any. Pros Deters predators Fertilizes eggs if chicks are desired Cons Can rough up hens or other roos Can become aggressive towards people if not used to them You need about 15 hens for each rooster to keep peace between your boys.
2. You should keep only one
3. yeah, one is good, or else they might fight, and also they spend a lot of time trying to mate with the hens, which they find annoying and painful - especially as the rooster pulls out all their neck feathers. Depending on how many hens you have: Not many (like under 10): just one Heaps (like 10 onwards): might look at a few more, but they might fight. None: As long as they don't fight too bad and you can put up with the noise, go ahead and keep as many roosters as you like.
4. Typically you would want to keep around 15 hens per rooster. If you are worried about fertility rates then you should stick with 6-8. Though many people do not know it, the rooster is a very important member of the flock, keep in mind that we are speaking of good roosters. A normal rooster will help protect his flock, and mate with the hens. A good rooster will keep an even closer eye out to protect his hens, will defend them in a fight even if it means death, will treat the hens and chicks with respect, and will keep his family in-line. Many people also get worried about roosters fighting. Though there are roosters that love to fight, most of the time it is due to people raising them incorrectly. Roosters do best if they are raised together as chicks, and never leave one another. Take a rooster away for a day, and a new pecking order must be reestablished. Also, there are ways to add roosters to a flock. Throwing the bird in and leaving, is not amongst them. Some people will catch the birds when they see them fight and put them both in cages for a time out. They continue to they behave. I have done this and it does work but takes some time. I tend to go with the most dominate fashion. Chickens are creatures in which someone must be on the top of the pecking order, so I figure it might as well be me, considering I care for them. To do this I pick up both roosters, and hold them eye to eye (birds believe that if they can look down on the other bird they are better) When one bird bites the other, I bap it on the head, I do so as hard as they bite the other bird. It may seem mean to the bird that doesn’t want to bite the other one, but as far as I am concerned it takes two to fight. Then I let them go and continue this as needed. I have found it to be more effective, sure it is not as nice, but chickens don’t fight nice, this is something they understand rather quickly. Every once in awhile you just have a rooster always searching for a fight, or wanting to kill other birds, it should be he who turns into dinner first. The main concern should be how many birds to the ration of hens (which is your question) because to many roosters will tear up your hens feathers, and can cause stress that can harm your girls heath. If you stick with the above mentioned ratios you should have happier hens. Good luck, and if you have any questions feel free to contact me via email, Jamie/Rhode Runner