Craigslist "rescue" chickens - what breed?

[Eowyn2]

I just got some scrawny near-rescue-level ?mutt chickens and a rickety coop off of Craigslist to try to replace my girls who got nailed by a dog this weekend. I'm pretty sure I have two barred rocks (one hen, one rooster), two easter eggers, and some general barnyard sort of rooster. The people I bought them from knew almost nothing about chickens, and didn't have any idea. They got them from a "hatchery in Alabama" and were a mixed layer group. They obtained blue-green and brown eggs from these birds, which is the only way I could identify the non-barred-rocks as easter eggers. Can any of you fine experts help me identify the big rooster and confirm the rocks/easter eggers? The lady said all the chickens were children of the tiny grey one (not pictured because she was always hiding behind everyone else), but I have a hard time believing that.

Unfortunately, most of my pics are dreadful, cuz the chickens are half-wild and have had a rough day already. And no, they're not going to stay in the tiny dog cage they're in, they were just there until I could scrub out the coop they came with and let it dry. I'm also going to be making those poor hens some saddles and getting rid of at least one if not both of the roosters.



Big ?barnyard rooster in the very back, ?barred rock rooster in the foreground. The ?rock is so small, I wonder if he's really a bantam. ?Rock hen on the far left, black ?easter egger hen on the far right.




Again, ?easter egger black hen in foreground, ?barred rock rooster in middle/left, ?barnyard rooster in background.




Not a helpful identifying shot, but I thought it was pretty darn expressive. You can finally see the tiny grey ?easter egger in the very back under the big rooster's chin.


Thanks in advance for any comments.

 

[silkiemelon]

You look to have 2 barred rocks, a RIR rooster, but I'm not sure what the black one is.
It's hard to see in the pic, so I could be wrong.

 

[hdowden]

they are all mutts of some sort 2 roos and 2 pullets. they look like they have game in them

 

[willowbranchfarm]

they are all mutts of some sort 2 roos and 2 pullets. they look like they have game in them

x2

 

[Eowyn2]

As usual, you all are excellent help, especially with the poor photos you were provided. I hadn't even considered a RIR - I thought he was too light for that. But a Google image search brought up some similar-looking roos, so I'd believe it.

The barred rock-looking roo - is he a mix do you think? He just seems to have a little brown in his feathers to me, especially on his hackles and saddle. Is that what you meant by having some game in them, hdowden?

I think the black one is definitely some sort of easter egger, the people who sold them to me had lots of blue-green eggs and a much smaller quantity of brown eggs. I think the barred rock-looking pullet is the only one laying browns.

Now that I've had them a few hours and observed them, the ?RIR has a pretty, musical crow and is gentle with the ladies. The barred-rock-looking roo has a nasty hoarse crow and seems to not be quite the gentleman. He's too skinny for much other than making broth though I think, lol.

 

[donrae]

The barred rooster is not a barred rock, and I don't think the hen is either. I'll bet someone had a barred rock, it crossed a generation or so ago with some game birds, and that little grey hen incubated whatever eggs were in the nest box, bless her heart.