Different feathers mean different gender?

[MamaGer8ty]

I know it’s super early to tell but I was curious. We have two sex link chicks and they are almost a week old. Phoenix is a little bigger than Inferno and the feathers are different. Does that matter that the feathers are different or could they both still be hens? The first photo is Phoenix and the second is Inferno.

 

[sourland]

I'm not certain they are sex links. What variety sex link are they supposed to be ?

 

[keesmom]

I'm not sure they are sex links either.

 

[MamaGer8ty]

@sourland and @keesmom My husband got them from Ruralking and that’s what he was told. Lol so I have no clue what type they are. He was told they were Rhode Island reds mixed with barred rock.

 

[PlayingDoh]

Doesn't look like sex links to me. The second photo looks like a hen with the feather overlap on the wings and the tail feathers starting, but the first looks suspect. Could simply be younger (kinda looks to be the case).
If you can manage a picture with the wing pulled open I can get a better idea, but the wing feather thing isn't reliable after a day or two.

 

[MamaGer8ty]

@PlayingDoh: sorry it took so long to reply. I just got home. Photos 1&2 are of Phoenix, photos 3&4 are of Inferno. Photo #5 is them next to each other. Phoenix is the bigger of the two and the 6th photo is top view of them.

 

[keesmom]

If you can manage a picture with the wing pulled open I can get a better idea, but the wing feather thing isn't reliable after a day or two.

Feather sexing is only reliable for chicks bred for that trait. Most chicks cannot be feather sexed.

@sourland and @keesmom My husband got them from Ruralking and that’s what he was told. Lol so I have no clue what type they are. He was told they were Rhode Island reds mixed with barred rock.

Any idea what hatchery they use?

 

[NatJ]

They could be Black Sexlinks. Those are created by crossing a Rhode Island Red rooster with a Barred Rock hen. The male chicks are black with white bars on the feathers, and hatch with a yellow dot on top of their heads; the females are black. Either gender can have some bits of red or brown in the coloring too. If yours are Black Sexlinks, then they are both female.

Or your chicks could be something entirely different, because sometimes stores get their chicks and labels mixed up.

In a month or two, any cockerels should have nice red combs. Somewhere around 3-5 months, they should have their adult feathers, which make it easier to tell breed and double-check gender. Pullets will get red combs shortly before they start laying eggs, so probably 4+ months for that.

 

[MamaGer8ty]

Thank you everyone!

 

[PlayingDoh]

After looking at the other pictures I'm of the mind they are both female. What the others said is true about the feather thing not being reliable however I figured it's better than nothing and easier than attempting to vent sex via pictures.
I think the likely cases for the differences you're seeing is just age, a day or two can make a bigger than expected difference.