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

[PamUdom]

Hello, everyone! I am new to chickens, with 7 baby girls from Meyer Hatchery, 3 of which are Easter Eggers. They are now 13 weeks old. After reading this ENTIRE thread over the past month or so, I thought I was pretty safe that they were sexed correctly, but this week one of my Easter Eggers is making me question that with upright tail feathers which seem pointier than the other girls. The comb is no bigger or redder than the others, and the legs aren't any thicker than the others, and there aren't any splashes of color. Can any of you please reassure me that she is really a she? She was brown as a chick (hence named "Brownie" by my son), and was the sweetest chick from the beginning, but is getting a little standoff-ish now. She was one of the first to start clucking instead of cheeping, in case that means anything. I don't even know if roosters cluck when they're not crowing!




There is a bit of iridescense in the tail.




Thanks very much!

 

[Wishing4Wings]

Hello, everyone! I am new to chickens, with 7 baby girls from Meyer Hatchery, 3 of which are Easter Eggers. They are now 13 weeks old. After reading this ENTIRE thread over the past month or so, I thought I was pretty safe that they were sexed correctly, but this week one of my Easter Eggers is making me question that with upright tail feathers which seem pointier than the other girls. The comb is no bigger or redder than the others, and the legs aren't any thicker than the others, and there aren't any splashes of color. Can any of you please reassure me that she is really a she? She was brown as a chick (hence named "Brownie" by my son), and was the sweetest chick from the beginning, but is getting a little standoff-ish now. She was one of the first to start clucking instead of cheeping, in case that means anything. I don't even know if roosters cluck when they're not crowing!




There is a bit of iridescense in the tail.




Thanks very much!

Ahhhh, the dreaded black and white EE!!!!

These always seem to be the most confusing when sexing. This looks like a pullet to me, despite that long tail feather. We'll see what others think!

Very pretty too!

 

[milo1108]

Hello, everyone! I am new to chickens, with 7 baby girls from Meyer Hatchery, 3 of which are Easter Eggers. They are now 13 weeks old. After reading this ENTIRE thread over the past month or so, I thought I was pretty safe that they were sexed correctly, but this week one of my Easter Eggers is making me question that with upright tail feathers which seem pointier than the other girls. The comb is no bigger or redder than the others, and the legs aren't any thicker than the others, and there aren't any splashes of color. Can any of you please reassure me that she is really a she? She was brown as a chick (hence named "Brownie" by my son), and was the sweetest chick from the beginning, but is getting a little standoff-ish now. She was one of the first to start clucking instead of cheeping, in case that means anything. I don't even know if roosters cluck when they're not crowing!




There is a bit of iridescense in the tail.




Thanks very much!

I would say pullet too but there aren't any pictures of the hackle or neck feathers. Sometimes you are able to tell just by those, but EEs can be hard to sex though. It looks like a pullet by those pictures.

 

[PamUdom]

Okay, is this one good enough to show the hackle feathers?




Or how about this? Are we supposed to be able to see saddle feathers at 13 weeks or should I go searching for pin feathers? I looked at some previous photos on this thread and checked her back but am still not quite sure what I'm looking at in there.




Thanks again!

 

[DMRippy]

She is a pullet.

 

[Simmonsfunnyfrm]

One of my girls had pointy tail feathers too. She still has the longest tail but she's definitely a girl. I think that's what your girl has going on. Very pretty by the way, my black and white turned out to be a roo.

 

[PamUdom]

Thank you everyone! So I can still hope for colored eggs from her in a few months! She still is one of our favorites.

 

[milo1108]

Yea if that was a roo it would have more pointy hackle feathers like this one.
You can see that the feathers by his tail are very pointed and slender, not like a female. Females have more of rounded feathers than males. You can also see the neck feathers are more slender and pointed as well. I know this is not an EE but I think telling by the feathers is one of the easier ways to sex a chicken depending on the breed. Also you can tell by the color of the comb and how large it is depending on how old they are. (Oh sorry that the picture is sideways.)

 

[aoxa]

Yea if that was a roo it would have more pointy hackle feathers like this one. You can see that the feathers by his tail are very pointed and slender, not like a female. Females have more of rounded feathers than males. You can also see the neck feathers are more slender and pointed as well. I know this is not an EE but I think telling by the feathers is one of the easier ways to sex a chicken depending on the breed. Also you can tell by the color of the comb and how large it is depending on how old they are. (Oh sorry that the picture is sideways.)

Here is a picture of my EE male explaining the feather types that indicate male

 

[milo1108]

Here is a picture of my EE male explaining the feather types that indicate male

Bwahaha I got the hackle feathers mixed up with the saddle feathers. Man I'm loosing my mind.