10 unexpected chicks

wamtazlady

Crowing
10 Years
Jul 18, 2013
1,880
2,673
346
Kalispell MT
Was stunned when a hen presented me with 10 pale yellow baby chicks 2 days ago. Have been so busy lately that I didn't even notice her sitting as she didn't lay in the nests. She's a mixed breed chicken, light brown and a little black. Daddy was a buff laced Polish that we culled in mid July when he started to attack my grandson. I know I'll get my answer in a few weeks but I don't want to wait that long. Is there any chance any of these chicks will have at least a partial crest?
 
They should have a slight proof on their heads if they are going to have a crest. If their heads are normal you are probably out of luck.
 
Thank you for replying. I wasn't sure if the crest was a dominant feature or not. Since the rooster was originally my grandson's chicken I was hoping it could be replaced with one of these new ones if it looked enough like the rooster. Since I never saw the rooster when it was little I had no idea you could already see something on its head.
 
Not all crested breeds start out with a bump, knob, vault (whatever you'd like to call it) as chicks. Many of my Silkies have completely normal heads as hatchlings, then they go on to grow huge crests. I'd expect most of your chicks will have some kind of crest, probably not huge ones, but something :)
 
Crests are usually incompletely dominant. Breeding a pure Polish to a non-crested bird should result in everyone having partial crests. They wont' have the big rocker 'do of the pure rooster, but they'll have some funky head dresses.

good for you for protecting your grandson. Some many folks here won't do that
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Do keep in mind temperament can be hereditary, so a cockerel from a mean father may have issues himself. Not a guarantee by any means, just something to keep in mind.

Oh, and congrats on your stealth hatch! those surprises are my favorite
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They may be an interesting batch of chickens. Glad to know that they might have at least some crest even though they are showing nothing now. I have read that temperament can be inherited so will keep a close eye on the cockerels if I decide to keep one for the grandson. I only keep a rooster because I love to hear them crow.
 
Thank you all for your answers. The chicks are 3 weeks old. Almost all of them are showing a little bit of a crest. It's nothing like their father but they'll be some funny looking chickens. Today the hen took the chicks outside for the first time. I've been watching to make sure the other hens and the geese don't bother the little ones. The hen seems to be handling anyone who comes too close to her babies.
 
All the chicks ended up with at least a little crest. The surprising thing, at least to me, is that one out of the 7 left has a beard. Lost 3 to the neighbor's dog. Wasn't expecting that beard at all since the polish rooster didn't have one. Also appears that there is only one cockerel in the batch. Since I was going to keep only one cockerel this is perfect.
 

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