I don't have a picture of a dark handy, but my guess is that they are both the same sex, probably pullets but it is hard to tell at this age. I think the differences that you are seeing may just be from breeding differences. Neither of them show me the run of the mill dark brahma feathering pattern, but they are young and it is difficult to tell so early what their final pattern/color will be. Normally, the pullets would have a penciling pattern on their body, not barring, and the cockerels have a solid body color. Anyway, the best and only sure way to tell whether one is a cockerel is to wait until he/she either lays or crows or the feathering becomes very obvious (long saddle and neck hackle for instance).So this is Mokie.
He's about 2 months old. I picked six Dark Brahma Pullets out of a bin at TSC. At least they were supposed to be pullets. We kept 2 and gave the other 4 away. My girls intentionally tried to pick two that looked a little different, though I'd warned them that as they grew up they'd probably be very hard to tell apart anyway since they're all dark barred and look identical.
Anyway, this one had a lot less feathers than the other we kept. But I didn't think anything of it because the whole bin full of then 2 wk old chicks was very over crowded and were all picking the heck out of each other. The other one we kept had half a tail and a bloody scab where the rest should have been. This one had no tail whatsoever but it looked like it had broken off, not just been late growing in.
As they've grown though, it's become apparent to me that they do not look alike at ALL. Mokie is already 1.3 lbs. Beans is just over a pound. To the point where I'm thinking Mokie is actually a little cockerel.
Here's his sister, Beans, for comparison...
Even the texture of their feathers is different. I swear Beans' feathers feel velvety and soft and are much finer. Mokie's are soft, yes, but nowhere near as velvety and they're pretty coarse and just thicker and fuller feeling.
So I guess my only real question is, does anybody have any photos of 2 month old Dark Brahma cockerels handy? Because a search on the internet shows me nothing but older looking chicks with coal black bases and bright silver hackle and saddle feathers over top. My little guy doesn't really seem to be getting any white as I'd be expecting. And he still DOES have barred flight feathers. In fact, all of his emerging feathers were barred when I got them. Almost like the little guy was going "Sure! I'm a pullet! Honest!" Then a week later he goes "Psyche! Gotcha! I'm a lil' rooster now! Ha ha!" ^_^
Is he a regular run of the mill Dark Brahma cockerel? Or something else that got thrown into the order by accident?
Oh! I forgot to mention that our TSC's get their chicks from Mt. Healthy. Which doesn't make me terribly happy at times like this because their reference photos on their website and their breed and breeder stock information is an absolute joke. I honestly don't know why they even have a website at all as it's a waste of space for the amount of information you can find about exactly what they're selling you.
Thanks Sjisty! I love seeing them before and after!Yes, he's a dark Brahma. He should outgrow the brown feathers. You can see the different feathering pattern in the pullet (in front) and the cockerel (center).
Same cockerel, a little older.
An older version of the same pullet. Even back then she had that "attitude" look! She is now around 8 years old and one of the favorites. She still comes in the house to lay her eggs, although very sporadically now.
