DNA Testing to determine sex of Silkies

[silkiechicken]

He looks like a boy. Hens over 6 months can have that recessive single comb so large, but at just 15 weeks, plus you saying it came in early, it's a boy. If you said that that comb just came in the last week, it might be a sliver of an early maturing hen, but otherwise, it is a rooster. If you look into the roots of his saddle area and on the neck, I bet you'll find glossy feathesrs coming out of the pin feathers. He has a light complexion, so that comb is pretty red and will likly only get redder. Listen for crows. But even if you are limited 3, do chicken math. Banties are 2 for 1, so you can have 6. Plus, as long as roosters don't crow, you can hide them in the garage. LOL

 

[Bat Cave Silkies]

I think Skully is a pullet....the single comb would be much large at 16 wks if it was a cockeral. Also, the crest does not appear to be swept back, as it is in cockerals. Just my guess though...

 

[emys]

Sorry, I think that is a rooster due to body shape, early comb development and feathering.

 

[SAKim]

Thanks Everyone for taking the time to look at my baby.

My immediate neighbors are wonderful and were sad when I took the first three roosters away yesterday. They say they like the sound of roosters crowing in the middle of a downtown city. I just worry about the busy bodies that are NOT my immediate neighbors that might be walking by and hear a crow.

I saw something about removing the male sex organs and they will crow less and be more docile. All of my dogs are male and are neutered, so why not a rooster? Don't know if it really works... I love this little guy/gal but don't want to ruin his life just to make me happier. But I have no experience with roosters and was told that once their testosterone kicks in the go from being my little babies who love and adore me to a crazy rooster that attacks me or my dogs and cats if they come in his territory or get close to his hens.

And Silkie, I like that chicken-math. I agree, my little bantams should be 2 for 1 !

Again, thanks to everyone that is trying to help me and if anyone has any other ideas about the sex of my Skully, DNA testing, Neutering a Rooster, or anything else that might help, please post.

Kim

 

[silkiechicken]

Neutering would be "caponizing" in chicken terms. Usually done before sexual maturity, there is a thread of a how to somewhere here, I think in the meat bird section, as it is often done to roosters to prep them for a special meal. They will not be very rooster like once it is done though.

As long as they are kept low profile, and if most your immediate neighbors are friendly... chicken math is a good thing!

 

[CityChicker]

DNA sexing is pretty easy and straight forward. You could always pick out your 3 favorite of the suspected hens and have their sex verified by DNA rather than sex all of them. Maybe that will make it more affordable since a lot of people wouldn't want to spend $20-$25 to sex a chicken. It is about as close to perfectly accurate as you can get though. I have had more birds DNA sexed than I can count and they have always been correct.

 

[SAKim]

ooooh, I looked at the pictures/videos for Caponizing a chicken... I am amazed that people can do that, I would pass out... Maybe, in time, I will learn to do all of these chicken things but, for now, I am hoping this is something a Vet can do, if needed.

I think I am going to try to do the DNA testing after the holiday weekend (maybe they will all start crowing in the next few days!). I am scared to pull the feathers out and my husband said he just couldn't do it, Apparantly he is more of a whimp than me! But by next week, hopefully, I will brave up... I am going to find the LITTLIEST feathers, I hope that works...

So if anyone has any good or bad experiences with DNA labs, please let me know... AND if anyone knows a way to pull feathers from the chest of a chicken with out hurting the chicken, let me know -- ice?, hypnotizing?, oooh, I wonder if something like Ambesol would work to numb them?


Again, THANKS SO MUCH !!!

Kim

 

[silkiechicken]

Seriously, pulling feathers is no big deal. Hens even pull out their own feathers on their bellies to make skin exposed for nesting. Just stand the bird up, find a belly feather that is not a pin feather, and yank. May or may not make a sound. Careful with human numbing meds/pain killers, there are a few that are toxic and are known to have killed birds.

 

[joe17]

On the last picture the one on the right ,Skully, looks like a roo and the one on the left looks like a hen. In a few pics Skully looked like a hen but I vote roo.

 

[SAKim]

If Skully is a Roo, then I think he is going to be a transexual cross dresser... I painted his nails last night and I think he kind of liked it

Some one crowed this morning but it wasn't Scully ...

The crowing thing is like being a part of a mystery -- I hear a crow, then I look to see who it is, and all of them look at me like "it wasn't me"!