3-week EE - looks boyish already...??

[lulu99]

I'd have thought 3 weeks old might be too young to tell , but little Fez is pretty big, bigger than two other EEs the same age -- and the wider comb and a few red shoulder feathers seem to suggest cockerel...... Is it still too early to say for certain?
The other two have tiny skinny yellow lines for combs, and perhaps somewhat daintier legs. They were all acquired and sexed from a hatchery.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

It would be early in a lot of cases, but I'm pretty certain that's a little fella! Beyond just the large comb already, I can already see his red shoulder patches coming in, which is a masculine trait.

 

[lulu99]

That's what I'm thinking too. Thanks! I'll try to remember to post a few more pics as s/he grows so we can see the changes.
As a side questions, do pea-combed hens ever show up with three-row combs, or is that100% exclusively a male trait? I'm guessing the red shoulders are exclusively a male characteristic.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Having 3 rows visible on a pea comb is a strong indicator of masculinity at a young age. Once an adult, some females can have 3 distinct rows in their pea comb, so age is the key there. When it's 3 rows, raised, and already has a hint of color at 3 weeks of age like with your baby is when it's a male trait. Pullets generally don't start getting color in their combs until 2-3 months old, and with pea combs, their comb remains mostly flat to the head until they're closer to laying age, making it difficult or impossible to see if they have three distinct rows or not. That's why you see people saying three rows is a male indicator; because those rows show up more distinctly on male chicks at a much, much younger age.

The red shoulders depend on the overall pattern. There are females that have red in the shoulders as well, but it's either because they're a solid red color or have a lot of red on the rest of their body as well. Patches of red on an otherwise grayish-brownish chick like yours is a strongly masculine trait.