Cackle Hatchery - Rare Breed Special and Top Hat Special?

[newchickychick]

I think it's going to be one of the breeds with a V comb, presumably crested, so that means Spitzhauben or possibly Polish. But I think Polish often have a vaulted skull (lump on top of the head), which makes Spitzhauben the more likely answer.


I am somewhat leaning Sumatra, but like you I'm not really sure.

Yeah! The nostrils really seem more like a Spitz. And the colors match the Gold Spangled. So neat! They and Fayoumi were definitely on my “selfishly hope for” list from this order.

Ahaha same! I guess a number of weeks when the combs start to come in may be a seller. It will be an exciting wait!

One batch left for the year on the 25th. So far outside of maybe the chipmunks, no overlap on breeds which honestly surprised me! 10 will definitely be crested and 10 more of the rare breeds. It’s like a little chicken gacha!

 

[newchickychick]

Updates:
It was definitely an Appenzellar Spitzhauben! The value and variety for these mixes has really felt great! It’s got a little mohawk going now.

Our final two mysteries are this next week. 10 rare breed special (with 5 Turkens!) arrival hopefully on Wednesday and 10 rare with 10 top hats hopefully arriving Friday. I’ll update with potential breeds then too. I think my consensus on these is fantastic value and variety, and will likely be a staple of our purchases from a hatchery in the future. I’m tempted to go for their blue egger surplus and brown egger surprise next year when we have an additional coop built!

 

[newchickychick]

Staring anxiously at the tracking as it says it’s still at the distribution center, when normally the chicks have left and are at the local post office by now. I hope it’s inaccurate and I get a call soon. Hopefully the chickies will arrive safe and sound within an hour and a half like usual and I can update this with results from the 10!

As always, spoke too soon. THEY’RE THERE!
Time to see what sweet babies we have. Fingers crossed as I know it’s been SO hot. Gonna get them electrolyte water the moment they’re here.

 

[newchickychick]

All 5 Turkens and all 10 rare specials arrived NO PROBLEM. The five Turkens had a lovely range of coloring as well! One is yellow with the faintest chipmunk pattern, the second is a more medium yellow with a more obvious chipmunk pattern, the third is buff with a VERY obvious chipmunk pattern, the fourth is a VERY deep chocolate brown, and the fifth is black! I'm so tickled! I can't wait to see what they look like grown. (I may have mixed up what pattern is on which base for the chipmunks, but they all got settled in and didn't want to go back in just yet and disturb them)

As for the assortment...
- One Silver Spangled Hamburg
- One Splash Polish
- One White Sultan
- One Sicilian Buttercup
- One Black Cochin
- One Partridge Cochin
- One White (?) Cochin
- One BLUE SUMATRA!
- One REALLY REALLY FLUFFY unknown chipmunk pattern (no leg feathering or top hat)
- One SUPER fluffy light yellow unknown chick with no leg feathering or obvious top hat

A CRAZY assortment. It looks like 10 for 10?! Amazing!

I'm really excited we got some new babies and some we already had too! I love the Sicilian Buttercups and 2 is better odds at getting a hen for sure. The Blue Sumatra is SO cute and already running around with the others like a pro.

All in all, I have to say my experiences with Cackle have been phenomenal! The babies were accepted pretty quick by their older (nearly 3 weeks is the oldest) Bantam friends.

Our assortments have always been truly assorted, even when I expected a very low variety due to the actual breeds on the site being sold out and with the sheer amount of chicks probably being sold right now. They all are usually VERY vigorous right out of the box. This batch was quite sleepy, which I attribute to the heat of the past couple of days, but immediately perked up with water. What a relief!

 

[NatJ]

- One REALLY REALLY FLUFFY unknown chipmunk pattern (no leg feathering or top hat)

Does it have a pea comb?
Maybe Buckeye:
https://www.cacklehatchery.com/product/buckeyes/

I got some a few years back, they definitely did have a chipmunk pattern, and I think I remember them being extra-fluffy as chicks.

(The hatchery photos show some with stripes and some without, but the ones I got had nice clear stripes.)

 

[newchickychick]

Does it have a pea comb?
Maybe Buckeye:
https://www.cacklehatchery.com/product/buckeyes/

I got some a few years back, they definitely did have a chipmunk pattern, and I think I remember them being extra-fluffy as chicks.

