[Greenerlife]

So I have seven hens, and no cockerel.  They seem happy.  In the last two weeks, I have noticed that one of them is bossing the others and mounting them.   Is this behaviour because they have never had a cockerel in with them?  What should I do?  Or should I just let them get on with it?

[chrismahon]

It can happen if their ovary is damaged Greenerlife -they become a cockerel in all respects except reproductive. So they will crow, their comb and wattles will grow, they will stop laying and they will tread the hens. I have heard of a top hen treading the subordinates though and still be laying, so it remains to be seen what yours will do? All you can do is wait.

[Stereo]

Ladyman. It happens.

[Steph Hen]

I have a leg horn who will tread hens in absence of cocks - I sometimes shut cocks off the hems for a few weeks at a time. She continues to lay (only one who lays white eggs so I know they are hers.)

[Greenerlife]

Thanks for all the replies.  I'll let 'Heshe' get on with it! 

[Kitchen Cottage]

I have a cockerel but before him one of my hens EMILY was very dominant, but I never saw her treading.  She is a feisty soul anyway, having survived a fox attack at a year old by...... pecking the foxes eye out.  I saw it, it was amazing how aggressive she was in the foxes mouth.  She is now six and separated from the rest because (a) she is a loner (b) the brahma cockerel almost trod her to death.....  I will be very sorry when anything happens to Emily, she is an amazing chicken!

[Clansman]

its just part of Darwin's theory of evolution.

All living things, (even us) will throw up a wide range of genetic differences or mutations if you like, where sex is concerned.

Human's are the easiest example to look at as we see this regularly, we are not all created as just males and females.

there are many people who are female in a male's body, males in a female's body and some who are physically and mentally half male and half female.

There are also a whole range of sexuality states between this and what we would consider the normal male/female sex.

Added to that, chickens will be subject to the same sexual orientation differences that other animals are, its quite common to see homosexual or bisexual activity within chickens.

I know a friend with a Buff Sussex cockerel who has NEVER looked at the hens but he just CANNOT resist a duck walking past! 

[devonlady]

True, Clansman. We are all female at conception and somewhere along the way the genes that decide whether we stay female or become male kick in. These genes sometimes don't make themselves known for a few years and are subject to contrariness! I have a pug who is to all appearances female but on being scanned because she has never come into season in eight years was found to have a pair of testicles. We still love her though

[Stereo]

I've got a gay cockerel called Nermal if that's any help. Had a trauma as a grower as he was in the garden and managed to flip a child's toy trailer over on himself. We thought he had been taken by a buzzard as he just clean vanished and he must have sat there for 3 days until one of the boys thought he saw the trailer move. He made a full recovery although nowadays he can't resist a nice chunky blue marans boy.

[polaris]

I've got a gay cockerel called Nermal if that's any help. Had a trauma as a grower as he was in the garden and managed to flip a child's toy trailer over on himself. We thought he had been taken by a buzzard as he just clean vanished and he must have sat there for 3 days until one of the boys thought he saw the trailer move. He made a full recovery although nowadays he can't resist a nice chunky blue marans boy.