Abandoned rooster, what is he?

[Albanydog]

This gorgeous rooster, along with a couple others, just appeared in our chicken yard a couple months ago. We re-homed the others but he is so beautiful we decided to keep him but are interested to know what he might be? We had a Barred Rock rooster, Steve, a few years ago and this guy doesn't have the lighter coloring Steve did, he also has feathery feet?

 

[Apyl]

Barred Rock mix

 

[TeamChaos]

He's a good lookin' roo! What's his name?

 

[frazo96]

Looks like a mixed barred rock to me too.

 

[Albanydog]

Haven't named him yet, got to get to know their personality first

We used to have a barred rooster and he had much lighter coloring then this guy, who has the same color as our barred hens, so I didn't think he was barred rock. As for the barred part, I am really bad at telling the difference between any breed with the same coloring and similar pattern thing going on!

 

[donrae]

I think cuckoo marans. That difference in the pattern you're seeing is the cuckoo vs barring, see how his colors make kinda a V shape instead of a straighter bar like a barred rock? It's hard to describe, but I think you're seeing it from what you've said.

Okay, just looked them up and I guess the cuckoos are the ones that don't have feathered feet? I'm so NOT a Marans person, maybe someone here will chime in. And I thought I was on to something lol.

 

[donrae]

Wow, I'd hoped someone else would weigh in. He's pretty, and if he's good with the ladies sounds like a good find to me!

 

[BlueCamas]

He looks like a Black Sex-link Rooster.

 

[Kev]

Not sex link- they dont have feathered legs. Not marans- he has yellow skin.

Barred rock cross/mix is a good guess as BR are extremely common. Cross of BR and breed with heavy leg feathering would be reasonable guess.. like giant cochin, brahma....

due to not having any other color present on hackles/saddles, the heavy feathers on legs, long loose fluff on rear plus seems to have extra sickles on tail, I'd personally guess barred rock crossed with black giant cochin. iirc, cochins also have yellow skin, which is recessive so this cross would be guaranteed to throw all yellow skin, which this rooster has as evidenced by yellow legs.

He's 'darker' than your old rooster because this guy is not pure for the barring gene. It has a dose effect- meaning roosters 'pure' for barring will be lighter than 'not pure for barring' roosters and hens(because it is also sex linked, which means hens are able to have only one copy of barring or none at all... unlike roosters which can have either double dose, single dose or none)

 

[nurse_turtle]

He's a barred rock mix. Maybe a barred rock rooster over a red sex link or other red hen. Short answer....He's a mutt.