Curious about colors and genders in New Hampshire Red Chicks

[Humble Shack Farm]

Our first meat chickens are here! We have 22 New Hampshire Reds from Freedom Ranger Hatchery (Henry Knoll line). Lost just a few to travel stress, it took them an extra day to get here, everyone is doing good now. Made it through our first frost last night too (inside with a heat lamp of course). Quite unusual and early for so far south.

I'm simply curious to know if we can determine the gender of these chicks by their colors or feathers. I've noticed three differences in their colors. Some are all light colored even their wing feathers. Others are a light to medium color with black markings on the wing feathers. And just a few are a darker red with a red stripe down their back and the black on the wing feathers - these are also a tad bit smaller. Tail feathers are just barely starting to come in. They're less than two weeks old still.

I'll see about getting some more current pictures.

 

[sourland]

Waiting on the pictures.

 

[Humble Shack Farm]

Video!

 

[Humble Shack Farm]

Waiting on the pictures.

I added a video.

 

[SE_Gardener]

Our first meat chickens are here! We have 22 New Hampshire Reds from Freedom Ranger Hatchery (Henry Knoll line). Lost just a few to travel stress, it took them an extra day to get here, everyone is doing good now. Made it through our first frost last night too (inside with a heat lamp of course). Quite unusual and early for so far south.

I'm simply curious to know if we can determine the gender of these chicks by their colors or feathers. I've noticed three differences in their colors. Some are all light colored even their wing feathers. Others are a light to medium color with black markings on the wing feathers. And just a few are a darker red with a red stripe down their back and the black on the wing feathers - these are also a tad bit smaller. Tail feathers are just barely starting to come in. They're less than two weeks old still.

I'll see about getting some more current pictures.

I raise this Henry Noll New Hampshire line and find the colors are all over the map. When selected Noll focused on fast development and muscle growth. He didn't care about colors and in fact several members here have been rebuffed by the New Hampshire club because their color/markings were not "perfection" standards. I also select for meatbird qualities and some birds are deep red and others lighter almost rust. Chick can have chipmunk marking down the back, brown dot on head and others no markings. I've found neither the markings, lack of markings or coloring has any bearing on egg production or meatbird production. Because they are faster developing chicks, I can often sex at 1st week with sex feathering and at 5-6 weeks waddles begin to grow/male combs begin to darken female still very pale but absolutely by 8wks I can cull. Henry Noll New Hampshire line is purebred New Hampshire that do not color sex in any way. Generally color sexing is a result of hybridizing.

 

[Humble Shack Farm]

I raise this Henry Noll New Hampshire line and find the colors are all over the map. When selected Noll focused on fast development and muscle growth. He didn't care about colors and in fact several members here have been rebuffed by the New Hampshire club because their color/markings were not "perfection" standards. I also select for meatbird qualities and some birds are deep red and others lighter almost rust. Chick can have chipmunk marking down the back, brown dot on head and others no markings. I've found neither the markings, lack of markings or coloring has any bearing on egg production or meatbird production. Because they are faster developing chicks, I can often sex at 1st week with sex feathering and at 5-6 weeks waddles begin to grow/male combs begin to darken female still very pale but absolutely by 8wks I can cull. Henry Noll New Hampshire line is purebred New Hampshire that do not color sex in any way. Generally color sexing is a result of hybridizing.

Thanks for sharing. These birds are about five months old now and doing excellent. Roosters reached butchering weight quickly and we harvested the extras. Largest one was over eight pounds when cleaned. The hens are beginning to lay now and loving their pasture rotation system. I am also not concerned about the color versus meat and egg production and these guys are exactly what I was hoping for so far. Truly dual purpose.

 

[SE_Gardener]

Thanks for sharing. These birds are about five months old now and doing excellent. Roosters reached butchering weight quickly and we harvested the extras. Largest one was over eight pounds when cleaned. The hens are beginning to lay now and loving their pasture rotation system. I am also not concerned about the color versus meat and egg production and these guys are exactly what I was hoping for so far. Truly dual purpose.

Your Henry Noll hens are laying at 20 weeks? That's very early for this strain. Typically I find that while they muscle up fast as you noted, their hormonal growth is slower. The males rarely begin to crow until around 20-24 weeks and my hens point of lay is around 24+. But I select for size/breadth and muscle structure.

 

[Humble Shack Farm]

Yea

Your Henry Noll hens are laying at 20 weeks? That's very early for this strain. Typically I find that while they muscle up fast as you noted, their hormonal growth is slower. The males rarely begin to crow until around 20-24 weeks and my hens point of lay is around 24+. But I select for size/breadth and muscle structure.

