Any idea on the breed and sexes?

[serenityfarms1]

We've got a bit of a conundrum here at home with our chickens. By looking at them, it appears to clearly be a rooster and a hen. However, in actions - the "hen" acts strange. For example:
- She crows like a rooster - though it's more like a loud "coo-coo", and not as powerful as the rooster's.
- She never submits to the rooster, while the other hen's do. She ALWAYS fights back and stands her ground. In fact, she's tried to mount the rooster and that makes him jump a mile!
- She mounts the other hens quite aggressively
- To top it all off, she IS a layer. Her eggs are less frequent and smaller, but they do come.

Has anyone heard of or seen this before?? This was our first rooster, so we were getting used to that when this hen started acting strange - they were chicks together. He is a protective rooster and definitely keeps the other hens in line, except this one.

I've attached a picture of them - they are bug, black birds with blue/black sheen. They appear to be male/female, but are they two roosters?

Any help would be greatly appreciated thanks!!

-Mike

 

[Pyxis]

Those are both roosters. I suspect the one you thought was a hen is an Easter Egger or maybe an Ameraucana depending on if you got him from a breeder. The other is probably either a jersey giant or a black australorp. You can check the color of the bottom of his feet to tell which.

 

[Michael OShay]

They are both definitely males. The one on the left is a mixed breed (possibly an Easter Egger if it carries the blue egg gene). The one on the right looks to be a Black Australorp. It could also be a Black Jersey Giant but only if the bottoms of its feet are an obvious yellow.

 

[Michael OShay]

Those are both roosters. I suspect the one you thought was a hen is an Easter Egger or maybe an Ameraucana depending on if you got him from a breeder. The other is probably either a jersey giant or a black australorp. You can check the color of the bottom of his feet to tell which.

LOL! We were posting at the same time. I guess great minds think alike. )

 

[Pyxis]

LOL! We were posting at the same time. I guess great minds think alike. )

LOL, we did post at the same time. Teamwork!

 

[drumstick diva]

agree with Michael & Pyxis

 

[donrae]

those birds are both males. Neither one is laying eggs at all.

 

[junebuggena]

Both are male. They have different comb types, one has a pea comb, the other a single comb. But they both have the same male specific feathering.

 

[BantamLover21]

They are both definitely males. The one on the left is a mixed breed (possibly an Easter Egger if it carries the blue egg gene). The one on the right looks to be a Black Australorp. It could also be a Black Jersey Giant but only if the bottoms of its feet are an obvious yellow.

Agreed

 

[serenityfarms1]

Thanks guys!! We noticed different colored eggs from our Easter Egger and were hoping that we had two layers. Apparently not. Two roosters explains quite a lot - thank you do much for setting us straight, guess we'll learn twice as much about roosters now

Take care,

-Mike