Are these chickens female or male and what breed are they?

[Hamiam]

@sunflour @speckledhen, I'm not as good as y'all at sexing or identifying breeds. Can you help this new member?

 

[rebrascora]

As far as I am concerned we need better photos to identify breeds. I agree with @silviethecochin that the white one may well be a white rock. I'm not sure if the legs of the black one are actually green or a trick of the light and a clearer close up photo of the red one unrestricted by someone holding him is needed but my gut feeling is that he is a mixed breed bird.

 

[Michael89]

You will also find that males have quite patchy colouring whereas females have a more uniform pattern and colour. Your red bird has patchy colouring, especially in the wing shoulder area.... that is a very male specific thing and a red or darker red patch in that area is a particular male characteristic.

Ok, that's a lot of new things for me to learn today. You're so helpful. Thx.

The other interesting thing about this red/black chicken is that it doesn't seem to have spurs... Aren't spurs a main characteristic of roosters?
Or perhaps, based on what you have said in your first comment, the chicken is just too young and the spurs will only start to show up later on...

 

[rebrascora]

Or perhaps, based on what you have said in your first comment, the chicken is just too young and the spurs will only start to show up later on...

That's exactly it!..... although very occasionally hens also develop spurs and some even crow, so it is not a totally male specific thing.

 

[Michael89]

As far as I am concerned we need better photos to identify breeds. I agree with @silviethecochin that the white one may well be a white rock. I'm not sure if the legs of the black one are actually green or a trick of the light and a clearer close up photo of the red one unrestricted by someone holding him is needed but my gut feeling is that he is a mixed breed bird.

As for the breed of the white chicken, I don't think it's a mixed breed. Indeed, it actually comes from an egg that I bought in a grocery store... Whereas, the other two eggs that gave birth to the black chicken and black/red chicken were bought from a farmer in Germany.

With regard to the photos, I'll take that into account. Since I live in Switzerland, it's currently pitch-black outside and my chickens are in their coop sleeping so I'll be only able to take photos tomorrow morning. I'll try to take the best photos possible from different angles so you guys can get a good look at them and we'll therefore be able to draw a certain conclusion .

 

[Michael89]

That's exactly it!..... although very occasionally hens also develop spurs and some even crow, so it is not a totally male specific thing.

Okay, then the spurs showing up is just as matter of time.

 

[rebrascora]

Yes. I never pay that close attention to when they develop, but somewhere about a year old they should be more obvious.
The first sign of a cockerel will usually be a pink or red fleshy comb develops before they are 10 weeks... often it is obvious at 5 weeksby the comb and occasionally you will get a precocious one that it's comb is red at 2 weeks. Pullets usually don't get a red comb until just before they lay, so 16+ weeks. Next tell tale sign is patchy colouring and male specific feathers.... hackle and saddle feathers usually appear first and then the curved sickle tail feathers. Crowing can occur as young as a few weeks or take as long as 6 months and is usually the clincher. Pullets(hens under a year old) very, very rarely crow, older hens slightly less rarely. Spurs are something we identify with roosters (cockerels over a year old) but you usually know you have a male bird long before he grows spurs.
I know it is all a bit confusing because whatever rules you apply, it seems that there are always exceptions, even dominant hens will occasionally pretend to mate with a lower hen to show dominance, but you will figure it out eventually with experience.

 

[Michael89]

That is very interesting. I am eternally grateful for everything you’ve taught me.
I didn't actually know that a hen's comb changes color... Wow!

Furthermore, the description you've provided for the development of the red fleshy comb of cockerels perfectly matches my own brown/red chicken's case. It got a red comb at a very young age. How intriguing. Now, I know for sure that it's cockerel.

 

[rebrascora]

The pullets' combs will redden up when they are ready to lay. It is a visual cue to any rooster that she is healthy and fertile. When they go into moult in the autumn and stop laying, or if they go broody (and stop laying), their comb will go dry and shrivelled and pale, which tells the rooster that they are not ovulating (and to go visit one of his other mistresses to play with!!) Watching for a pullet's comb to turn cherry red is what people look out for to know that they will get eggs soon.

 

[rebrascora]

Now, I know for sure that it's cockerel

You just didn't believe us did you!!

Edited to add..... don't be offended by my sense of humour. I understand that people don't want to believe that their chicken is a cockerel. I just thought it was funny that, despite all the replies, you could only accept it when you had an explanation that you could relate to yourself.