Barred rock gender..I'm stumped

[IsaChicks]

Hey there, I was tye one who posted about asking about my Barred Rock chick I assumed being, sorry for not getting back to you guys, but I have a more recent picture of her today actually.
And if you guys don't think she's a barred rock pls let me know what she is cause she has a barred pattern and gray legs.

she's beautiful and she looks like a cuckoo maran cause she doesnt have yellow legs

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

I have a more recent picture of her today actually.

Pullet.

And if you guys don't think she's a barred rock pls let me know what she is cause she has a barred pattern and gray legs.

We know she is not a Plymouth Rock, as they have yellow legs. Your chicken has slate on her legs, and what appears to be a tan color with pinkish soles. She is not a Marans because she does not have leg feathering or the right color of legs. That leaves only two thing: either some other kind of barred variety of a breed I am unaware of, or more likely a mix of a few.

(Before someone starts shouting at me, I know people say Cuckoo Marans do not have leg feathering, but I know that it is not right to exclude an important trait from one color variety of a breed just to do it. All Marans should have leg feathering no matter their color variety, it is an important feature and excluding it makes identification confusing.)

 

[IsaChicks]

you are honestly right. I looked it up and cuckoo marans aren't barred they are cuckoo. They have less of barring more of murky weird looking "barring". Now that my barred rock is maturing she's becoming more barred and her feet are turning yellow. What a surprise.

Pullet.


We know she is not a Plymouth Rock, as they have yellow legs. Your chicken has slate on her legs, and what appears to be a tan color with pinkish soles. She is not a Marans because she does not have leg feathering or the right color of legs. That leaves only two thing: either some other kind of barred variety of a breed I am unaware of, or more likely a mix of a few.

(Before someone starts shouting at me, I know people say Cuckoo Marans do not have leg feathering, but I know that it is not right to exclude an important trait from one color variety of a breed just to do it. All Marans should have leg feathering no matter their color variety, it is an important feature and excluding it makes identification confusing.)

 

[WingItRanch]

Maybe she's an Olive Egger...?

 

[LaceyJune]

she's beautiful and she looks like a cuckoo maran cause she doesnt have yellow legs

Thank you!
Oh, okay.
Yeah I've never really knew the color of their legs were also a big part of identifying their breed, I'll definitely keep that in mind.

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

Thank you!
Oh, okay.
Yeah I've never really knew the color of their legs were also a big part of identifying their breed, I'll definitely keep that in mind.

She is not a Marans either because Marans have feathered legs, while your chicken does not. That means she must be a mix between different breeds. I am not sure what, but Cuckoo Marans is likely in the mix.

Leg color is definitely a crucial factor in determining breed. Some breeds look similar and can be difficult for a beginner to identify apart (but are easy if you care about knowing breeds), but their leg color will easily tell what they are. For example, inexperienced chicken-keepers could mistake an Orpington for a Cochin. But Orpingtons have white legs and Cochins have yellow legs (and also there is the very obvious fact that Cochins are feather-legged while Orpingtons are not.)

 

[NatJ]

She is not a Marans either because Marans have feathered legs, while your chicken does not. That means she must be a mix between different breeds. I am not sure what, but Cuckoo Marans is likely in the mix.

Not every Marans has feathered legs.

Even if you want to say that a "good" Marans will have feathered legs, many chickens belong to a breed without being good examples of that breed.

If she grows up to lays dark brown eggs, she probably is a Marans.

If she grows up to lay blue eggs or green eggs, she is definitely an Easter Egger.

If she grows up to lay dark green eggs, she is an Olive Egger (still an Easter Egger, just one that lays a specific shade of green instead of anything in the blue/green spectrum).

Leg color is definitely a crucial factor in determining breed. Some breeds look similar and can be difficult for a beginner to identify apart (but are easy if you care about knowing breeds), but their leg color will easily tell what they are. For example, inexperienced chicken-keepers could mistake an Orpington for a Cochin. But Orpingtons have white legs and Cochins have yellow legs (and also there is the very obvious fact that Cochins are feather-legged while Orpingtons are not.)

Yes, leg color is an important detail.

But unfortunately it is not rare for hatcheries to send out chicks that have the wrong leg color. I've had Old English Game Bantams that had white legs and ones that had yellow legs (same shipment, same color variety, but only the white legs were correct for that color variety of that breed.) I've had a Bielefelder with green legs (should be yellow.) Plenty of other people have similar stories.

