Can someone clear this up for me please...

[PeckyChan]

So I have had chickens for a few month now (so still kinda new) and my friend who has had them for a while said that one of my girls is a rooster!

In my defence if he is a he, he does look quite like a hen but when he explained that is why he/she is so big because hes a rooster and he has the extra bits on his feet for mating and maybe why he/she is always standing on one leg!?

Can someone just confirm if its definitely a he? Is he a rooster? Or just a male chicken? If he is a rooster, how old do you think he is and when do they start cluck-a-doodle-doo-ing!?

 

[Tatianna]

Hi
How old is the bird?.....If (he is young) it is a male I would think....He has a pretty large comb to be a young hen.

 

[Tatianna]

They start crowing about 4-6 months

 

[PeckyChan]

We're not entirely sure how old he is because the lady we bought him/her off had a large collection of ex-battery hens (which we thought he was)

We have had them coming up 5 months

 

[rebrascora]

Hi. That certainly looks like a hen to me and if you have had her for 5 months and she was adult when you got her, then definitely a hen and she should be laying eggs.

Quote:
There is no difference.
A female chicken is a pullet or hen depending on age and a male chicken is a cockerel, cock or rooster depending on age. A male chicken of that age whatever you prefer to call them, would have pointed hackle and saddle feathers that draped over his back and sickle feathers which are arched tail feathers and be crowing and mating with your hens. I don't see anything there to indicate that she is not female.

Perhaps your friend thinks that, because she has a large red comb and wattles, that makes her a rooster. Different breeds have different amounts and shapes of fleshy (usually red) ornaments on their heads. Maybe your friend is used to seeing breeds with smaller combs.

Anyway, I hope I have been able to reassure you.

Regards

Barbara
.

 

[speckledhen]

That is a hen, period. Your friend is incorrect. Looks like a Production Red hen, not really enough white in the tail to be a Red Sex Link, but could be that as well. HEN, certainly!


The "extra bits" on the feet are spurs and they are not for mating. They are for self defense and even hens can have them. I have a hen with spurs and over the years have had other hens with spurs, even Orpingtons.

 

[Basskids08]

Absolutely a hen! There is no chance of it ever being a rooster! Shows us the eggs when that lady starts laying!

 

[krista74]

I agree. She looks like a hen to me, and probably isn't far off laying.

Also, I have a Buff Orpington hen who has spurs so I wouldn't be too concerned about that either. And yes - my BO is definitely a hen - she laid an egg into my hand once!

Krista

 

[donrae]

It's hard to trust yourself when someone with more experience seems so confident, isn't it? Too bad your friend doesn't have as much experience as they think they do. That is a pretty little hen, and from her nice red comb eggs could be coming any day now. If she's loose in the yard, you might start looking for hidden nests, or confine her to a coop for a few days to see if she's laying already.

About the standing on one foot--have you examined her foot? Chickens can get sores or abcesses on their feet that cause a lot of pain. You can do a search on here for bumblefoot to get more information.

 

[LakeMomNY]

My chickens all stand around like flamingos from time to time. Have since they were chicks. (No sores on their feet. )