Feather Patterns: Buff Orpington

[SkeeredChicken]

My chicks are now a little over 3 weeks old. I'm not sure how to tell male from female yet, since this is my first time with chickens. But what I have noticed thus far is this:

This is a picture of 1 out of 5 chicks that has feathered more on the wings, and less so on the back. These chicks are also starting to grow their combs and wattles.

and this is a picture of 1 out of 6 chicks that are more evenly feathered on their backs, as well as their wings.

I'm not anywhere near an expert in any way. But What I can guess is that the chicks that are more evenly feathered are are hens? Whereas the chicks with the combs, wattles and more bare backs might possibly be the roos? Just an observation, but please correct me if I'm wrong

 

[pegbo]

I have two buff Orps. both hens and they are different colors. One,s a light buff {Buffy} and the other is a gold color {Goldie} but they were slow getting their wattles and combs, so maybe that is a Roo! Not very original names!

 

[justusnak]

I have 18....3 week old buffs.....my roos tend to be a bit smaller...and already i can see thier combs coming in.

roo and hens at 3 weeks

3 week BO hen

 

[speckledhen]

Yep, I have a Blue Orpington cockerel that was totally bald on his back for weeks! The boys of this breed feather in slower on the back and wingbows than the girls. Plus, the girls get longer tailfeathers first. I'd say that one is a baby roo.

 

[mudhen]

Hey, pegbo !
I've got two Buff Orps too, they are 6 weeks old, and coloring is same as the two you mention.
Guess what I named them??

Great minds think alike!!...even if they may not be too creative!

 

[chickenranchwife]

Speckled hen,
So the one's that are slower to get their feathers are roos? Is this correct? I hope your right because I have a few that are a little slower than the rest.
What about the barred rocks how can you tell them apart if you know?

 

[speckledhen]

Yep, the ones that are almost bald on the backs are most likely boys. Also, they are sometimes bob-tailed! Girls feather in much faster and fuller in Orps usually.
As for Barred Rocks, this is the way you can USUALLY tell-I had a pullet I thought was a cockerel for months because she wasn't following the rules. Very large, splotchy headspots at a few days old with lighter overall color (due to the white bars being wider and therefore making the chick look almost silvery-gray) are boys. Smaller, more defined headspots and dark colors are your pullets. BUT, this is only about 85% accurate.Here is a picture of my Blue Orpington cockerel at 3 weeks old-pitiful, isn't he, LOL! He's beautiful now, though.

And him today at almost 9 weeks old:

 

[chickenranchwife]

Thanks Speckled hen, I've been wondering how a person tells. I am relieved because I thought it was the opposite way around and thought I might have been cursed with a bunch of roo's. LOL

 

[speckledhen]

Glad to help! You can breathe now, LOL! Sometimes, they fool you, but those are the certain things to look for in most of your standard breeds to give you some sort of clue.