This happens with other traits too. Examples include breeds that should have a rose comb but some individuals have a single comb, and breeds that should have muff/beard on the face but some individuals lack it.

So I would definitely consider leg color, but keep in mind the chance of an individual chicken having it wrong.

In this case, a clean-legged Marans (no feathers on the feet) is more likely than a white-legged Barred Rock, so I think the chick is probably a Marans (unless she lays blue or green eggs, which would 100% point to Easter Egger.)

 

[Fwoof]

Not every Marans has feathered legs.

Even if you want to say that a "good" Marans will have feathered legs, many chickens belong to a breed without being good examples of that breed.

If she grows up to lays dark brown eggs, she probably is a Marans.

If she grows up to lay blue eggs or green eggs, she is definitely an Easter Egger.

If she grows up to lay dark green eggs, she is an Olive Egger (still an Easter Egger, just one that lays a specific shade of green instead of anything in the blue/green spectrum).

Yes, leg color is an important details.

But unfortunately it is not rare for hatcheries to send out chicks that have the wrong leg color. I've had Old English Game Bantams that had white legs and ones that had yellow legs (same shipment, same color variety, but only the white legs were correct for that color variety of that breed.) I've had a Bielefelder with green legs (should be yellow.) Plenty of other people have similar stories.

This happens with other traits too. Examples include breeds that should have a rose comb but some individuals have a single comb, and breeds that should have muff/beard on the face but some individuals lack it.

So I would definitely consider leg color, but keep in mind the chance of an individual chicken having it wrong.

In this case, a clean-legged Marans (no feathers on the feet) is more likely than a white-legged Barred Rock, so I think the chick is probably a Marans (unless she lays blue or green eggs, which would 100% point to Easter Egger.)

It can indeed happen, where you can be given a four-toed Silkie for example.
If her eggs aren't blue or green, she's most likely a Cuckoo Marans.
Best of luck!

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

Not every Marans has feathered legs.

Even if you want to say that a "good" Marans will have feathered legs, many chickens belong to a breed without being good examples of that breed.

I am fully aware of hatchery-quality chickens not looking like they should due to how hatcheries breed for quantity over quality. I am not some beginner who has never studied chickens. I just want to keep it simple for the people who are beginners. It is good to warn a beginner about an undesirable trait in their chicken's appearance in case they ever want to breed them to produce chicks to sell.

But unfortunately it is not rare for hatcheries to send out chicks that have the wrong leg color. I've had Old English Game Bantams that had white legs and ones that had yellow legs (same shipment, same color variety, but only the white legs were correct for that color variety of that breed.) I've had a Bielefelder with green legs (should be yellow.) Plenty of other people have similar stories.

Again, I am not a beginner. I know about this. I have plenty of hatcher-quality birds myself, and they come from Tractor Supply, which explains that. If you know, you know.

So I would definitely consider leg color, but keep in mind the chance of an individual chicken having it wrong.

In my example of the Orpington and the Cochin, I was talking about purebred birds, or at least those who had not been bred for quantity over quality. I should have made that more clear, I can see where you thought I was just comparing any Orpington and Cochin.

 

[NatJ]

I am fully aware of hatchery-quality chickens not looking like they should due to how hatcheries breed for quantity over quality. I am not some beginner who has never studied chickens. I just want to keep it simple for the people who are beginners. It is good to warn a beginner about an undesirable trait in their chicken's appearance in case they ever want to breed them to produce chicks to sell.

I was not just talking to you. I was also talking to everyone else who reads this thread, who might otherwise see your statements as 100% correct with no clarification needed.

A quote from one of your recent posts:

She is not a Marans either because Marans have feathered legs, while your chicken does not.

Since you say that "she is not a Marans," while I think she probably is a hatchery-quality Marans with clean legs, I considered it important to share my view as well. I gave the reasons for my view, just as you gave the reasons for yours.

Again, I am not a beginner. I know about this. I have plenty of hatcher-quality birds myself, and they come from Tractor Supply, which explains that. If you know, you know.

Do we know where OP's bird came from? Or the other bird in this thread?

I didn't notice anything about the source of either bird, so I assumed they did come from Tractor Supply or some other similar-quality source (the kind of place that might have clean-legged Marans.)