Hen Only makes male chicks

My female hen had about 10 baby chickens, ALL MALES? (Only one, super small female) What happened? Also, any ways to make the crowing minimal?

You can have a hen produce only males in a brood of 10 chicks. If she repeats then real.

centrarchid said:

You can have a hen produce only males in a brood of 10 chicks. If she repeats then real.

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There was a female. It's just a bad ratio.

Eating the excess ones usually reduces the crowing quite dramatically

Okay. Thanks for letting me know. I was really freaking out

rebrascora said:

Eating the excess ones usually reduces the crowing quite dramatically

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Hahaha!! It does indeed!

It might not be the hen. How were these eggs incubated? I've had temperature spikes during incubation that killed off the female eggs and only the males by majority survived. If you incubated them yourself, then it may be temperature related. If hens incubated them, it's likely the hen.

Happy Chooks said:

It might not be the hen. How were these eggs incubated? I've had temperature spikes during incubation that killed off the female eggs and only the males by majority survived. If you incubated them yourself, then it may be temperature related. If hens incubated them, it's likely the hen.

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I thought it was males that the high temps killed.......I might have it reversed, but good point.

Did one hen lay all the eggs or were they a mix from different hens? Did a hen incubate them or were they in an incubator? Some unanswered questions here.

I’ve read that males can survive high incubating heat better than pullets. I have not read that pullets can survive low incubating heat better than males. Of course I read a lot, some of it fiction. I have not seen any scientific evidence one way or another.

Odds are odds. I’m not going through the math but the odds of getting 9 males and 1 female out of ten chicks is probably less than 1 in 1000. It may not happen often but 1 in 1000 odds do happen.

My incubator runs just a tad warm, about 0.1 to 0.2 degrees F high. Sometimes the chicks hatch a bit early, some pretty much on time. Two years ago I had a hatch where 14 were pullets and 7 were cockerels. Last year I had one hatch with 14 pullets and 5 cockerels. Both hatches were about a day early. I’ve also had hatches with similar numbers but more males than females. I’ve had hatches under broody hens where the sex ratio were just as skewed. I agree that two hatches is not a statistically valid number, you’d have to have a lot more for averages to start meaning much. I don’t know how high the temperature would have to be for this theory to come into play. Personally I put zero faith in the temperature having anything to do with which sex survives to hatch, but I’ve been wrong before.

TinaHail said:

My female hen had about 10 baby chickens, ALL MALES? (Only one, super small female) What happened? Also, any ways to make the crowing minimal?

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Dont know the answer to that But a suggestion,a really interesting one actually... u "could" make a difference in the chicken industry if you selectively breed a "breed of chicken(s)" with the ability to produce over 90% males..there are businesses who WILL be interested in that breed..so, u cld trace back(memory wise), the feeds/meal/diet u gave to this particular chicken-"IF" it was the only one,if they were many,did the others do the same?..if yes then maybe its FEED related(jus a guess-not a specialist)..but if it was the only one..maybe it had some recessive gene which made it able to do that..so, maybe keep the small baby hen and "try" selectively breeding such a breed, if successful, cld be a good evolution the chicken industry..!!!..just an idea