We thought our 17-week old "Malita" was a girl, but a neighbor thought he heard her trying to crow..

[Enkidu47]

 

[Amina]

Roosters may or may not become aggressive once their hormones really get going. And they're more likely to be aggressive with little kids than with adults. If you do keep him, there needs to be extremely close supervision of your 3 year old. Any attacks would be at face level for a toddler.

 

[StephensonC]

I see what you mean by the tail and the hackle feathers. So much for ordering three pullets from a friend of a friend, lol.

Here's another question: should Malita Pat actually prove to be a roo, what are the disadvantages to having one other than crowing that might annoy neighbors? MP actually has a very sweet personality at this point. Eating him/her is out of the question as he/she is a pet for our 3-year-old.

Thanks for your input, everyone.

It's a cockerel. Be very careful and always supervise when your 3 yr old is around him. As he becomes older and his hormones start to kick in, he could become very aggressive, especially around children. Do you have hens also? A rooster's job is to protect his hens at all costs. Some rooster's can be very calm around people, whereas others will attack anyone he sees as a threat. Definitely do some research on aggressive roosters if you decide to keep him. I had one that would charge at me as soon as I stepped foot into his coop and run, and then I have had others that are as sweet as a kitten....lol Good luck with him. He is very beautiful!

 

[annabelle12]

Howdy. If you are in a city, roosters are likely illegal due to the crowing and neighbors won't be too happy, as you mentioned Even if you are in the country...your sweet cockeral will soon mature and start mating with your hens, so you will have fertile eggs, but there should be more than 2 hens and 1 rooster in a flock....he will likely be too hard on the hens. A rooster can be a good protector of his hens from predators (and humans!), but might not be a good fit in your case...since you want a pet for your kid. Roosters are great in the right setting. Sexing chickens always leaves room for error and you should always have a plan if you end up with one by accident. If you can't process him for sentimental reasons, you may want to find someone else who wants to put him on their table. Good luck!

 

[annabelle12]

Feathers are a good way to tell sex at this age. Look up images of hackle, sickle, and saddle feathers. The feathers around the neck (hackle) look pointed in your pics and there are some curved tail feathers in the tail (sickle)....these point to a cockeral. Do the saddle feathers look pointy to you? Hard to tell from pics...they look rounded like a pullet to me. Here is a post with some pictures that may help. https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/is-my-chicken-a-pullet-hen-or-a-cockerel-cock Large comb and thicker legs can point out a cockeral as well. But...hens can crow too sometimes, just so you know. Strange but true. My gut says she looks like a he....but maybe some more experienced chicken-gender experts will weigh in!

 

[Enkidu47]

Thank you for responding so quickly! That gives me quite a few things to check on the chicken I shall call "Pat" until further notice. I'll get in closer to those feathers in the morning when it gets light. It is kind of fun to play Nancy Drew.

 

[ChickenPox]

I have the hardest time telling with black birds myself, so I would be confused too. LOL! What did you decide? I think I see some saddle feathers in there, but I'm not sure.

 

[Toddrick]

Especially in the first picture, the neck hackles look like a rooster to me. Hen's neck feathers usually look less "stringy", and more consistent with the other areas. Also, the tail feathers appear very long in the second picture, and hens usually have "short" tail feathers.

 

[mymilliefleur]

I'm going to have to say rooster....

 

[JensChickies]

Really tough to tell!! I feel if she was a rooster she would have a bigger comb and wattles. Buuuut I do see the stringy hackle feathers. .???? Only time will tell!