Happy Holidays everyone! I have 5 pullets all 7 months old. Three of them started laying for me in the middle of November. What I have been reading is good news about hens also having spurs, but.....I'm still confused about my Sicilian Buttercups change of behavior as well. "Buttercup", which is my avatar picture, has also started to try to crow. It's a little off and different and mainly does it in the morning but the motions are about the same. Right when she gets up in the morning, she gets on the outside roost to say good morning. This morning she came to greet me at shoulder height when I noticed she had at least half inch plus spurs on her. How could I missed this? She has not started laying eggs yet but will squat down for me and is getting into the mating position with wings out, butt up, face turning redder, her vent is getting bigger and the feathers around it are coming off. Funny thing is her fake crowing started around the same time she started squatting down for me about 2 weeks ago. I checked all my pullets to find my Wilsummer also has spurs but smaller. She as well has not started laying nor squats for me willingly. "Winnie" is my quietest gal but so was Buttercup before. My 3 pullets that are laying have no spurs at all. Someone please tell me they are not late blooming roosters! I already had 2 of my "hens" come out to be roosters but they were barely 3 months old when I knew this. THANK YOU ALL. Buttercup, Sicilian Buttercup, 11/15/16 Winnie, Welsummer, 11/15/16
Sometimes hens grow spurs, and they can get pretty sharp, too! Spurs don't nescisarilly make a chicken hen or roo. I really want to say that your buttervup is a hen... she's coloered like a hen of her breed, and if she's squatting, then she definitely is... is there a chance that she is just being a "dramatic whiner?" Some of my friends thought that their first chickens were crowing, but they were really just squaking. Any chance that that's what she's doing?
Yeah, I just noticed today my favourite hen has spurs too, and she's already laying. I've heard hens often attempt to crow or actually crow sometimes so I wouldn't let it worry you.
In this picture you can see Goldi's little spur bumps; they later got a bit longer and grew a point - a sharp one, too! Funny thing though, she was the greeter of younger birds. She would hang out with our broody and let her chicks steal worms right out of her own beak - when she wasn't broody! AAAAAND she was a loudmouth. If we left them locked up for the day, she would "whine" aaaaall day. "BRACK BRACK BRACK!!!!!" That was a lot louder than a roo crowing.
Thank you PeepersMamma, indeed she has big spurs, but lays little white eggs now since 12/22/16 - yay! I found two soft eggs in the roost area on 12/27/16 as well as found 4 eggs in the nests, so I'm hoping that's my Welsummer getting ready. Like today, I have 5 chickens and found 4 eggs laid. Poor Winnie though still does not swat down for me but does run! Maybe it was just an accident from her. My little late bloomer.
