Barred Rock Roosters?

[Kenwood Kindgdom]

Hello! This is my first substantive post to BYC. I think I have two Barred Rock Roosters. I acquired these two at a local poultry swap trying to find a home for a Leghorn rooster that we had. I'd be grateful for any suggestions that you might have regarding the sex of these birds. I really like them! But I can't afford to make my neighbors unhappy.

 

[rural mouse]

They do have some of the characteristics of roos. As pure barred rocks, they don't have enough white. At a guess, I suspect they're half barred rock, half something else. How old are they?

 

[MysteryChicken]

I see light leg feathering on one, plus 5 toes. Maybe Cuckoo Marans X Dorking. Definitely not Barred Rocks, or Barred Rock Crosses.

I just noticed the yellow skin, so two more possibilities are a type of Olive Egger, or them just being a multigenerational cross. A mix, of a mix pretty much.

 

[rural mouse]

I see light leg feathering on one, plus 5 toes. Maybe Cuckoo Marans X Dorking. Definitely not Barred Rocks, or Barred Rock Crosses.

I just noticed the yellow skin, so two more possibilities are a type of Olive Egger, or them just being a multigenerational cross. A mix, of a mix pretty much.

How dominate are the short legs of a Dorking? The 5 toes with the feathering could come from silkie, faverole or sultan. However all 3 are crested. If the feathering comes from 1 parent and the toes from the other (or side of the tree), it does add in houdan and Dorking. The houdan crest and muff/beard sort of eliminates that one too, though. They have excellent barring, though. Cuckoo Marans are more common than French Cuckoo Marans..... the skin color is all wrong for a silkie mix (I'd expect at least 1 to have some of the black skin) and wrong for Marans.... body build doesn't fit Dorking either....

Sorry for the mental ramble. The good barring (and skin color) still makes me think half Barred rock x 5 toed, feather footed, non-crested, non-bearded mix. However, I've seen a crest pop back up when neither parent has one, but a grandparent does. Definitely a genetic puzzle.

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

Roosters or cockerels, depends on the age.

 

[MysteryChicken]

How dominate are the short legs of a Dorking? The 5 toes with the feathering could come from silkie, faverole or sultan. However all 3 are crested. If the feathering comes from 1 parent and the toes from the other (or side of the tree), it does add in houdan and Dorking. The houdan crest and muff/beard sort of eliminates that one too, though. They have excellent barring, though. Cuckoo Marans are more common than French Cuckoo Marans..... the skin color is all wrong for a silkie mix (I'd expect at least 1 to have some of the black skin) and wrong for Marans.... body build doesn't fit Dorking either....

Sorry for the mental ramble. The good barring (and skin color) still makes me think half Barred rock x 5 toed, feather footed, non-crested, non-bearded mix. However, I've seen a crest pop back up when neither parent has one, but a grandparent does. Definitely a genetic puzzle.

Faverolles aren't crested.

Short legs is something I'm learning about, & Dorkings(Just looked at pictures), legs aren't that short, more moderate in length.

When you cross breed chickens, body types don't always fit, one, or the other. That's where you look at other traits such as beard, feathered feet, comb type, coloration, skin color, toe amount, etc..

The barring isn't that good, really. I've got examples of Perfect barring.


I did suggest a type of Olive Egger, or a mix of mixes.
Green Queens are a good example of an olive Egger with occasional fifth toes, & or feathered legs. But are sometimes bearded, & pea combed.

 

[EquiAsh95]

With how they look I would be leaning more towards roo’s.

 

[Leatherworker]

Hello! This is my first substantive post to BYC. I think I have two Barred Rock Roosters. I acquired these two at a local poultry swap trying to find a home for a Leghorn rooster that we had. I'd be grateful for any suggestions that you might have regarding the sex of these birds. I really like them! But I can't afford to make my neighbors unhappy.

Look like roos to me. My rooster is barred rock mix. These have some very distinct feathering that he has.

 

[Kenwood Kindgdom]

They do have some of the characteristics of roos. As pure barred rocks, they don't have enough white. At a guess, I suspect they're half barred rock, half something else. How old are they?

Hello! Thank you for replying! I think that they are about 9-10 weeks old. I can't say for certain. The man who gave them to me said that they were Barred Rock. But I'm not sure of that either. I looked at many images of Barred Rock roosters and saw the white color you mention and didn't notice it on these birds.

 

[Kenwood Kindgdom]

I see light leg feathering on one, plus 5 toes. Maybe Cuckoo Marans X Dorking. Definitely not Barred Rocks, or Barred Rock Crosses.

I just noticed the yellow skin, so two more possibilities are a type of Olive Egger, or them just being a multigenerational cross. A mix, of a mix pretty much.

Thank you! The poultry swap had all kinds of birds and it wouldn't surprise me if they had all kinds of breeds.

Is the leg feathering and five toes a sign that they are roosters? I thought the toe was an emerging spur but I'm still new enought to roosters that it's hard for me to tell. Meanwhile, my six-year-old son was confident from a few weeks ago, somehow : )