Fooled by TSC- what else is new?!

[Folly's place]

It's best to know what chicks of the breeds you are buying actually look like, because the folks at the feed stores, not only TSC, usually don't have a clue. And chicks land in the wrong bins, or are labelled incorrectly, often.
Hatchery RIRs and red sex-links do look very similar, especially in those bins, so will get mixed up too.
It's not malicious, it's ignorance, which store management isn't interested in fixing, or in hiring people who know anything at all about poultry.
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

And hatchery RIR,s in no way resemble heritage, or show type RIRs.
Mary

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

what's your thoughts on their breed then?

Looks like RI to me...they'll darken up as they mature.

 

[3KillerBs]

To be fair, sexed pullets are only 75-90% accutate, even from hatcheries. This isn't some plan to screw over customers or unload extra males. Don't go blaming TSC.

Let's bold, italic, and underline that.

Vent sexing just-hatched chicks is an art as much as a science and some breeds are more difficult than others.

We need to accept that any time we're buying sexed pullets as chicks rather than point-of-lay, 10%, or more, could be males.

It's best to know what chicks of the breeds you are buying actually look like, because the folks at the feed stores, not only TSC, usually don't have a clue.

After getting help here on this board before I bought my chicks back in June I was standing in the feed store pulling up photos on my phone because they didn't have the breeds I wanted and I had to take substitutions.

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

You could have a black sex link which are good layers. I can't tell if its a roo from the head because my black sex link was way bigger than my RI Chicks and her comb developed earlier.

 

[Folly's place]

I try to buy straight run chicks, and the extra cockerels have nice lives before either landing in the freezer or being rehomed. Every pullet has a brother!
Mary

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

That's a good point. Mine are likely hatchery or production RIR's and my two remaining hens are not quite the same. One has a smaller comb and the other a very large comb.
I pulled up this photo of mine when they were barely 5 weeks old.

That was in April 2018.

Now all grown up.

This is Buffy.

 

[IamRainey]

OMG! Black Copper Marans are fully GORGEOUS roosters! ...and they carry the gene for a truly dark chocolate egg.

Not such a bad "oopsie" if you can keep a roo.

BTW the name is MARANS. It's not a singular/plural thing. It's the French city that the breed originated from and it always has the "S". [No offense. Just thought you might want to know.]

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

They are 5 weeks now.

Well at 5 weeks they have allot of maturing to do and will change colors. Also the black ones even though one looks more roo like could just as well be a australorp pullet just maturing at a quicker rates.

 

[Artichoke Lover]

Maybe it’s the lighting, but they don’t look like RIR’s.

I hate to say this and I really hope I’m wrong but those look just look my RIR males looked at that age.... They were much lighter in color than the girls. The one in front is male and the one standing behind him is a girl.