5 Reasons Why You Don't Want a Rooster

Inside: You don't need a rooster to get eggs from your chickens. Here are some reasons why you don't want a rooster in your flock.

I love my chickens. I never dreamt I would love chickens, but here I am rocking the crazy chicken lady life. One thing that I don't necessarily love though is roosters. You don't need a rooster to get eggs from your chickens. Here are some reasons why you don't want a rooster in your flock.

This post may contain affiliate links, see my disclosure policy for more information.

Table of Contents

5 Reasons Why You Don't Want a Rooster

I have my chickens separated into coops and runs based on their breeds. I keep everyone separate, minus an Easter Egger here and there. And I have roosters, in fact, I have one per chicken coop and run, so I have 4 all the time.

I do cull roosters if a new one hatches. Or if a rooster gets “too big for his britches,” so to speak. I was attacked by a standard Brahma rooster, and when my husband got home that evening, the rooster disappeared.

Roosters Crow, Loudly

Roosters are loud. Even my bantam Brahma which is quieter than my standard Brahma, is loud. And they make noise from sun up to sundown. And if there is light getting into the coop at night, they might even crow at night too. Ours is kept dark!

Get updates & freebies delivered to your inbox!

Roosters can be Mean

I have two roosters in two coops (the other two are technically my kids' roosters). One is the sweetest boy. He protects his ladies. He fertilizes eggs. If I need to grab one of his hens, he stands back and lets me; he recognizes that I am not a threat to them.

I have another rooster who is a great protector of his ladies. He fertilizes eggs. If I go near his ladies in the Spring, my leg is going to be hurting. If his ladies, who love to be petted, come to me, he stands watch and waits to see if he can attack. I move through their run cautiously, always watching him, him always watching me.

You know what's cool, though: his ladies will stand between him and me when I am giving treats or collecting eggs.

If you have free-range birds mean roosters are going to take the opportunity to attack you. You have seen the videos online to give you a great demonstration.

They can, and sometimes will kill newcomers to your flock. It can be a young hen, a chick, they can be mean!

Roosters can Injure Hens

Roosters can hurt your hens mating. He might even have a favorite that he uses more than the other hens, he can hurt her by simply using her too much.

Roosters will end up pulling the feathers from her back, and if he has done then he can break the skin. Once the skin is broken, once their blood is drawn, chickens will peck her to death. I currently have a hen with an apron on to:

heal her sore back after I sprayed it with Banixx for Pecking Sores
let her feathers grow back in
protect her back from him

The other ladies will be getting aprons too but she was a priority.

Roosters Fight

If you have more than one roosters, they are going to fight. They need to establish dominance in the flock. They can fight to the death. My daughter has two roosters together and rarely fight anymore; they have established their pecking order.

Roosters Don't Lay Eggs

I know, everyone knows this right? But if you are looking for bang for your buck on feed to production, roosters are eating feed and not giving you anything in return. If you want to hatch out eggs, you do need him to fertilize them.

I hope this post has helped you in determining whether or not a rooster is right for you and your hens!

Frequently Asked Questions About Having Roosters

Why do people not want roosters? If you have too many roosters it will split your flock into low enough numbers they will over breed the hens. It's not about having them or not, it's about the health of the hens.

What to do if you don't want a rooster? Rehoming: Ask around locally, check with farm friends, or post in online chicken groups. Sometimes you'll find someone who needs a new rooster for their flock. Selling or giving away: Feed stores and farm swap pages often have people looking for breeding roosters. Some people want them for the freezer.

Are hens happier without a rooster? Without a rooster, the most aggressive and dominant hen would usually take over and be a bully. With a rooster, everyone, even the weaker members of the flock, can rest easy. Roosters have spurs, which are helpful when protecting the flock against a predator.