Mary Allen
When mating the poultry, the hens are the active part. When they crouch, the roosters know what to do. At least mostly. Because young, inexperienced Roosters often misunderstand the welcoming gesture.
In order to understand the mating act of chickens, their behavior must be studied. After all, the act is decisive for whether the eggs are fertilized – and thus whether chicks can be expected. Carl Engelmann studied the behavior of chickens in different life situations and described them in the book “Life and Behavior of Domestic Poultry”. The better the animals are in condition, he writes, the greater the likelihood of offspring. In order to increase the fertilization of the eggs, there are vitamin preparations in different compositions available in specialist shops, which support the health of the animals during the breeding phase and thus indirectly increase the fertilization of the hatching eggs.
The main activity of reproduction in chickens is the “treat”, as mating is called in technical jargon. But this does not just happen on the side. It consists of the foreplay, the courtship, during which the rooster occasionally stumbles over its actual wing feathers. According to Engelmann, two actions merge into one during the kicking act: The triggering stimulus for copulation comes from the hen. She crouches to make it easier for the rooster to mount. The hen makes sure her legs are nicely sided by side so she can better balance the rooster’s weight. Her neck is tightened, then the cock sits on her shoulders. Then she pushes her control feathers up so they don’t get in the way.
The Roosters Have Little Stamina
So that the rooster can hold on to the hen better, he clings to the hen’s neck with his beak. In technical jargon, this is called a “neck bite”. The rooster balances on the hen with spread wings so as not to fall off. During the actual mating, which lasts a few seconds to almost a minute, both cloacas are pressed together. The rooster’s sperm drips onto the hen’s cloaca and can later fertilize the eggs that are formed.
So that the two cloacas can be pressed together better, experienced breeders cut off the feathers in the area of the cloaca. In practice, it has been shown that the fertilization rate of the eggs can be increased in this way. In the aftermath, the hen shakes herself, putting her feathers back in order. The rooster stumbles over his wing feathers again and circles the hen once more. And goes in search of the next hen.
Theoretically, the sperm of the young cocks would already be mature in the twelfth week of life. Studies by Engelmann have shown, however, that cocks do not begin courtship until they are 24 weeks old. When a hen ducks in front of a cockerel, he often doesn’t understand what’s going on and what he should do next. Thinking he has an enemy in front of him, he hacks the chicken’s neck with his beak.
But after a few weeks, a young rooster knows how to breed. Therefore it is better to get a young rooster used to the hens early and not just when you want to collect hatching eggs. Even if mating is successful, the egg of the following day is not yet fertilized, since production was already underway before mating. The first fertilized egg is laid between 40 and 70 hours after fertilization; the average is three days.
A single stroke is enough to fertilize five to seven eggs. These eggs can be laid up to ten days after the stroke. The lifespan of sperm is short. After twelve days, one stroke is no longer enough to fertilize more eggs, no matter how many eggs a hen has laid. According to Engelmann, a large number of sperm is required to ensure the fertilization of the eggs. It takes 0.05 milliliters of semen to cover the surface of the inner fallopian tube. Around 100 million sperm can be found in this quantity. If these were removed artificially, their fertilization capacity would only be given for four hours if they were stored at 10 degrees.
If you want offspring from your hens, they should see a rooster at least every three to four days. For example, if the hens are kept singly for parentage purposes and the rooster moves to a new hen from day to day, the rooster should not be mated to more than three hens. If you trust a rooster to have more hens and still don’t want to lose control of the parentage, the use of a drop nest is essential.
Parsley as an Aphrodisiac
How often a rooster mates with the hens depends on the breed. In lighter breeds like the Italians or Leghorn, a rooster will be active between 30 to 50 times a day. In the case of medium-heavy breeds such as the Rhodeland or Wyandotte, a rooster achieves 15 to 20 copulations and in the case of the heavy breeds such as the Orpington, a rooster only achieves five to ten copulations.
Breeders report that they add parsley to the roosters to increase their activity in the chicken coop. The herb has an appetizing effect and, with its high proportion of vitamins C and E, promotes digestion. If dried parsley is fed in the winter, it should be lightly moistened with water so that the chickens enjoy eating it.
However, the frequency of copulations also depends on the age of the rooster. A rooster is most active in its first year of life. The ability to fertilize decreases faster with age in roosters than in hens. According to Engelmann, a second important factor is a season. Fertilization is best in the autumn months from September to November. It then remains at a slightly lower level until April and then decreases significantly in the summer months until August.