Breed and gender

[lizziebeth66]

 

[lizziebeth66]

Can anyone help me tell what breed and possibly what gender. They are 5 weeks old today.

 

[Blackberry18]

Too early to tell gender, 10 - 12 weeks is prime, where'd you get them? They look like Production Reds.

 

[junebuggena]

Those look like Production Reds. Won't be able to get a good idea of gender for another few weeks.

 

[lizziebeth66]

I got them from the Ga. Mad Hatcher as red stars. But mine seem a lot darker and don't have the white that I have seen on pictures of red stars. Are production reds good layers?

 

[Toddrick]

They don't look like my Production Red chick did. They have a lot more black spots.

 

[BantamLover21]

Those look like Production Reds. Won't be able to get a good idea of gender for another few weeks.

x2

 

[Blackberry18]

I got them from the Ga. Mad Hatcher as red stars. But mine seem a lot darker and don't have the white that I have seen on pictures of red stars. Are production reds good layers?

Production Reds are often a New Hampshire x Rhode Island Red, but can vary. One of the parents of your might carried a barring gene, or some other sort of marking, from looking at your birds. You're right about the white feather thing. Red Sex-Links (or Red Stars, if you prefer) are a cross between a gold/red gene cock x silver gene hen, leading to the white undercover of the feathers. That's usually how you tell Production Reds and Red Sex-Links apart. And yes, they are phenomenal layers. Actually, Production Reds are specifically bred to have better laying than both of the parent breeds. You'll get a lot of nice, brown eggs from those girls.

They don't look like my Production Red chick did. They have a lot more black spots.

Production Red appearances can vary depending on the cross, especially if one or both of the parents was a Production Red cross. But you're right; these do have more black than normal.