(The hatchery photos show some with stripes and some without, but the ones I got had nice clear stripes.)

I need to double check the comb when I’m back home, but it should (well, keyword being should ) be chicks only on their rare breeds page. I don’t think our Yokohamas were ever quite that fluffy as that was my first thought. I wonder if Phoenixes are a little fluffier? The mystery! I’ll take a pic of it and the pale yellow mystery when I’m home!

 

[NatJ]

I need to double check the comb when I’m back home, but it should (well, keyword being should ) be chicks only on their rare breeds page. I don’t think our Yokohamas were ever quite that fluffy as that was my first thought. I wonder if Phoenixes are a little fluffier? The mystery! I’ll take a pic of it and the pale yellow mystery when I’m home!

I had assumed that Buckeyes were considered a rare breed (the hatcheries that sell them at all, tend to list them with rare breeds), but now that I look, I don't see them on Cackle's list of rare breeds. I must have been thinking of other hatcheries.

So you're probably right to consider other breeds first.

Comb type tends to be a good thing to check in any case, because it can often rule out about half the possible breeds

 

[newchickychick]

I had assumed that Buckeyes were considered a rare breed (the hatcheries that sell them at all, tend to list them with rare breeds), but now that I look, I don't see them on Cackle's list of rare breeds. I must have been thinking of other hatcheries.

So you're probably right to consider other breeds first.

Comb type tends to be a good thing to check in any case, because it can often rule out about half the possible breeds

That’s really smart! Not sure why I always forget. I had to correct myself on one too - I SAW its feathery feet and top hat and my brain went “Polish”. Definitely a White Sultan! I’ll post pics here when I’m back home for sure. It’s so fun to unbox total surprises! Our last chick order of the year will get here Friday, and it’ll be 10 top hat surprise and 10 rare breed surprise! I’ll have even more mysteries to sleuth no doubt.

 

[newchickychick]

One that had been especially sleepy during the entire time passed away during a 30 minute period. It was walking around not even an hour before and drinking. It was the mystery chipmunk. :[ It had a straight comb though as far as I could tell, so I believe it was some type of phoenix. Poor thing! I had been keeping a close eye on all of them and making sure they were eating/drinking. I feel awful for not being in there 24/7 with them as I really don't know how it could've happened. </3

I was mistaken on one Cochin - it's Splash, not white! I hadn't noticed how much of a soft blue it's got on a couple of places on it.

The mystery yellowy chick has a pea comb? I think it might be a White Yokohama. Though, maybe it's a cushion? I'm still a newbie. A lot of the combs all so tiny and barely noticeable. It is INCREDIBLY fluffy with very orangey looking legs. Which... matches both a White Yokohama and a White Chantecler.

 

[newchickychick]

Our final order arrived!
20 ordered, 19 were alive. A White Sultan was unfortunately smooshed by everyone else. </3 I MAY have gotten extras? And definitely may have gotten some of these wrong - I never count as I'm putting them in as I get distracted trying to make sure everyone drinks. But I can go through and count. Or try.
We got 10 Top Hat Special, 10 Rare Special.

However, everyone else in the order has been great!
We got;
- 1 Phoenix or Yokohama
- 2 Spitzhaubens (Gold Spangled)
- 1 Mottled Houdan
- 1 Tolbunt Polish! (I will giggle a bit if it's a frizzle by chance - we are going to buy a couple frizzle Tolbunts from a breeder tomorrow along with a lovely cockerel)
- 1 Silver Spangled Hamburg
- 1 Egyptian Fayoumi!!! (New for us! Love these!)
- 1 White Polish (new for us! the BEARD!)
- 3 Blue Polish
- 2 Black Polish (new for us!)
- 1 Buff Laced Polish (new for us!)
- 2 White Sultans
- 2 Lakenvelders
- 1 Black Sumatra

I think? I need to go back and really look at everyone again. Regardless, the assortment again was awesome! And them being so vigorous after the heat we've had was a real relief. It's unfortunate about the one chick, but we have lost so few right out of the box with Cackle that I'm really thankful. Everyone else from the order that got here Wednesday is still doing very well!