Rooster Dilemma

Sometimes I wish I had paid more attention to our flock of chickens when I was growing up. They were just part of life--I remember chasing them out the garden, collecting eggs, lots of chicken droppings in inconvenient places, and eating them when they got old. I don't remember much about dynamics in the chicken coop.

(The rooster with his hens.)

As a result, I'm completely at loss when the sweet black australorp rooster that I hand picked to keep out of seven roosters, suddenly decided to grow up and  misbehave. I'm sure he is just being a rooster, but my gosh, he couldn't be more obnoxious! (Yes, seven of these 12 chicks turned out to be roosters--I was hoping for six hens, but ended up with five.)

 In addition to the five little hens that were part of the dozen chicks I bought this spring, I have three older hens, who I raised from chicks 3 years ago. This rooster has no interest what so ever in the young hens. Given the opportunity, he spends all day chasing and mating with the older hens. The older hens hate this and act like they are deathly afraid of him, and it it is also tearing out their back feathers and bloodying their combs. With winter approaching, it is important that the hens be in the best health possible so they can overwinter well.

(My california whites--these were my illegal back yard hens when I still lived in the city.)

I leave the laying hens in the coop until after they have laid their eggs for the day. When the hens are cooped up, the rooster literally spends hours pacing back and forth in front of the coop, trying to get in. He is clearly upset by not being able to get at the older hens.

(Waiting for the older hens to be let out of the coop.)

The last few days I have been grabbing the rooster when I let the young hens out of the coop in the morning and locking him up in solitary confinement. I hate locking a chicken up. It is so against the nature of a chicken to be in a cage. They are made to hunt for bugs, take dust bathes, and to run around in the sunshine and fresh air. It seems positively cruel to keep one locked up most of the day. The older hens do go to  bed about an hour earlier than that the young hens, so I am able to let him out for a little while at the end of the day.

Interestingly, the younger hens all hang around the cage with rooster when they are out. This is actually a good thing. The australorps are diggers unlike the California whites and can quickly do a lot of damage in the garden...so confining the rooster seems to limit how far his flock of hens goes.

(Locked up in solitary confinement for multiple counts of rape.)

I'm linking this post to the Barn Hop over at Homestead Revival. For those of you who have a flock of hens with a rooster, what is your experience? I have read that you really need six hens to one rooster.  I have 9 hens all together. Once the 5 young ones are mature (they should start laying in October) will this rooster be less obnoxious  toward the older hens?  Other than this one problem, he seems to be a pretty decent rooster. I don't want to give him away if I don't have too, but at the same time, I want to make sure my flock of hens stay strong and healthy.

I'm wondering if a banty rooster would be the way to go...(thinking ahead for next spring.)?