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Cockerels with hens?

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  • #1

    Cockerels with hens?

    I've now got 29 hens and three cockerels. The three large cockerels, a Faverolle,Light Sussex and Silver Sussex have been together since birth and have established a pecking order among themselves so they only have an odd squabble but it's usually just 'handbags'.......
    They are in a rather large run and coop which could be better utilised with more birds.
    I really fancy pairing off each cockerel with his own Harim of laydees!

    The problems I envisage are that if for some reason it doesn't work out there is no way I will be able to put them back together again without them killing each other.
    Another worry is that theoretically all my eggs could then be fertile. Will this make a difference to my customers and does it effect the egg quality?
    No good having 29 eggs a day if no one wants them!
    Another worry is that I am unsure about one of my Minorca's which hasn't crowed yet, but if it is a male, the cockerel I intend introducing (beautiful big bird but aggressive as hell!) will deffo kill it!
    The planned split will give the Light Sussex 15 Laydees, the Faverolle 8 Laydees and the Silver Sussex 6 laydees. These numbers are dictated by the area's I have proposed for them.

    Your views please!
    Last edited by Snadger; 09-11-2009, 08:12 PM.
    My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
    to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

    Diversify & prosper


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  • #2
    My view is that there's gonna be a lot of rumpy pumpy in Snadgerland

    Fertile eggs are edible and if they're fresh none of your customers will be any the wiser. It's 2/3 week old eggs that might be a bit of a giveaway with a little heart and veins.

    Will you advertise the eggs as produce from shagged out happy hens
    If a thing's worth doing, it's worth doing to excess

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    • #3
      Originally posted by Eco-Chic View Post

      ....................Will you advertise the eggs as produce from shagged out happy hens
      More like shagged out happy cockerels!
      My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
      to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

      Diversify & prosper


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      • #4
        Fertile or not only matters to very few people - there is no difference to taste.

        The youngster is better mixed now than later as he will accept the dominance of the elder bird more easily I can't belive your birds more aggressive than my shirty Marans and apart from odd scuffle peace reigns here (I admit to having a small bumpy period at the mo due to a great deal of change)- though my young roos do have room to get out of the way..... my fences work for keeping dogs away from chooks and ducks from chook food but most of the chooks ignore them except as perches.... fortunately I can supervise from my kitchen window.... and do find myself watching for hours a day

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        • #5
          Tell your customers the eggs are fertile (honesty being the best policy in my opinion). Most won't worry anyway. All my eggs are fertile and it doesn't put my customers off.

          Re the cock/hen ratio, sounds ok, although putting one cock to 15 girls may result in not all being covered so if you intend to breed from him next year you will need to maybe reduce the hens he runs with so to be sure he is covering everybody. When there are just so many to choose from, the cocks tend to just cover their favourites (or the easier to catch ones!)

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          • #6
            Originally posted by RichmondHens View Post
            Tell your customers the eggs are fertile (honesty being the best policy in my opinion). Most won't worry anyway. All my eggs are fertile and it doesn't put my customers off.

            Re the cock/hen ratio, sounds ok, although putting one cock to 15 girls may result in not all being covered so if you intend to breed from him next year you will need to maybe reduce the hens he runs with so to be sure he is covering everybody. When there are just so many to choose from, the cocks tend to just cover their favourites (or the easier to catch ones!)
            Do the eggs look or taste any different? The cockerel with 15 laydees has a mixture of younguns and geriatrics. This doesn't mean, because they are easier to catch, he'll probably breed with the geriatrics does it?
            My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
            to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

            Diversify & prosper


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            • #7
              Possibly to start with, until he becomes experienced. Then he'll just have who he wants!

              The eggs will not look or taste any different.

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              • #8
                Is viagra licensed for cockerels?
                If a thing's worth doing, it's worth doing to excess

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Eco-Chic View Post
                  Is viagra licensed for cockerels?
                  Yep............its called poultry 'spice'!
                  My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
                  to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

                  Diversify & prosper


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                  • #10
                    make sure that you give the cockerels the viagra with a generous coating of olive oil. If the tablet gets stuck in their crops they will have a stiff neck for about 5 hours
                    My Blog
                    http://blog.goodlifepress.co.uk/mikerutland

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                    • #11
                      Jennie!!!!!!!!!!! (or Mike!!!!!!!!) that's a trip to the norty step for you!








                      made me giggle though
                      My girls found their way into my heart and now they nest there

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Snadger View Post
                        Yep............its called poultry 'spice'!
                        Oooooh, I'm just off to lace husbands porridge with poultry spice!

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                        • #13
                          Frias, you've probably started a national run on Poulty Spice
                          If a thing's worth doing, it's worth doing to excess

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Bramble-Poultry View Post
                            make sure that you give the cockerels the viagra with a generous coating of olive oil. If the tablet gets stuck in their crops they will have a stiff neck for about 5 hours
                            NORTY NORTY NORTY Step whichwhoever you are
                            Hayley B

                            John Wayne's daughter, Marisa Wayne, will be competing with my Other Half, in the Macmillan 4x4 Challenge (in its 10th year) in March 2011, all sponsorship money goes to Macmillan Cancer Support, please sponsor them at http://www.justgiving.com/Mac4x4TeamDuke'

                            An Egg is for breakfast, a chook is for life

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                            • #15
                              Bramble, frias... ROFL.
                              Snadger if the eggs are less than a week (ish) old theyre identical, so dont panic, just sell em quick. Old guy near me whos had chooks for years told me not to put more than 5-8 hens with a young cockeral to be sure they were all fertilised, but said his older cocks ran with 10 hens. Mind he was breeding for showing, doesnt now, just got warrens for eggs.
                              Anyone who says nothing is impossible has never tried slamming a revolving door

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