Can you cross breed??

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Brandnew2chicks

Brandnew2chicks

Hatching
11 Years
Jun 13, 2008
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Ok. I am new at all of this. I went and got 6 chicks that my children picked out. 2 are Rhode Island Reds I know for a fact. The other 4 I'm not sure about. 2 are black and lay brown eggs and the other 2 are speckled black and gray and the top of the head looks kinda cool like a wolf. Those 2 are supposed to lay different colored eggs. My question is if I have a rooster, and I'm not sure what I have yet, can they cross breed and if so what are the risks?? I will introduce them to the what is left of the gang, only 3, in a couple of weeks. I have 1 longhorn hen and the other two are white rocks and I think one is a rooster and the other is a hen. I'm not sure?? Isn't that terrible. How do you tell a rooster from a hen?? Those two do not have the claw coming out of the feet. That is the only thing I know to look for. What other signs can tell me what I have. The six chicks that I just got are only about 5 weeks old now.
 
If you post pics we can help you out
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Sounds like your colored egg layer might be an EE. There are no risks to letting them breed, other than you wouldn't want to let a standard sized roo mate a batam hen. And you need to keep enough girls for each roo or they will get 'over worked'
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The resulting chicks will just be mutts is all
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And no worries letting your roo breed with it's offspring, it's called line breeding. All though, it never hurts to introduce new blood once in awhile
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Oh, and they won't get spurs for a long while yet! Mainly you look at comb size and redness, plus there are other tell-tale signs depending on breed.
 
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You can look at the comb on their heads. Roosters combs are bigger than pullets(females). Also you can look to see how much one is feathering. Usually the pullets grow their feathers faster than the roos. If you post some pictures I bet people can help identify them for you. Breed and sex.
 
I'll see if I can get some pics on tomorrow evening. Right now I have to hit the hay. Thanks for the response :)
 
Quote:
Why not? I have probably 8 or more chicks that most likely came from a bantam hen and a standard rooster. I haven't noticed any problems.


Brandnew, welcome.

The only risk I know of in crossbreeding is that you'll have "mutts" rather than purebreds.

Another way to tell the difference between a rooster and a hen (cockerel and pullet) is the feathers. Roosters generally have longer and more pointed hackles and saddle feathers.

Take a look at the learning center when you get a chance. There is a wealth of information there. It isn't near as fun as asking in the forums though.
 
Well, I'm not saying there'd be a problem with the offspring...... but it is best not to allow a roo twice the size of the hen jump it all the time.... could injure the hen. At least, it's a risk I wouldn't want to take, nor would I want to put my girls through that, but to each their own
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