Young cockerels fighting

[chickenfan]

My young cockerels seems to have started fighting quite visciously. This includes my growers of 10-11 weeks old and even some that are only 5 weeks old (a group of 6 cockerels and two females). They are still with their sisters. Is this the problem? I am not sure what to do. I haven't come across such fiestiness and serious fighting in previous broods.

 

[chrismahon]

The two females will make it far worse Chickenfan and they need to be removed. We've despatched our young cockerels now(10 weeks) because they started trying to tread the pullets. They weren't actually fighting but clearly one was trying to avoid the other. Previously we've not seen serious fighting until they got to about 20 weeks. At that stage we started despatching them.

I suppose if you are going to keep some for breeding or reserves they need to be separated off now. We have decided that longer term we are going to need two spare cocks of each breed.

 

[chickenfan]

Thanks Chris. So time for the 10 week-olds to be eaten it seems, which is very sad. The only thing is, where there is a brood of only two, a boy and a girl, I think it will be traumatic to remove the boy and put her with another brood.

What do you do with the two cockerels of each breed you keep for breeding? Are they each in separate pens of their own?

I couldn't believe the 5 week old bantams fighting so seriously. They are nowhere near maturity. Do I leave these as they are (6 boys and two girls)? Or do I need to cull the main aggressor at this stage?

 

[chrismahon]

We culled our main aggressor several weeks ago Chickenfan. I left the cockerels in as long as I felt I could working on the basis that if a predator, like a rat or snake, got into the run the cockerels would attack it. But now the pullets are big enough to defend themselves.

We tried keeping two cocks together for company, but in Spring when they were a year old they fought and had to be separated. Fortunately their injuries looked far worse that they actually were. The one with a really bad attitude was subsequently despatched. We will in future keep spare cocks apart. We keep a breeding cock in with the hens all year- this isn't normal practice for breeding and only works if the cock isn't too rough on the hens.

The only problem with one boy and one girl is when he starts treading her. I agree you can't add him in with other cockerels as he will likely be killed, so he will have to be kept separate but in sight of other birds.

 

[chickenfan]

Thanks for the tips Chris. I was thinking more of the 7 week old pullet (mother hen now removed) being very lonely without her brother. They have all grown amazingly quickly this year.

 

[chickenfan]

I'll put her brother next to her and could add either one or two from a brood three weeks older or three weeks younger.