Ameraucana chick sexing

[jsroberts]

Hi all,

I have two chicks sold to me as pure Ameraucanas. #1 is from a breeder and #2 is from TSC. Is it too early to tell sex?

Chick 1: lively and very funny. About 4 weeks. I haven't seen any chest bumping or other behavior from it so I'm hoping it's a pullet. It often runs over to me and gives me The Look like it wants me to pick it up, so I do, and then it fusses at me while not resisting at all but seems to enjoy hanging out on my shoulder and snacking on mealworms. I've read about Ameraucana flightiness so I've been doing my best to handle them as much as possible. This one and a few of its siblings seem to enjoy it. The rest of its siblings couldn't care less, lol.

Chick 2: Kylo Hen. The weirdest chick I have ever owned. No interest in playing or mealworms. Perfectly healthy, just seems incredibly committed to doing as little as possible.

Thanks in advance!!

 

[TheOddOneOut]

Hi all,

I have two chicks sold to me as pure Ameraucanas. #1 is from a breeder and #2 is from TSC. Is it too early to tell sex?

Chick 1: lively and very funny. About 4 weeks. I haven't seen any chest bumping or other behavior from it so I'm hoping it's a pullet. It often runs over to me and gives me The Look like it wants me to pick it up, so I do, and then it fusses at me while not resisting at all but seems to enjoy hanging out on my shoulder and snacking on mealworms. I've read about Ameraucana flightiness so I've been doing my best to handle them as much as possible. This one and a few of its siblings seem to enjoy it. The rest of its siblings couldn't care less, lol.

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Chick 2: Kylo Hen. The weirdest chick I have ever owned. No interest in playing or mealworms. Perfectly healthy, just seems incredibly committed to doing as little as possible.
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Thanks in advance!!

First is a mutt. Easter Egger.
You will still get colored eggs.

Second isn’t even an EE - looks like a Sapphire Gem, a brown egg hybrid.

 

[Frazzemrat1]

Too soon to tell on the EE. The second, I agree, looks like it could be something else. Especially since it came from TSC. Hatchery EE tend to have pea combs.

 

[jsroberts]

First is a mutt. Easter Egger.
You will still get colored eggs.

Second isn’t even an EE - looks like a Sapphire Gem, a brown egg hybrid.

I just bought some sapphire gems the other day and while I agree they look close, at least closer than #2 does to the other chicks I have, there are still some big differences. Every single one of the sapphire gems I had the poor TSC employee grab for me had a headspot even though they were sold as straight run. So either somebody mislabeled something or the hatchery is playing a little fast and loose with their advertising, lol. Thanks for the help!

 

[jsroberts]

Too soon to tell on the EE. The second, I agree, looks like it could be something else. Especially since it came from TSC. Hatchery EE tend to have pea combs.

Thank you!

 

[TheOddOneOut]

I just bought some sapphire gems the other day and while I agree they look close, at least closer than #2 does to the other chicks I have, there are still some big differences. Every single one of the sapphire gems I had the poor TSC employee grab for me had a headspot even though they were sold as straight run. So either somebody mislabeled something or the hatchery is playing a little fast and loose with their advertising, lol. Thanks for the help!

Headspots? Someone played you. Those were all males, then.

 

[FuzzyCritters]

The first one is an Easter egger, second might be a sapphire gem (if it is, a pullet because no head spot).

The sapphire gems you bought with head spots are male. SGs are sex linked, where females are solid colored and males have head spots.

 

[jsroberts]

The first one is an Easter egger, second might be a sapphire gem (if it is, a pullet because no head spot).

The sapphire gems you bought with head spots are male. SGs are sex linked, where females are solid colored and males have head spots.

It's certainly possible, but I've read a few threads on here saying that SGs had headspots and ended up pullets anyway. I guess we'll see. I only bought two of them, so I'm not sweating it too much.

 

[EmmaRainboe]

I have two chicks sold to me as pure Ameraucanas.

Then you were played. Neither are Ameraucana.

 

[FuzzyCritters]

It's certainly possible, but I've read a few threads on here saying that SGs had headspots and ended up pullets anyway. I guess we'll see. I only bought two of them, so I'm not sweating it too much.

Any barred "sapphire gem" pullet isn't really a sapphire gem, but probably a cuckoo bluebar or sapphire olive egger. Sapphire gem pullets can only be solid colored, never barred (head spot means barring).