Barred Rocks!!

[kekstrom]

Here is our Ethel, at 11 weeks old, with, ironically, Lucy our BO behind her. We just love how friendly Ethel is, and we aren't sure if she is the alpha hen or not. But we are in the middle of introducing our 6 younger chicks to this group of older chicks, and it has gone effortlessly smooth EXCEPT for Ethel who is the only older chick to peck the younger ones. And she only pecks the little Cuckoo Marans chick (who ironically is barred like her). Its minimal, but it makes me wonder if she is alpha or vying to be the alpha.

 

[DesertChic]

Here is our Ethel, at 11 weeks old, with, ironically, Lucy our BO behind her. We just love how friendly Ethel is, and we aren't sure if she is the alpha hen or not. But we are in the middle of introducing our 6 younger chicks to this group of older chicks, and it has gone effortlessly smooth EXCEPT for Ethel who is the only older chick to peck the younger ones. And she only pecks the little Cuckoo Marans chick (who ironically is barred like her). Its minimal, but it makes me wonder if she is alpha or vying to be the alpha.

My Barred Rock girls always assume an alpha position, not matter what breed they're housed with. That's actually one of the things I love about them. They're docile, sweet, friendly, affectionate....and strong.

 

[kekstrom]

My Barred Rock girls always assume an alpha position, not matter what breed they're housed with. That's actually one of the things I love about them. They're docile, sweet, friendly, affectionate....and strong.

I have a feeling that she is 'assuming' the position now. I have been trying to observe some typical alpha behaviors, but other than pecking, I haven't noticed much. There aren't any squabbles over food or water that I notice, and she isn't necessarily the first to eat or drink, and at night they all roost on the same roost. But whether or not she is alpha, she is definitely what you mentioned---- STRONG.

 

[DesertChic]

I have a feeling that she is 'assuming' the position now. I have been trying to observe some typical alpha behaviors, but other than pecking, I haven't noticed much. There aren't any squabbles over food or water that I notice, and she isn't necessarily the first to eat or drink, and at night they all roost on the same roost. But whether or not she is alpha, she is definitely what you mentioned---- STRONG.

The first BR chicks I ever had came from the feed store. My favorite one, then and now, was a 1-week old pullet I named "Luna". She had a sister and brother of equal age, but the remainder of the chicks I bought, including both Silkies and Australorps were older by at least one week. The moment I knew that Luna would be the alpha was when she jumped atop the feeder, let out this amazingly loud squawk for such a small chick, and all the other chicks ran to the other end of the brooder and stayed there until Luna had finished eating. Then she casually made her way to the water, drank her fill and found a spot to lay down to rest in the pine chips. THEN the rest of the chicks were "allowed" to feed.

Luna has since given me two more fantastic pullets, also with strong but friendly personalities. I've seen them take on amorous roosters and protect my little Silkie hen from other birds that tried to bully here. I will ALWAYS have at least one BR girl in my flock because they are just so totally awesome.

 

[new2dotties]

So I just acquired these poor creatures and can't decide if they will get better looking or not: they came from a horrible hatchery who "overused them" and about a month ago didn't have much in the way of feathers. They still don't have tails and what is with the odd wing feathers? They also have bent over/crooked comb. I'm sure those won't straighten up but I'm hoping feathers will get better and they will fill out better. They are supposed to be 11 ish months old. Poor things, I just felt bad for them.

 

[elevatedruby]

my BRs are a little messed up , i guess genes werent strong enough. only one wth obvious barred is my cockerel and a few have wite spots on their face

 

[kekstrom]

my BRs are a little messed up , i guess genes werent strong enough. only one wth obvious barred is my cockerel and a few have wite spots on their face

They look great to me! Cockerels are lighter colored which means the barring is stronger in them, hence making them lighter. Pullets will be different looking, and once they grow and molt and get their adult plumage, you'll notice they look like a typical BR. My girl is 12 weeks and she is starting to look so much different than she did before.

 

[elevatedruby]

well i was told by some more experienced people than I that they are barred rocks but heritage they are not. they have to be pure bred and supposedly at cackle they just throw hens with roosters and collect eggs. and i noticed my cockerel has very brights large bars too. i hope thats a good sign even though the hes faces look funny.

 

[diana507]

Ordered 6 pullets at feed store at day old chicks. 6 weeks old now. This one has always made me wonder... ideas pullet or roo?

 

[Amelia Egghart]

well i was told by some more experienced people than I that they are barred rocks but heritage they are not. they have to be pure bred and supposedly at cackle they just throw hens with roosters and collect eggs. and i noticed my cockerel has very brights large bars too. i hope thats a good sign even though the hes faces look funny. 

Well... That IS how one gets babies

They have breed specific farmers they get their eggs from, so while yes there's just roosters thrown in with hens, they're all pure bred. Some are even high quality. Your BRs look appropriate for their age. Lots of the traits you'll look for in the breed standard you won't see until they're older. My Cackle birds aren't SQ but they are all healthy, have iridescent sheen, clear barring, white skin and lay lots of tan medium eggs. So I'm happy! Got one small one, but that could be from any number of things - she's totally healthy and strong otherwise. If their breeding stock hasn't declined for this year, then your birds should mature just fine.

If you were looking for the qualities you find in true heritage birds, though, you won't find that from any hatchery. They simply breed at too young of an age to select for those traits.