Do you think I got a banty?

[littlelemon]

My chicks are 5 weeks old. I have 2 golden comets, 2 barred plymouth rock and 4 white rock. They are all about the same size except one. One of the comets is about 3/4 of the size of all the rest. I began to notice it when the chicks started to feather out. Even her legs are smaller. At first I thought maybe she wasn't eating well or sickly, but she seems to eat well and runs around all day just like the others. She is a little more docile than the others.
Could she be a banty? I bought all 8 chicks at the same time from Ridgway Hatchery. I am local so I picked them up.
I am hoping she isn't a banty because I don't want to have to worry about protecting my chickens from hawks once they are full grown, and I have heard that hawks will carry off a banty.
Has anyone gotten a banty by mistake?

 

[chickengirlnm]

Well it sounds like you have a banty to me - I ordered 5 black dutch banties I was hoping for all females but I ended up with 4 roos and 1 hen, I have my banties in the yard with my other hens and my ducks and they are doing fine - they do tend to sneak out through the fence from time to time but now that they are getting bigger they are staying in the yard, but I have noticed they are more flighty than the heavier birds so I have to watch and make sure they dont " fly " over the fence. Have fun with the little one they are fun to watch.

 

[speckledhen]

You could have a banty or just a runt. I have one RIR girl who was only about 2/3 the size of her two sisters, had no middle toenails and was the bottom of the pecking order. She's fine, just a petite girl.

 

[Ma]

The same thing happened to us...we think?

We, too, are close to a local hatchery and picked up our 9 girls and 1 boy. they were 1 day old and special ordered to get the combination we wanted. (4 BO's, 4 SLW, and 1SLW Roo).

Our flock is 8 1/2 weeks old and we have 1BO girl that is tiny, and I mean way smaller than all the rest, who themselves are all about the same size. They were all supposed to be standards.

I even posted the same question as you, wondering if the hatchery could have given us one BO banty by mistake. I didn't get a definitive answer, although I don't think there is one.

So we have one, small, BO hen, perfect in every other way. She even has to jump up to peck back at the others (Because they are SO much taller than her) if they try anything with her! So far she really holds her ground. She is not the bottom of the peck order.

Needless to say, "Little Bo Peep" has quickly become our favorite little girl. And is spoiled rotten. But then, they all are.

HTH
Ma

 

[lurky]

Me too....same thing with my australorps. I posted picks too asking the same thing too.
Well mine is catching up fast now @ 20 weeks. Mine was a runt and feathered in wierd too. None of her tail feathers gre in, they were like a hard ball the would not grow. Well she is losing those and growing her new set perfect. So i think it is a runt like mine.

 

[littlelemon]

Quote:
Yes, "Tiny" has become our favorite too. I can't bear the thought of losing her to a hawk. I have them outside in a tractor now but I would love to have them free range in an enclosed area when they are grown. I worry about the hawks though......

 

[GoodEgg]

I had one like this too ... a red sex-link that was very small. At one point some of the banties were larger then her ...

She hasn't quite caught back up, but she seems perfectly healthy. And quite a little attitude too ... she's one of the girls most likely to stand off the kitten or the ducks when they are on the attack ... she's a little thing but she won't put up with being picked on! I admire her "gumption"!

trish

 

[Queen of the Lilliputians]

I, too, got a runt in a batch of chicks. She is a BR, and was much smaller than the others. However, she's the same size at 17wks. And.. somehow she ended up with a GIANT attitude.. she's my head-pullet, and complains about EVERYTHING. BRRRRRRRROOCK!

Must be fairly normal. Not that getting a bantam can't happen, but I'm thinking people come in all sizes, dogs, cats. Must be possible for chickens, too.

-Meghan