Have you ever seen any like this?

[kokeff]

We have a mystery bird! As a chick, we were told it was a speckled sussex, but it looks more like a duck wing now. All along we thought it was a rooster, with its enormous comb, waddle, and spurs. Until.....it laid an egg! Have you ever seen anything like it? Anyone know why it looks like a rooster, but lays eggs? Obviously, he/she doesnt hold its comb high. She lets it hang from one side to the other and flip-flops it when she turns her head really fast. After doing some reading, (there's not much out there about it) it sounds like she has a hormone imbalance of some sort. Not sure if she will change back to looking more like a hen or keep confusing the other chickens and stay looking like a rooster! Anyone have a guess as to what breed she may be also?



Floppy comb!

 

[leirob007]

I had a hen like that once not long ago.. 3 of them in fact. they were the product of an accidental day out with the RIR's and the Buff's on the same day. since that was the only 2 breeds around. I figured them to be crosses lol

 

[fuzziecreatures]

She looks like a light brown leghorn. If that is the case, her eggs would be white and her comb is supposed to be that way.
Looking again I'm even more assured she is a leghorn, the white earlobe tells me white eggs

 

[StarLover21]

Yes, that's a brown leghorn; her comb is supposed to be like that- mine's is too

 

[kokeff]

Thank you for the replies! She does in fact lay white eggs, but VERY inconsistently. In fact she hasn't laid an egg in about 3 weeks, but she's always been that way. Her comb has also shrunk significantly, so she's starting to look more like a hen. Since she always been inconsistent I haven't worried about it, but should I worry about her comb changing?

 

[fuzziecreatures]

Potential for changing comb...
molting
sick
parasites
Just the things I know it could be

 

[hdowden]

Potential for changing comb...
molting
sick
parasites
Just the things I know it could be

this could also be some of the reasons she lays inconstantly as leghorns are fairly active layers with almost an egg a day....yes she is a brown leghorn hen. leghorns have very large combs and on hens they flop over as yours is doing very normal there.

 

[kokeff]

Hmm I've wondered those things myself, but she has no signs of anything wrong. She is almost a year old and has been this way since she was old enough to lay. Maybe shes just "off"?

 

[hdowden]

there maybe no signs of mites/lice till the birds die. lice you can find on the body during the day but mites feed at night and may not be seen the worse the infestation is the more you will see

 

[donrae]

Her comb is large but she looks nothing like a rooster. Look up pics of brown leghorn roosters, they are quite different in color, etc. I'd be concerned about your hen's health at her age with the comb losing color, etc. Although depending on when she was born she could be in a weird molt.