Basic questions about breed and sex of chickens

[m_shuman]

Hi I am new to this forum and new to raising chickens and I have a few basic questions. When you buy chicks at a feed store and they are marked pullets is it common for there to have been a mistake and you wind up with roos anyway? Also when you buy chicks at a feed store and they are supposed to be a certain breed is it common for them to be a different breed than what is marked? I am asking because my MIL bought chicks for my kids and they are supposed to be white leghorns, they are about 1 week old and the feathers are starting to come in on their wings and they are not all white. They have a little brown in them as well and I am wondering if they are really white leghorns. We really want white leghorns and hens because we purchased these chickens mainly for their laying ability. What can I do if they turn out to be roosters and some other breed than wt leghorns? Should I take them back? (I really don't want to traumatize my kids) Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks and I look forward to learning from you all!

Edited to add: They were all yellow and fluffy when when we got them so I had no reason to think they might be something else.
MLS

 

[Ridgerunner]

I have never raised White Leghorns, so I am not familiar with how those chicks look. Some chicks feather out looking different than the final colors. For example, Black Australorps are solid black when adult but the chicks have a few white feathers. Sorry I cannot help with that.

Is it common that you get roosters from the pullet bin at a feed store? It certainly can happen. The hatcheries have a 90% guarantee on their sexing. It depends on the skill of the person doing the sexing, and they get it right a lot, but they do make mistakes. So if everything is handled correctly at the feed store, it is still possible. Then you have the potential problems at the feed store. Some feed store employees know their stuff and do a great job of keeping chicks separated and all that. Some feed store employees don't. So let's say that at some feed stores it is more common than others.

Is it common for them to be a different breed than marked? Occasionally the hatcheries make a mistake. If you are shipping out 100,000 chicks a week with humans doing a lot of the work, mistakes can happen. Not all hatcheries are the same, but they generally do a good job on keeping it straight. It is possible a mistake was made at the hatchery, but I think the biggest risk comes down to the knowledge and dilligence of the employees at the feed store. You are dealing with people and some really are not that familair with chicks, while some others are excellent. So again, I think the results will vary quite a bit by the feed store.

Another problem that can occur at some feed stores is that some allow public access ot the chicks, so the general public might pick up a chick to look at it and put it back in the wrong bin. Again, some do not allow public access so this risk is higher in some feed stores than others.

Not sure this helps a lot. Good luck! And welcome to the forum!

 

[JodyJo]

I have only been doing this a year...I went to my local feed store to get pullets, for eggs, from the pullet pen, I grabbed 9....they all ended up being roos!! What are the chances, Barred Rock and Austrolorps....so we grew them to maturity, then sold them at a local auction barn, NOW I have a multitude of newbies...Gold Star, a Black Silkie Bantam, EE's, BR, Austrolorp, California White, and a few others, plus one a neighbor just gave us.

These are 95% guaranteed to be pullets, when you get them, that is usually the best they can do from the hatchery. I am not familiar with the breed you have, the best you can do is post pics and let the "pro" on this site help you out. You usually cannot bring them back...you can check around if they are roos, and see if anyone needs them. Your kids can always pick out more....how fun are babies anyway....good luck to you.

Post pics as soon as you can and see what everyone says!

 

[4-H chicken mom]

Ridgerunner is right on things can and do happen. My TSC started off with their bins full on chicks on the floor, then the bins where up on concrete blocks to keep the kids from reaching in and picking them up. The next time I was at the store, the bins now had fencing material around them to keep everyone out. So they must be having a lot of problems for them to go to such extremes. If you don't want what you end up getting, you can always rehome them by placing an ad somewhere. Good luck.