Easter Egger Sexing "tips and tricks" *Pictures Included*

[AnnaInFlorida]

Thank you! I think Marilyn’s egg is in line with a USDA small. My hands are a little small but I think maybe some camera distortion is going on. It’s kind of nice having eggs in different sizes. You can choose what you need for the use.

 

[bruceha2000]

So true; when you make a half recipe that requires 1 large egg, just use one from the small layers. I have 2 Exchequer Leghorns that struggle to get into the USDA small range. They are at least useful for that during laying season.

 

[JesWith3]

Hi, all! Jumping in here with my own photos as not to start a whole new post on sexing my 4-week-old EEs. This one was the first to hatch (blue egg), but s/he remains the smallest of the bunch and slowest to feather. S/he doesn't appear to have a pea comb, it just looks kinda like a really short straight comb?? Does NOT like to be picked up and lets the world know very clearly! I have not observed any roo-esque behavior (standing tall, chest out, starting fights, etc.), but the tiny waddles do have a rosey glow ((sigh))
Is there anything in this chick's color or pattern that is telling of hen or roo?
His/Her hatchmates are only half siblings by way of daddy the Ameraucana. His/her mother is an EE. Hatchmates mama is white leghorn and I'll share pics of them later on when I can get better pics.
All of that said, any tell tale signs pointing one way or the other for this chick?

 

[JesWith3]

Trying to sex chicks based on their behavior hasn't really worked for me so far. One odd thing I've noticed is that as chicks my boys are calmer when handled and the girls are more skittish and inclined to struggle or squeak. This seems counter intuitive. One thing that has worked for me with my Easter eggers is that the girls get feathers on their heads earlier. The boys end up with feathers on their body but still have a full head of chick down and look silly. They end up looking like little bald eagles!

Then I have quite the conundrum...I've got a bald eagle looking chick (feathering out, albeit slowly, and down on the head) but makes THE biggest and loudest ruckus when I pick him/her up. I'm stumped on this chick!

 

[Finnie]

Hi, all! Jumping in here with my own photos as not to start a whole new post on sexing my 4-week-old EEs. This one was the first to hatch (blue egg), but s/he remains the smallest of the bunch and slowest to feather. S/he doesn't appear to have a pea comb, it just looks kinda like a really short straight comb?? Does NOT like to be picked up and lets the world know very clearly! I have not observed any roo-esque behavior (standing tall, chest out, starting fights, etc.), but the tiny waddles do have a rosey glow ((sigh))
Is there anything in this chick's color or pattern that is telling of hen or roo?
His/Her hatchmates are only half siblings by way of daddy the Ameraucana. His/her mother is an EE. Hatchmates mama is white leghorn and I'll share pics of them later on when I can get better pics.
All of that said, any tell tale signs pointing one way or the other for this chick?

Gosh, I’m sorry nobody has responded to this. Can you get any pictures of this chick standing on its own instead of in your hand? What I would be looking for is a side shot that shows how it stands, and what color(s) are on its sides, wings and shoulders.

Maybe now that it’s two weeks older, it will be a little more obvious.

 

[arazla]

I'm just getting really stumped by all of this. One of the ones I thought for sure is a hen has brown and black shoulder feathers, but an earlier post in this thread says that's impossible for a female EE. Wish we could post video. Think that would show a lot more. Beginning to think my whole flock of 8 chicks will turn out to be roosters.

 

[renk777]

Hi, all! Jumping in here with my own photos as not to start a whole new post on sexing my 4-week-old EEs. This one was the first to hatch (blue egg), but s/he remains the smallest of the bunch and slowest to feather. S/he doesn't appear to have a pea comb, it just looks kinda like a really short straight comb?? Does NOT like to be picked up and lets the world know very clearly! I have not observed any roo-esque behavior (standing tall, chest out, starting fights, etc.), but the tiny waddles do have a rosey glow ((sigh))
Is there anything in this chick's color or pattern that is telling of hen or roo?
His/Her hatchmates are only half siblings by way of daddy the Ameraucana. His/her mother is an EE. Hatchmates mama is white leghorn and I'll share pics of them later on when I can get better pics.
All of that said, any tell tale signs pointing one way or the other for this chick?

I agree that we need to see pics of the birds standing naturally from the side. An updated head shot that shows comb & wattles is helpful too. I can't really see this bird well but my initial take is that it's a roo based on color of comb & wattles. However, it's fairly feathered out and has a substantial tail for 4 weeks. That would make me lean pullet except I hatched out a bunch of EE crosses this year and I had some really fast feathering chicks (fastest in the bunch). They looked as though they'd be pullets until about 6 weeks when I started to suspect they were roos. Sure enough, at 8 weeks, the saddle feathers started coming in :/ If you can get more photos, we can try to weigh in.

 

[JesWith3]

I agree that we need to see pics of the birds standing naturally from the side. An updated head shot that shows comb & wattles is helpful too. I can't really see this bird well but my initial take is that it's a roo based on color of comb & wattles. However, it's fairly feathered out and has a substantial tail for 4 weeks. That would make me lean pullet except I hatched out a bunch of EE crosses this year and I had some really fast feathering chicks (fastest in the bunch). They looked as though they'd be pullets until about 6 weeks when I started to suspect they were roos. Sure enough, at 8 weeks, the saddle feathers started coming in :/ If you can get more photos, we can try to weigh in.

Thank you. Unfortunately, we lost this chicken. It seemed like failure to thrive as it just was so much tinier than the rest and he/she was first to hatch. I treated all with corid to be safe, but nobody had any symptoms like this little one started to exibit. Just more and more lethargic, fluffed out feathers, and so frail until she (he?) just gave up. Everyone was and still is fine ((shrug))

 

[JesWith3]

Gosh, I’m sorry nobody has responded to this. Can you get any pictures of this chick standing on its own instead of in your hand? What I would be looking for is a side shot that shows how it stands, and what color(s) are on its sides, wings and shoulders.

Maybe now that it’s two weeks older, it will be a little more obvious.

Thank you. I cannot get more pictures as we lost this chicken almost a week ago. It is a mystery to me, but I am thinking she/he just failed to thrive. Very sad.

 

[renk777]

Thank you. Unfortunately, we lost this chicken. It seemed like failure to thrive as it just was so much tinier than the rest and he/she was first to hatch. I treated all with corid to be safe, but nobody had any symptoms like this little one started to exibit. Just more and more lethargic, fluffed out feathers, and so frail until she (he?) just gave up. Everyone was and still is fine ((shrug))

Aw, I'm so sorry! We had a little one like that too. Sometimes it just happens despite our efforts. . Sending hugs!