sexing salmon faverolles--still confused (update)

[cici_p]

Picked up a little faverolle chick from the feed store on Sunday, that had just been shipped in. Couldn't have been more than two days old. Last night I noticed that I could already see black feather coming in on its wings. It couldn't be more than 4-5 days old! Is it really possible to sex them this early, or should I wait a week before assuming it's a boy? (I am really hoping some lighter feather join in, he he).
What do you faverolle breeders think???

 

[hyzenthlay]

I have a SF chick now that I think is a pullet--she is 3 weeks old now, and I can show you her picture progression. I have lots of pics, so if you want to see a different angle of something, let me know. I have a question, though, too--is she going to get lighter? She seems much darker than an adult should be (but not as dark as a roo), right? She is from Meyer Hatchery.

Here she is at 1 day:

1 week (with my 2 week old EE and SLW):

2 weeks:

3 weeks:

 

[patyrdz]

Quote:
Mine are not hatchery stock, and they have some black feathering, on the tip of the wings. My 5 day old chicks that I have from the eggs of a fellow BYCer have the same feathering.
In the picture you can still see a touch of black on the tips of the wings on the hen on the left.

 

[hyzenthlay]

Awesome, thanks.

I was pretty sure, but I still don't know if it's normal for her feathers to be so dark brown at this age. Pinkchick's pullet pic is so much paler, and that's what I was expecting. I know hatchery stock can be off, of course, but still, I'm a bit surprised.

And yes, my screen name is from Watership Down, very good! I'm a fan of the book.

 

[Chickndaddy]

Your rooster is gorgeous. Mine wasn't feathered nearly that well. My hens were the pretty ones. My bantams roosters looked nice like your large fowl guy though.

 

[Chickndaddy]

Here is my Bantam Salmon Faverolle quad. Two boys and two girls.

 

[lunatic]

I picked up a chick a few days old that was all blonde except for a black spot on the tip of each wing and the middle of her back. I was told about the sexing thing and that she might end up being a he. Well now that chick is almost 4 weeks old and has a ton of brown feathers with hardly a hint of black and I'm pretty sure she is going to lay me some eggs in a few more months!

Long story short: you just can't tell at this age. I think most hatchery chicks are kind of mutts to some extent. Perhaps the coloring of the chicks rule only applies to breeder stock / show birds. (IMO)

 

[Chickndaddy]

Yes, she is a little girl.

Hyzenthlay...did you get that name from Watership Down?

 

[Chickndaddy]

Yes, I agree that she is a little darker than you want ideally, especially with the tips of her feathers being brown on her breast, but more and more hatchery Salmon Faverolles I've seen look like that. And those feathers may molt out completely as she matures.

Awesome! I love that book. And according to my handy dandy Lapine Glossary it means literally Shine-dew-fur; or translated fur shining like dew.

I think I read that book when I was 12 or 13 and I loved it. I ave a very old copy that I found when I helped my cousin move that was published in 1972. It belonged to the high school library she went to. I later went to that school, and now she teachers there...lol

When I had pet rabbits my two favorite does were Hyzenthlay and Thethuthinnang (Movement of leaves). I had several other rabbits with names christened from reading that book as well.

 

[hyzenthlay]

Cool! I first read the book when I was about that age too, and I just thought Hyzenthlay was a neat character and a neat name--I've been using it ever since. Funny, I always thought hyzenthlay was a bit of a mouthful to use, but Thethuthinnang is probably even worse! lol. I love it, though, and luckily, it's not like you have to call your rabbits all the time like dogs or something. I like to give my rabbits fancier names, too--I have two Angoras, called Flannery and Willoughby. But Watership Down really did have some great names. Tons of them would be great for chickens, or other pets, too (and ok, I admit I even considered some of the more normal ones when we were naming our baby--Holly, Laurel, Hazel, Betony, Willow, etc.). I really like the plant names, obviously. My 3 little chicks are still nameless (I'm waiting to see what they look like when they're a little more grown), but I'm thinking of giving them some of the botanical names from WD--I'm thinking of ones like Blackberry, Dandelion, Speedwell, Bluebell, Campion, etc. I know lots of those are male names in WD, but I think they work fine for girls as well. Which did you use for your rabbits?

Oh yeah, and thanks for the additional info on my chick, lol. It's good to know that she's not way out there--as long as she's basically cute and healthy and friendly and lays eggs, fitting the breed standard is not a huge deal for me at this point--I'm just glad to have gotten the breed and sex I ordered.