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sexing australorp chicks

post #1 of 16
3/25/12 at 12:15pm
Thread Starter 

hello i am new to this forum. i have been researching chickens like crazy for a while now. i recently got 9 black australorps just hatched. they are 6 days old now. i have read mixed reviews on whether you can sex australorps by looking at the wings so i wanted to ask and maybe get some fresh opinions. 2 of the chicks already have very long wing feathers. the other 7 are roughly the same size which is a lot shorter. these are purebred ba's. do i have 7 cockerels and 2 pullets? i sure hope not. i am wanting atleast 5 pullets. if anyone has any advice please let me know. thank you very much.

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post #2 of 16
3/25/12 at 9:29pm
Thread Starter 

c'mon guys somebody out there has to know the answer to my question. Right?

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post #3 of 16
3/25/12 at 10:19pm

 

 

The wing thing, for me, hasnt really helped much. Honestly, just time will tell. (I hate it as much as you do hearing that)...

 

 

5 Red Sexlink, 5 turkens, 5 Barred Plymouth, 5 RIR, 5 Black Australorp
2 Brahmas & 3 EE'ers
On the other hand: Mom to 4, Britt 20, Homeschool teacher to Jeron 12, Elayna 7 and Lydia 5 & SAHM/WAHM (self employed), wife to Brian
My belief: Be nice to everyone you meet, we are all fighting some sort of battle in our life.
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5 Red Sexlink, 5 turkens, 5 Barred Plymouth, 5 RIR, 5 Black Australorp
2 Brahmas & 3 EE'ers
On the other hand: Mom to 4, Britt 20, Homeschool teacher to Jeron 12, Elayna 7 and Lydia 5 & SAHM/WAHM (self employed), wife to Brian
My belief: Be nice to everyone you meet, we are all fighting some sort of battle in our life.
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post #4 of 16
3/26/12 at 8:19pm
Thread Starter 

honestly, that is good news for me. i am really hoping more of my babies are little pullets than the wing thing is leading me to believe. i spent all night building a new brooder because my dad needed his old one back. how many chicks do you think my new brooder can handle? it is 4ft by 4ft. i love byc!

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post #5 of 16
3/26/12 at 8:22pm

I've read in a few places that wing sexing only works the first 2 days and it's still not reliable way to go.

Husband - Eric, 4 Daughters - Shamera, Piper, Jocelyn & Tilly, 3 Dogs - Hank, Zangar & Penny, Cat - Junior (Mentally Handicapped) and 3 Chicks- Nugget, Mumble & Cinnamon.

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Husband - Eric, 4 Daughters - Shamera, Piper, Jocelyn & Tilly, 3 Dogs - Hank, Zangar & Penny, Cat - Junior (Mentally Handicapped) and 3 Chicks- Nugget, Mumble & Cinnamon.

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post #6 of 16
3/26/12 at 8:41pm

The hatcheries only guarantee 90 percent accuracy on sexing regular chicks (not sex-link chicks), and they have people who are trained to sex chicks.

 

In a month or so you should be able to tell which ones are pullets and which are cockerels. Do you plan to sell the cockerels or something else?

Which chicken breed is the best for you?

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/628129/most-popular-small-flock-chickens-resource-for-selecting-your-chickens

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Which chicken breed is the best for you?

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/628129/most-popular-small-flock-chickens-resource-for-selecting-your-chickens

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post #7 of 16
3/26/12 at 8:47pm
Thread Starter 

keeping one to be my rooster, and eating the rest. i planned on eating them around 8 weeks, but i don't want to eat a hen thinking it's a rooster. i will probably just wait until they crow or lay an egg.

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post #8 of 16
3/26/12 at 9:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jwilson48 View Post

keeping one to be my rooster, and eating the rest. i planned on eating them around 8 weeks, but i don't want to eat a hen thinking it's a rooster. i will probably just wait until they crow or lay an egg.



smile.png

 

You should be able to tell long before that.

 

I see you are just curious to know their sex. It seems everyone wants to know the sex right away, even if they plan on keeping the roosters or butchering them.

 

The Cornish Cross chickens bred for meat are butchered at 6 to 8 weeks old. With a dual-purpose breed like Australorp, you will need to wait longer to allow the roosters to grow. I am not sure what the best age is to butcher Australorp roosters, though.

Which chicken breed is the best for you?

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/628129/most-popular-small-flock-chickens-resource-for-selecting-your-chickens

Reply

Which chicken breed is the best for you?

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/628129/most-popular-small-flock-chickens-resource-for-selecting-your-chickens

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post #9 of 16
3/27/12 at 12:42pm


 

Quote:
Originally Posted by jwilson48 View Post

keeping one to be my rooster, and eating the rest. i planned on eating them around 8 weeks, but i don't want to eat a hen thinking it's a rooster. i will probably just wait until they crow or lay an egg.


sad.png I am sorry to hear you are planning on eating the extra roos. There are plenty of backyard flocks that need a rooster for protection and to keep order. I hope you give it a lot of thought when you find out the sex of your hens. So,enough,I'll get off my soapbox now! Welcome to the flock and the wonderful joy of chicken farming(the folks on here call it chicken math)!

 

   I went from a few chickens for eggs to 30 standard and 10 banty chickens! Throw in a couple of wiener dogs( who love to roundup the birds!) and a Golden Retriever (who won't retrieve!) and lucky for me I have a very tolerant Husband and son! Semper Fi, oorah!!

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   I went from a few chickens for eggs to 30 standard and 10 banty chickens! Throw in a couple of wiener dogs( who love to roundup the birds!) and a Golden Retriever (who won't retrieve!) and lucky for me I have a very tolerant Husband and son! Semper Fi, oorah!!

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post #10 of 16
3/27/12 at 6:40pm
Thread Starter 

i wish it was that easy to get rid of roosters around here. everyone already has one, or more, except the ones who just don't want one. besides, chickens are tasty. i'd rather eat my own farm raised as i would something from the store.

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