15 week silkie Roo behavior

[silkie3190]

Hi my Roo is 15 week old keeps grabbing at the neck feathers and wing is that normal behavior also not sure exactly what the other sexes are thinking I have at least another Roo but I know he does it to my pullet .

 

[Kev]

Yeah it's normal- it's the roo mating instinct starting to kick in. They can be all "grabby" and seem so mean, holding on even if the pullet/hen is screaming and not wanting it at all. He will eventually figure it out but the thing is, usually pullets are not really ready for several weeks after the cockerels are so don't be too surprised if there's a lot of protesting. If it gets really bad, it is okay to separate the roo for a while until the pullets are laying.

It varies by cockerel when they start trying to grab and hold onto other birds. By this age it's usually fairly clear which are the boys by their feathering type, color and size of combs

 

[silkie3190]

Yeah it's normal- it's the roo mating instinct starting to kick in. They can be all "grabby" and seem so mean, holding on even if the pullet/hen is screaming and not wanting it at all.   He will eventually figure it out but the thing is, usually pullets are not really ready for several weeks after the cockerels are so don't be too surprised if there's a lot of protesting.  If it gets really bad, it is okay to separate the roo for a while until the pullets are laying. Thanks , so a Roo at this age should have large waffles and comb ? My other five have very some waffles small combs

It varies by cockerel when they start trying to grab and hold onto other birds.   By this age it's usually fairly clear which are the boys by their feathering type, color and size of combs

 

[Kev]

Hard to answer the comb/wattle question... the general answer is Yes.

however it can be confusing if there are different breeds with different comb types or sizes. An easter egger rooster with pea comb(naturally small type of comb with no spikes on top) can seem to be a girl if next to a leghorn hen if she has one of those huge combs some of them can get.

In some breeds like silkies the comb size can be very variable. A really big comb silkie roo can make a small comb silkie roo look like a girl.

It's best to look at the whole bird, the comb size and how the feathers look. Often the crests are smaller and more slicked back on the silkie roos.. very puffy on the girls but this is also very variable.

You can try to get help with guesses by posting pictures in the what breed and sex section on here.

 

[silkie3190]

Sorry messed up so what your saying by this age a Roo should have large waffels and defined comb ? My other 5 don't have large or defined ones can that mean they are pullets ?

 

[Kev]

Sorry messed up so what your saying by this age a Roo should have large waffels and defined comb ? My other 5 don't have large or defined ones can that mean they are pullets ?

It's both yes and maybe. If all of your birds are silkies and of exact same age, within a week of hatch date plus the combs on the others are totally nonexistent or much harder to see, could be pullets but without seeing them I can't tell if any might be roos with very small combs. Comb size varies a lot in silkies.

I'd say to look at the whole bird, not concentrate on just the comb/wattles- look at the shape and size of the crest, body, long(boys tend to have longer) vs short legs... it can help a lot to post pictures but silkies are known for being difficult to sex while young.