help me experiment with sexing

[flip9109]

I want to hear every way of sexing you all can think of and how to do it. I feel I have enuf peeps to do a pretty good experiment. I have 45 chicks, 11 seramas, 5 Ameraucana, 5 blue cochens, 4 red frizzle cochens, 4 partridge cochens, 4 red silkies, 4 gray silkies, 4 black silkies, 4 Blue Mille Fleur d Uccles. with this many I think I can determine how well each methods work. or not either way it should be fun to try. So let me hear every old wives tail, old timers method and what ever else you have heard of. I'll be sure to post the results.

 

[Guitartists]

Well, there's that ring on a string method that has been mentioned before. Pendulum. You can use any object on a string or chain... pointed, wieghted objects work best. They say circle is pullet and roo is back and forth (i think) but it all depends on what YOU determine the appropriate answer to be. I'm definitely going to try this with my next batch of chickies some day, as I am a pendulum user, see how often it works out correctly. One member in one of the posts stated some pretty intriguing numbers when she tried it,..... she used the method on eggs, all were pullets except one that she deliberately kept as a control and one that was undetermined. You have to be very unbiased and clear in order to use this method though...... so very easily influenced by what you want to hear.

Good luck with your tests... I certainly can't wait to see what you come up with.

 

[Guitartists]

If you are interested I could make and send you a pendulum. Just cover my shipping costs

 

[ticks]

I have seen and heard of people sexing them by their top wing feathers. If the feathers are differrent hights they are hens. If the feathers are the same it is a rooster. I am not sure of this method but you never know. hope it helps
Eli

 

[flip9109]

keep them coming. I'll try the string trick with a plumb bob. def gona do the wing feathers

 

[Gindee77]

One member here pointed me to a site that said if you sail a hat over the chicks the males will stand up and chirp loudly...the hens will hunker down and get really quiet. I tried it and kept track of all my results. But I just swooshed a towel over them. This is supposed to be normal chicken behavior.

I also did the pendulum thing, which is an old pioneer way to sex chickens and to find out the sex of a baby while the mom is still carrying it. It is also supposed to work on eggs. According to my old bird sexing book, you should use a gold ring on a long hair, preferably a horse hair...I used a gold chain (I don't have horses anymore) and the ring "told me" that the same chicks were males and females, as the hat trick did. If you hold the ring/pendulum, it's supposed to move around in a circle over females and swing straight back and forth over a male. I also tried it on my sex-link chicks (all females) me, my dog (a female) and my DH and it was right every time. I did it to a lot of people at work too and it was never wrong. This method is supposed to be about 90% accurate.

I've heard of the feather sexing too, but never tried it. The one with the wing feather length.

There is another feather sexing method...the hackle and saddle feathers of a roo are pointed and in a pullet are rounded. But they have to be older to do this...they are most likely crowing or have red combs by then anyway.

Then there's one that says chicks with longer legs and toes are roos and shorter legs and toes are pullets. This one is supposed to be 85% accurate.

Hope that helps...I think the best way is just to wait. Time will tell for sure!

I love the term one member here used..."GENDER OBSESSED"...that's me!! I can't wait to find out what I have!!

 

[flip9109]

I just tryied draping a towel over my hand and moving it across the top of the brooder. They all ran like heck. I don't think I did that one right.

 

[bluedog]

hi i am doing some testin on sexing chicks i have 24 that i sexed usen the wing feathers i picked 24 out of a hatch of 80. i hope that i am right on the pullets if not ill have a lote of ROOS. lol . i will post and let you guys know

 

[POC]

I'm new to chickens, so I had this question to some people I knew.
They told me the wing feather length one.
Also, if you gently hold the chick by the neck and let their body dangle the roos will struggle, while the hens won't.
The third was to hold them upside down so you can see their vent, then blow on it. When it starts pulsing, if it is round it is a roo, if it is more oval it is a hen.

I tried some of those, but didn't keep track of my results.

 

[CoyoteMagic]

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