help me! What breed and could my pullet be a male?

[misskris10]

I bought 6 chicks from tractor supply on Feb. 28th. they couldn't have been more than a week old. I got 3 assorted pullets and 3 production reds. The assorted pullets said they were a mix of popular breeds. I'm starting to think one of the pullets may be male unless certain hens have larger combs and have wattles.




These were taken 3-18-14

 

[misskris10]

These were take today.

 

[misskris10]

More from today.

 

[Fred's Hens]

That much comb and wattle development normally signifies a cockerel.

 

[KieksterChicken]

Your Production Reds (the ones that are gold with white) are a sex link type of bird bred so that at hatch the pullets will be notably reddish and the roos a much lighter yellow/white. Safe to say all your Production Reds are pullets. If they were roos they would be feathering out white and buff with a tiny bit of red which yours aren't. As far as the white ones, it's impossible for a hatchery to have 100% accuracy when it comes to sexing pullets & roos. There is a good chance some of your white birds could be roos. Closer up pics of each individual bird would help us to identify sex by wattle/comb/feather development and body shapebut from the pictures you posted I would say the white one in the first picture you posted today, the bird that is the only one standing up, the one that has the big pink comb bigger than all the other birds and has somewhat reddish wattles...that one is looking rooish. Your other two whites look like pullets which closer up pics would help confirm. Hope this helped.

 

[donrae]

Your Production Reds (the ones that are gold with white) are all pullets. If they were roos they would be feathering out white and buff with a tiny bit of red which yours aren't. As far as the white ones, it's impossible for a hatchery to have 100% accuracy when it comes to sexing pullets & roos. There is a good chance some of your white birds could be roos. Closer up pics of each individual bird would help us to identify sex by wattle/comb/feather development and body shape.

Slight correction to the above---production reds are not the same as sex links. Production reds are solid red hatchery birds--usually their version of a Rhode Island Red. Both genders are the same color.

I do believe the bird in question is a cockerel. There is a slight chance it could be a leghorn pullet, a very early developer. Keep an eye on it and continue to post pics once a month or so. If at any time it crows, it'a male.

 

[TriciaHowe]

Looks like a white leghorn pullet to me. They have very early comb development and very large ones at that...... I wouldn't swear to it, but that's the direction I would go.

 

[KieksterChicken]

Oops..yup..I made that mistake. Ty for the correction Donrae.

Her gold/white birds look like Red Sex Links. My bad. Sorry.

 

[brandoncakes]

definitely cockerel. I have leghorns and all combs have been really small until 3.5 months old

 

[misskris10]

(my son named it chick runner cuz its fast like road runner)


I dont notice any color difference in the combs between the chick i think could be a cockerel and the other 2 that look like him/her. The comb is just bigger and he/she has more wattle than any of the other chicks. The other 2 dont want anything to do with me. Wont come near me, not even if im giving them a treat and if they think im going to touch them, they take off away fron me. Chick runner however, if it thinks i have something its not afraid to get close and take what it thinks i have. If it sees my fingers and is close enough it will peck at me. If it gets me, it pecks hard and fast. It doesnt want me to touch or pet him/her tho. I love my reds tho. Very friendly and not afraid to be held or pet and very gentle if they are taking something from me. Will they change much as the grow? We have 6 and we only have named 2. Chick runner, the possible cockerel, and my fave, brownie, she has more white in her wings and on her face compared to my other 2 reds. I will try to get pics later, in better lighting and not under their heat lamp.

^Brownie