Australorp cockerel or pullet? 5 months old

[jcg1]

5 months old. Huge red comb and waddles, rounded neck feathers, no obvious saddle feathers, but heard a "ka-kaw!" this morning for the first time. It normally clucks like the other girls. Has not laid an egg yet, but has shown interest in the nesting box though. The fastest and most skittish of our three. Are Australorps late blooming cockerels?

Here it was at 15 weeks:

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

5 months old. Huge red comb and waddles, rounded neck feathers, no obvious saddle feathers, but heard a "ka-kaw!" this morning for the first time. It normally clucks like the other girls. Has not laid an egg yet, but has shown interest in the nesting box though. The fastest and most skittish of our three. Are Australorps late blooming cockerels?





Here it was at 15 weeks:

Looks like a pretty BA pullet to me, and based on the redness of the comb and wattles, she's probably going to start laying soon.

I have BAs and BA/Brown Leghorn mixes - the crosses look almost exactly like the full BAs except that they have larger combs and a shape that's a combination of BA and Leghorn (like a longer, straighter tail).

 

[jcg1]

Ah, that could be! Thanks for sharing that info!

 

[BantamLover21]

Definitely a pullet. Should be laying soon.

 

[drumstick diva]

point of lay pullet

 

[jcg1]

She crowed again this morning--"ka-kaw!" "Ka-kaw!" ... Then started making the sounds my hens make. Surely she would have started sooner than 23 weeks old if she were a cockerel? Could this be one of those random crowing hens?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

She crowed again this morning--"ka-kaw!" "Ka-kaw!" ... Then started making the sounds my hens make. Surely she would have started sooner than 23 weeks old if she were a cockerel? Could this be one of those random crowing hens?

Hi, welcome to BYC!

I have 2 cockerels born August 8th last year, so 6 months old and not crowing yet. So there are no absolutes in chicken keeping.

Yes, some hens do crow AND can even grow spurs.

And cockerels also egg sing!

You've got a pretty lady there!

Her feathers tell the truth.

And talk about entertaining chicken TV!

It's fun when they keep you guessing.

I have 56 birds and ZERO doubt yours is a pullet.

 

[jcg1]

Thank you for the reassurance! She's so pretty and very entertaining for sure. Thanks again!

 

[jcg1]

Alas! We have our first little egg from this little lady. Pullet indeed!

 

[peeper89]

That pretty egg from pretty hen - maybe kakaw kakaw was egg sing song