Help! Husband brought home chicks and I don't know what they are!

[JDrake]

All of my chickens free range half the day on 14 acres.... they eat only what they get leftover from the horse's food and the insects/grass etc. they find on the farm.

I know this isn't great but it's the only other image I have of them so far... will try to get some better pics...
https://www.instagram.com/p/BShH4fBhY1z/?taken-by=thepaintingpony

 

[2001chickybaby]

oh I hope not!! yikes! There is a real chance they are though (cornish rocks) One of the other breeds listed was that... Do you really have to kill them? If so, what age??

Yes sadly;they will die of other complications if you don't do it. IF (a big IF) that is what they are, the butcher time window is 6-8 weeks. Wait until they grow a bit before jumping to conclusions. If that is what they are you'll be able to tell. They will grow significantly faster, have a hard time standing up, and have patches of featherless areas around their bodies.

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

How old? I think they're Leghorns or White Rocks. Not CX, they would be bigger, but I'll wait for better pics to say for sure.

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

Yes sadly;they will die of other complications if you don't do it. IF (a big IF) that is what they are, the butcher time window is 6-8 weeks. Wait until they grow a bit before jumping to conclusions. If that is what they are you'll be able to tell. They will grow significantly faster, have a hard time standing up, and have patches of featherless areas around their bodies.

CX can be kept alive. They do not have to be butchered. Many people have CX live over a year or two if they are careful about limiting feed and keeping the bird active - putting the water and food far away from each other, free range, etc. That said, I do not believe these chicks are CX.

 

[JDrake]

I am not sure how old these babies are.... but here are some better pics...

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

Good news, definitely not CX. They look very young, under a week old.

 

[JDrake]

Good news, definitely not CX. They look very young, under a week old.

How can you tell they aren't?

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

How can you tell they aren't?

CX are built differently. Even at this young age, they would be bigger than the small RIR or Production Red in the picture.

 

[yolksonus]

I am by NO means an expert. Could they be Buff Orpington's? We just got some almost three weeks ago and they look similar.

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

They aren't BOs. What did the store have available? That little black spot on the back has me thinking a few different things, if you could narrow it down that would be easier.