Roo or Hen - 4 day old Barred Rocks

[Cawestbrook59]

I just bought four barred rocks chicks. Could you identify if they are male or female? The seller said he would trade out if he gave us a rooster because we aren’t allowed to have roosters where I live.

There are photos of four chicks-4 days old.

Thank you for you help!

 

[DLA]

Males usually have a larger white spot while females it's smaller but that's not always 100%. That said, I'd keep a close eye on chick in the 1st picture. I suspect that may be a male, not sure about 2 but I'm leaning toward female, 3 and 4 look female.

 

[AinaWGSD]

Too young by far. Male barred rocks "should" have a larger head spot because they have two copies of barring. Someone once said "boys have a mullet, girls have a toupe" as a way to describe the difference. But it's something that has to be selected for, and it can easily be lost if not selected for. It's also very subjective.

If these chicks came from a breeder who's been at this for a few years and knows their lines really well then sexing by the size of the head spot may be reliable. If they are from hatchery stock and/or the breeder is a novice then all bets are off.

Eta: I agree with @DLA the bottom two chicks definitely look female based on the size of the head spot. It's not impossible to have a male with such a small spot, but it would be surprising assuming the correct genetics (double barred males)

 

[DLA]

Males usually have a larger white spot while females it's smaller but that's not always 100%. That said, I'd keep a close eye on chick in the 1st picture. I suspect that may be a male, not sure about 2 but I'm leaning toward female, 3 and 4 look female.

I'd like to amend that, chick one could be female. I had a look at my 1 week pictures of my female barred rock and she didn't look that different from yours

 

[Cawestbrook59]

Males usually have a larger white spot while females it's smaller but that's not always 100%. That said, I'd keep a close eye on chick in the 1st picture. I suspect that may be a male, not sure about 2 but I'm leaning toward female, 3 and 4 look female.

Thank you!

 

[Cawestbrook59]

I'd like to amend that, chick one could be female. I had a look at my 1 week pictures of my female barred rock and she didn't look that different from yours View attachment 4186665

Thank you!

 

[Cawestbrook59]

Too young by far. Male barred rocks "should" have a larger head spot because they have two copies of barring. Someone once said "boys have a mullet, girls have a toupe" as a way to describe the difference. But it's something that has to be selected for, and it can easily be lost if not selected for. It's also very subjective.

If these chicks came from a breeder who's been at this for a few years and knows their lines really well then sexing by the size of the head spot may be reliable. If they are from hatchery stock and/or the breeder is a novice then all bets are off.

Eta: I agree with @DLA the bottom two chicks definitely look female based on the size of the head spot. It's not impossible to have a male with such a small spot, but it would be surprising assuming the correct genetics (double barred males)

Thank you for the information. I purchased from a breeder, but I do not know how long he has been breeding chickens. He said he would trade out any roos for pullets, but I've had chickens long enough to know they don't integrate as well when they are older.

 

[Yardmom]

In my experience barred rocks that can be sexed from head spots the females have a precise dot and the males have a messy spot. The spots on these chicks (and many hatchery barred rocks) are much larger than the barred rocks I have had.