At what age do roos start crowing?

[lbartsch]

Thanks everyone! Guess I'll just have to be patient. Something I'm not too good at.

 

[ChickDaze]

My roos are about 8 weeks and haven't crowed yet but i am waiting on them... They already have RED combs and big wattles.

 

[F106A]

Just about two months for my two, crazy White Leghorns, and just over three months for my Buff Wyandotte. I gave all three away due to the local ordinance.

 

[kareninthesun]

If I understand correctly, depending on the comb size and color isn't a definative indicator that what you have is a rooster. I'm hoping this is accurate since I have two sporting higher color marks. But they aren't acting any different than the rest of the young ladies.

 

[CupOJoe42]

My Bantam Quail Bearded D'Anver, Gazpacho, started crowing (sounds strangled) 2 days ago! He will be 8 weeks old tomorrow!

 

[dianaross77]

Quote:
That can be true if you're comparing the chicks to chicks the same age of a different breed. There are breeds who develop large combs while young. That is why it's important to compare chicks of the same age and same breed. But the color of the comb (red) is a very reliable way to indicate sex as cockerels mature faster than pullets. A pullet will not have a red come until just before she starts laying which wouldn't be any earlier than 12 weeks old and that is the earliest I've heard. It's usually closer to 16-24 weeks and sometimes more depending on breed and the time of year the pullet hatched. I had a Serama hen that didn't lay until 9 months old.

 

[jen5680]

I was at a farm and they had 2 week old cochins that were crowing. It was soooo cute and I have never seen one crow that young!

 

[1 hen and 1 roo]

We have an Ancona pullet that we thought for sure was a cockerel. We heard a crow out of her and her comb was much larger than the other pullet and much redder than the other pullet. We were convinced she was a cockerel. One day several weeks later she laid her first egg. A few days before she had began to do the hen squat every time we reached down to touch her. The other Ancona pullet same age has not laid an egg or done the hen squat yet. She just runs from us unlike the other one who lets us pick her up.

Most generally with a lot of breeds you can tell the difference using the comb and wattles and their color. The older they get they will start acting like a hen or roo. The roos generally are taller from what we have seen with our chickens. The hens usually congregate together more than the roos. The roos will chest fight/play with each other often. The roos will usually start picking on the hens but not yet doing their thing just before they mature. The hens will often run from the roos for a while and then they will begin to do the hen squat as they mature.

These are all things that we have recognized in our experiences this year with hatching so many chicks and watching them mature. Really can not remember when the first one crowed but it was awfully early for some and awfully late for others. The Ameraucana crowed the latest of all the breeds. The Araucana crowed pretty early as well as the d'anver. The cochin bantams crowed early as well.

Hopefully you get to keep them all and have lots of eggs!!