Yeah I was surpised. If they hadn't also reached butchering weight so quickly I would have been concerned that they were now breeding for earlier egg production instead, but they have done well in both regards. I believe about a handful of the 14 hens I have are laying. Interestingly, they each lay a different shade of brown and a different shaped egg. And the roosters started crowing weeks ago.

 

[SE_Gardener]

Yea

Yeah I was surpised. If they hadn't also reached butchering weight so quickly I would have been concerned that they were now breeding for earlier egg production instead, but they have done well in both regards. I believe about a handful of the 14 hens I have are laying. Interestingly, they each lay a different shade of brown and a different shaped egg. And the roosters started crowing weeks ago.

Not sure what your New Hampshire are but they don't sound like Henry Noll...Cockerels are VERY late to crow and have a deep gutteral crow sound. The hens are always 24+ weeks. The eggs do - depending on what breeding line they're from - Henry has 6-8 that he spiral bred. Some eggs are lighter brown almost pinkish while others are light brown. I've never gotten dark brown like the White Plymouth Rocks. Just wondering you said "they were now breeding for earlier egg production". Who are "they" - Freedom Ranger Hatchery? I'm concerned they've only had Henry's breed stock now for two years or so and looking at the picture on their website you can see maybe 500 New Hampshires - Roosters and hens free range pastured together. I'm sure breeding is a free for all and they collect eggs and sell. I'm not sure how you could possibly select for specific criteria with that many chickens that are pasture raised. My flock are several generations that I've raised and selected for meatbirds. I'm glad I got mine before they started doing that. I'm sure they are now producing hens that reverted back to layers and with indiscriminate breeding on pasture, I'm not sure how you would control for meatbird qualities. All my male chicks finish arouknd 13 week at 7-8lb and are robust. I don't keep them beyond that. Of the pullets true to dual purpose stock maybe 25 will finish at 6-61/2lb at 13 weeks. I usually cull at 8 weeks. I can tell at that ooint which will finish as broilers. I will keep finished pullets for breed stock and cull the rest. At this point I'm able to select out of 25 chicks maybe 3-4 super quality that I would retain as breeding stock. Also my hens are laying only 3 eggs per wk or so. Come spring and summer they will be free ranged and I keep them on lean feed so as not to get to fat. Remember I'm trying to get eggs to incubate. I have other layers that I depend on for egg production.

 

[Humble Shack Farm]

Not sure what your New Hampshire are but they don't sound like Henry Noll...Cockerels are VERY late to crow and have a deep gutteral crow sound. The hens are always 24+ weeks. The eggs do - depending on what breeding line they're from - Henry has 6-8 that he spiral bred. Some eggs are lighter brown almost pinkish while others are light brown. I've never gotten dark brown like the White Plymouth Rocks. Just wondering you said "they were now breeding for earlier egg production". Who are "they" - Freedom Ranger Hatchery? I'm concerned they've only had Henry's breed stock now for two years or so and looking at the picture on their website you can see maybe 500 New Hampshires - Roosters and hens free range pastured together. I'm sure breeding is a free for all and they collect eggs and sell. I'm not sure how you could possibly select for specific criteria with that many chickens that are pasture raised. My flock are several generations that I've raised and selected for meatbirds. I'm glad I got mine before they started doing that. I'm sure they are now producing hens that reverted back to layers and with indiscriminate breeding on pasture, I'm not sure how you would control for meatbird qualities. All my male chicks finish arouknd 13 week at 7-8lb and are robust. I don't keep them beyond that. Of the pullets true to dual purpose stock maybe 25 will finish at 6-61/2lb at 13 weeks. I usually cull at 8 weeks. I can tell at that ooint which will finish as broilers. I will keep finished pullets for breed stock and cull the rest. At this point I'm able to select out of 25 chicks maybe 3-4 super quality that I would retain as breeding stock. Also my hens are laying only 3 eggs per wk or so. Come spring and summer they will be free ranged and I keep them on lean feed so as not to get to fat. Remember I'm trying to get eggs to incubate. I have other layers that I depend on for egg production.

I said I wondered if they were breeding for egg production, but I do not know that they are breeding or selecting for any specific qualities or attempting to make any changes to the line.
We also have other breeds that we rely on for egg production and hope to select from the New Hampshire’s for meat production. (I am also feeding them carefully to keep them lean.) I know that will take us a while to do properly. Tips are appreciated.