At what age to harvest roosters

[clintbwell]

I’ve got four rhode island reds that I pulled from a straight run bin at tractor supply hoping for 50/50 cockerels and hens. And as luck would have it, I have four cockerels. Their 8 weeks old. And I’ve also got eight EE hens 7 weeks old in a separate brooder. I’ve got to get them out of the house and into the coop today or tomorrow before my wife has a fit. Is it ok to put the four boys with the girls in the coop. Or do I need to go ahead and dispatch 3 of them now. I don’t want them going crazy on my hens. It will be their first time meeting.

 

[Mrs. K]

You will need to keep them separate. They will be sexually active LONG before your pullets will be ready, and 4 will more than likely be merciless. Truthfully you need a bachelor pad or cull all 4 of them.

If you have a multi-generational flock with older birds that are bigger than the cockerels, or truly have a VERY large set up, then multiple cockerels can sometimes work in the flock as a whole. But if I read your post right, these youngsters are your only birds. The cockerels will get bigger faster than the girls, and will begin to bully them.

Often times, a cockerel raised with just flock mates, will become not only a bully to them, but can become human aggressive. If you have children under the age of 5, I strongly recommend you cull them all. If you are asking for advice, I recommend a hen only flock the first year, especially if you are truly in a back yard set up or have children sharing the yard. Roosters take some experience, and many people vastly underestimate the violence of a rooster attack. For a child, it will be at the level of the face.

Once the pullets begin to lay, look around for a mature rooster, as close to a year old as you can get. You will get a much better rooster. People often have a rooster that was an extra, that was so nice, they did not cull him, that is the rooster you want.

If you make a bachelor pad, you can watch them develop, and often times make a better decision as which is the best rooster. Do check SOP for the breed, check legs and feet that are straight, beaks that align, and other characteristics for the breed.

Mrs K

 

[Little23]

I'm not a professional, however I have raised numerous of each sex together at different times and haven't had any issues until they reach about 18-20 weeks

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Freezer camp!

 

[Mrs. K]

Well you can do that, without a doubt, as Ridgerunner is fond of saying, they are animals and no one can say for sure what will happen. You certainly can try it any way you want.

In my experience, your roosters are already a bit older than your pullets, and acting aggressively, I think that will get worse, and if you put them with your pullets, it will be more than likely very hard on your pullets.

As for waiting 20 weeks and getting a new rooster chick and letting the hens raise him so to speak, they will make his life hell. And can be quite tough.

In my advice, I would want an older rooster with my pullets. A mature rooster is a joy to have with hens, it is just getting them to that stage that is the trick. Right now, I have a boy that was 6 months old raised in a multi-generational flock, and he has had a tough time sweet talking the ladies into following him. He is doing better now. They didn't let him roost with them for 3 weeks.

But what I would strongly recommend, is ask at the feed store, or the county extension office or a local poultry club, for my pullets, I like a rooster that is a bit older, a bit more in command and a bit more calmer.

I am picky about a rooster. He has to be handsome, he has to have good conformation, he needs to be alert, he should be the first one to see me, but not aggressive towards me. He should convince his ladies that he is the eye candy. It is very hard for a young rooster to get to this point. Last week, I nearly invited my new boy to supper. We will see.

Roosters are a crap shoot.

Mrs K

 

[TheRealWitwiki]

Curious, If i have to cull all 4 of these boys. How would it work if i waited until my hens are 20 weeks old, then brood another rooster , and at 8 weeks introduce him to the hens, essentially the girls being dominant over him, untill he grows up, what kind of rooster attitude/personality would that make for when he matures?

Clint Clint Clint
Calm down my friend. Don't turn this into a science my man. Your chickens are barely chickens at 7 and 8 weeks they are just getting used to their crazy new feathers. I say put them in all together now and keep an eye on things. If you have a few roosters not behaving then you can make a decision to get rid of them. You are stressing about it before you have even tried. Look I had same issue. Bought my RR at the tractor supply and got 3 roosters out of 12. To be honest they were great together. I gave 2 away because they crowed so loud I thought my neighbors were going to kill me. I highly recommend you keep at least one rooster especially if you let them free range. He will protect the hens with his life. Roosters are tricky I agree with the person who said it's a crap shoot. I got rid of mine today. We replaced him with a younger Rooster that is more mild. Actually it's his son. My boss hatched some of our eggs and raised them on his farm. He didn't want the rooster so I took him. We have young children and as much as I loved the rooster he was vicious and attacked people often. He was great at protecting our hens though. This new guy is a little wimpy but I feel more comfortable with him around the kids. Anyway have fun with your chickens and relax!!!

 

[Mrs. K]

I have been thinking on this, and have another suggestion, if you want. You really don't need another coop, a large box would work for a while, I have in my run, an old plastic tool box that used to fit in the bed of a pick up, I laid it on it's side, and prop the doors up, becomes a little porch. They just need some protection from the weather and the wind. A tote on its side, would work fine. Look around, I don't live in suburbia, so I use a lot of junk for my birds.

So if you want, section off a corner, or divide the run the best you can, and add a mini shelter, a three sided plywood box, or even a cardboard box which would not work long term, but it might buy you a little more time to just see.

However, the advice above if it does go south do something, is good advice.

Mrs K

 

[Fairview01]

If you've been feeding a decent ration you'll be able to cull the RIR cockerels at around 12 weeks. I would simply house them all together for the next 4-6 weeks and then process them. But that is what I would do.

 

[Little23]

I currently have 1 rooster with 6 hens that are 6 weeks old in a separator and no issues

 

[The Dapper Duck]

I think they could be integrated at this age. They shouldn’t really start trying to mate the pullets for a while. I used to raise my Australorps in one run of all ages. After they hit 4wks they got integrated and once the cockerels hit 16wks, about the time they started to experiment with crowing and had their full adult feathers, they went to freezer camp. Like people have said though, it depends on your breed and your individual birds. I would mix them but that’s always with the caveat that if some are causing problems, they get dealt with.