Brown Comets??

[Troutbum67]

Hi all,
First photo post for me, slick interface!
I recently bought these 4 girls. The owner stated they were 10 month old Brown Comets, which I believe are a Red Sex Link variety made by combining a RIR rooster with a New Hampshire hen correct??
Does this sound right and is that what these are?
I had a terrible time at first as they had a respiritory infection that saw me spoon feeding antibiotics and food to 2 of them morning and night for over a week. They are doing much better now and are starting to lay x-large brown eggs again (which I now cannot eat for 15-17 days unfortunately). They appear to be quite freindly but do peck at each other a bit. The third photo shows the 2 extremes, one lighter cinnimon colored and the other a deep reddish brown. They love to scratch around the yard eating grass and bugs.
The photos are slightly washed out as they are actually a bit darker than this.
Thanks,
Shawn

 

[Mr MKK FARMS]

Sexlinks are made by breeding a Barred rock with a RIR or a new hampshire.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Sexlinks are made by breeding a Barred rock with a RIR or a new hampshire.

A Black Sex Link can be made by putting a gold (NH or RIR) over a Barred Rock

Troutbum67, whatever the owner called them, they are Red Sex Links. Perhaps the most common sex link of all. These hybrids are widely used in the brown egg laying industry. In the retail segment, they often go by a plethora of cute sounding names, such Cinnamon Queens, Golden Comets, Red Stars, etc, etc.

Great eggs, as a rule, which is why the egg industry uses them. "Them" is a mis-nomer of a sort, as there are dozens of mixes of these types of hybrid.

 

[iella]

Nothing useful to contribute here, just wanted to say, WOW! Those eggs!

 

[Chickenman76]

Sexlinks are made by breeding a Barred rock with a RIR or a new hampshire.

There are several Sexlink crosses, there are no Brown Comets

• The black sex-link (also known as Rock Reds) is produced by crossing a barred hen with a non-barred rooster. The male offspring are typically barred like their mother and the female offspring are a solid color, typically black. Typically the black sex-links are produced by crossing the Barred Plymouth Rock hen with a Rhode Island Red or New Hampshire rooster. At hatch both sexes have black down, but the males can be identified by the white dot on their heads. As previously indicated, males feather out with the Barred Rock pattern along with a few red feathers, while females feather out solid black with some red in the neck feathers.
• The red sex-link (also known as Golden Comet, Gold Star, or Cinnamon Queen depending on the specific cross used) are produced by a number of different crosses. White Plymouth Rocks hens with the silver factor are crossed with a New Hampshire male to produce the Gold Comet. A Silver Laced Wynandotte hen is crossed with a New Hampshire rooster to produce the Cinnamon Queen. Additional possible red sex-link cross combinations are the Rhode Island White hen and a Rhode Island Red rooster or a Delaware hen with a Rhode Island Red rooster. Males hatch out white and can feather out to pure white or with some black feathering depending on the cross. Females hatch out buff or red, depending on the cross, and they feather out buff or red.
• All the most popular sex-link crosses produced for small flocks lay brown-shelled eggs. There is one sex-link cross that you can purchase for production of white-shelled eggs, the California White. It is the cross between a White Leghorn hen with a California Gray rooster. It is basically a commercial leghorn breed to be able to handle the conditions of small flocks, including those in areas with colder temperatures.

 

[Chickenman76]

But to answer, yes they are red sexlinks

 

[Troutbum67]

Thanks all, Good info!
I originally wanted barred rocks, but couldn't locate poulets here in NS, so I went with these Comets. I will definately consider getting more of them as chicks down the road, DEFINATELY not from the supplier from which I got these. That's why I was hoping to narrow down what cross they were so I could get same from next supplier.
I don't know much about chickens, but so far they seem to be ideal backyard layers, even for a beginner like me.
They seem to really be starting to warm to me and their new life. The previous owner kept them coopeed in cramped indoor quarters. Here they have a large barn coop and get outside to graze every day on my 4 acre homestead. I am hesitant to put them in a chicken tractor as 4'x8' seems like a small area for four hens to me, unfortunately I think I will have to though as we have a lot of eagles and hawks.
Shawn