Silver Laced Wyandotte sexing

DragonMama · May 23, 2016

I think that I have three boys in here, and one of them (I was told) is a silkie. But I'll be danged if I can tell the hens from the roos in either breed.

This is my first time having chickens from chicks, so I'm totally new to this part of the process. Some of my SLW have standing combs, and some have the rose comb, and some look to have no comb. So I'm even more confused than I would otherwise be, even. Please help?

I apologize for the plethora of photos, I wanted to give the best refs possible. They are about 4 weeks old. Thanks, and thanks to everyone who has been replying on this thread, Reading through it all, I have learned a lot, and that's how I think I have two SLW cockrels. Thanks again!

hawaiichickie · May 24, 2016

Yup, I agree. You definitely have two roos. Their combs are big and red and you can see their wattles coming in. Other tells for my roo was that he was the only one who would take nips of my fingers when pointed at them, the girls would ignore my fingers, and he'd have the roo stance--big and tall--while the girls would forage around him.

In my profile pic, that's a hen in the foreground and my roo at the top back. You can see him standing tall and his red wattles. They were a little older there than yours are now.

hawaiichickie · May 24, 2016

In my profile pic, that's a hen in the foreground and my roo at the top back. You can see him standing tall and his red wattles. They were about the same age there that yours are now.

smsully1 · Jun 1, 2016

Just an update; after an "expert" opinion from the hatchery saying this was definitely a pullet we heard crows this morning. DEFINITELY a cockerel. 14-weeks old.

Gardenalex · Jun 1, 2016

What an expert. :-(

DragonMama · Jun 9, 2016

Thanks for the verification. I wasn't sure, because SLW are supposed to be rose-combed, and not have that tall floppy thing at all, but there they are! I have four, I think, with that tall comb, but two are very pale and yellowish, indicative of a hen's coloration.

If it were all up to stance, I'd say that I have 5 roos. LOL Some of the ones I'm near-positive are girls, do a heck of a lot of posturing and dancing.

I'll take some more photos and post those. I live in the city, and have to get them figured out and collared before they decide to start crowing, so I don't get into trouble. (It's only against the law to have a rooster here if he bothers the neighbors and they call in to complain)

flowerchicks · Jun 18, 2016

I got this one from a feed store, on April 29th,so it's a hatchery quality. It's about 8-9 wks in the pics. As soon as I got it home as a chick I noticed the comb seemed wide and thought, crap, leave it to me to pick a boy out of a bin of sexed chicks. It started to get a pinkish tint to its comb at 2-3 weeks and I could see some wattles coming in, but they've never really gotten much bigger or darker since it was 4 wks old. I've never seen any rooish behavior or even a rooish stance, which is usually my first clue to boy. And it's not friendly at all and never has been. The up close pick looks more pink than it is. What's the concensus....

This is a week after I got it