All black barred rock at 8 weeks.

[Akgmrw62]

Steve looks like a hen to me! There is no male feather patterning on Steve, so I think it’s a girl. She is pretty!

Thanks. I've been hoping she's a hen. She followed me all around their pen yesterday when I was adding an extra 2' of chicken wire to the top of fencing. Landlord set up a trailer across the fence from my place and he raises beagles and coon hounds. Till I can get a gate on my part and make sure they can't get thru common fence they are in an old pig enclosure that was here. She kept making almost egg laying cackle sounds as she was following me. Not sure if she missed me since back to full time job again or what was up with her lol.

 

[NatJ]

View attachment 3621150
Another update and question. Steve is 3 days shy of 16 weeks now. First pic is mainly cause I love her sheen in the sun lol. But been reading on here and Google and guess when they have skinny pointy feathers on their hackles and tail and saddle that points to a Roo correct? Steve's feathers (to me anyway) all seem to be rounded. Yeti noticed today that she's got sharp spurs just barely poking thru (growing I guess you'd say) on her legs. Her comb has also grown. Does this point to my Steve actually being a "Steve" . I don't remember where I read it but thought had read once in a great while a hen will have spurs also. I am so hoping Steve is a hen lol. But thinking that's not so. Thanks again for any input. View attachment 3621297View attachment 3621150

Steve appears to have rounded feathers in the saddle and hackle area, like adult hens and like young chicks of both genders. Considering that Steve is 16 weeks old, that is a good indication of her being female.

The comb is getting larger and more red because she is nearly ready to lay eggs. Adult hens often have combs that are bright red and fairly large. Pullets keep their small pale combs for longer than young cockerels do, but by maturity both genders have bright red combs of varying sizes (all are bigger than young-chick combs, different breeds can have different size combs, and male combs do tend to be larger than female combs of the same breed.)

Spurs on hens are definitely possible. It is fairly common for hens to have small spurs, but rare for hens to have really long spurs like some roosters get.

So far, I think everything still points to Steve being a female.

 

[Chicalina]

I agree. Stephanie is a girl! She is so beautiful

 

[Akgmrw62]

Steve appears to have rounded feathers in the saddle and hackle area, like adult hens and like young chicks of both genders. Considering that Steve is 16 weeks old, that is a good indication of her being female.

The comb is getting larger and more red because she is nearly ready to lay eggs. Adult hens often have combs that are bright red and fairly large. Pullets keep their small pale combs for longer than young cockerels do, but by maturity both genders have bright red combs of varying sizes (all are bigger than young-chick combs, different breeds can have different size combs, and male combs do tend to be larger than female combs of the same breed.)

Spurs on hens are definitely possible. It is fairly common for hens to have small spurs, but rare for hens to have really long spurs like some roosters get.

So far, I think everything still points to Steve being a female.

Thanks for all the info. I've wondered if she's getting close to laying cause she's been making different clucking/cooing sound then she used to. Not the cluck cluck continuous like I remember ours when I was little (we just had the RIR when I was young. But a more urgent gruff brack sound (oh my I'd never make a good novalist would I ). I'm so excited now. Thanks again!

 

[CherieBaby]

"Steve" looks like they could be the "Steve" version of my Ameraucana Delilah. In this pic Delilah was 18 weeks old.

 

[Akgmrw62]

"Steve" looks like they could be the "Steve" version of my Ameraucana Delilah. In this pic Delilah was 18 weeks old. View attachment 3623428

Wow gorgeous. Looks like Steve. (grandbaby named her Steve cause she said it's name of some character that's all black in Minecraft lol. I feel I lucked out when got her. Bought her with two other chicks. They were all supposed to be barred rocks. The other definitely are bared rocks and I got sweet treat with Steve.

 

[Akgmrw62]

Steve

"Steve" looks like they could be the "Steve" version of my Ameraucana Delilah. In this pic Delilah was 18 weeks old. View attachment 3623428

Steve gets the same look in her eye lol. As side note. My 13 year old pain in the honey spoiled pit/Chihuahua/Jack Russell mix is named Dahlia. We call her Lila for short

 

[CherieBaby]

Wow gorgeous. Looks like Steve. (grandbaby named her Steve cause she said it's name of some character that's all black in Minecraft lol. I feel I lucked out when got her. Bought her with two other chicks. They were all supposed to be barred rocks. The other definitely are bared rocks and I got sweet treat with Steve.

Delilah was also a "Barred Rock" but never got her bars...she also didn't have the spot on her head...Farm & Oops messed up their signage. But I got my barred rock 3 weeks later so her name is Diva because she had a tiara not just a spot on her head!

 

[Akgmrw62]

Ahh how cute.

Delilah was also a "Barred Rock" but never got her bars...she also didn't have the spot on her head...Farm & Oops messed up their signage. But I got my barred rock 3 weeks later so her name is Diva because she had a tiara not just a spot on her head!View attachment 3623810View attachment 3623811

Ahhh how cute. Isn't it crazy how attached we can get to our chicks and chickens lol.