8 week old bcm

[Ilovechickens2525]

These are my 7 week olds, the other two are 11 weeks now and still looking like hens I think.

These two, I’m wondering if one of them is a cockerel. So the first pic is both of them together. The next two pictures are of the same one (not sure which one from the first pic, from a distance they look the same). But the one in the single pictures is getting some slight copper flecking on its back. And it’s comb is ever so slightly bigger (no pink though) and slightly fleshy wattles.

These two chicks came from the same farm I got my full grown marans hens last year. They had very minimal combs/wattles until right up to point of lay. Also not a tonne of copper on their necks, one has none at all.

So I’m comparing these two more to my full grown ones than my 11 week olds who came from a different breeder.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

These are my 7 week olds, the other two are 11 weeks now and still looking like hens I think.

These two, I’m wondering if one of them is a cockerel. So the first pic is both of them together. The next two pictures are of the same one (not sure which one from the first pic, from a distance they look the same). But the one in the single pictures is getting some slight copper flecking on its back. And it’s comb is ever so slightly bigger (no pink though) and slightly fleshy wattles.

These two chicks came from the same farm I got my full grown marans hens last year. They had very minimal combs/wattles until right up to point of lay. Also not a tonne of copper on their necks, one has none at all.

So I’m comparing these two more to my full grown ones than my 11 week olds who came from a different breeder.

They look like pullets to me.

 

[Ilovechickens2525]

They look like pullets to me.

Thanks! Yeah I was thinking they both were until I saw these copper flecks just today.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Thanks! Yeah I was thinking they both were until I saw these copper flecks just today.

I personally go by comb development when sexing most young birds. Boys almost always have a bright red comb by 8 weeks in my experiences.

 

[2hnznroo]

Are these black copper marans pullets or cockerels?

Honestly both look pretty similar. They are 8 weeks. I had two blue copper marans that were clearly boys, had big streaks of copper and huge combs very early. These two looked like girls next to them. But now I’m not so sure. Their combs are larger than my Swedish flower hens, mosaics and legbars that are the same age. Their backs aren’t completely feathered out yet either, which all the others have fully feathered backs except one Swedish flower hen.

what do you think?

Pullets