HELP! Welsummer specialists, I really need help

[cthrash1]

The following are pictures of two Welsummers the same age... I will post a pic of each and then one together. For a long time we thought they were a pair but now we're thinking the smaller one is just an EXTREMELY slow developing male. Please I need opinions on the smaller one as to whether it is boy or girl?

Ok this is the smaller one, coloring definitly does not scream girly, no spurs coming in and comb and wattles are smaller

this is the larger one(already breeding the girls)

and now both side by side. See how much smaller the right one is?

 

[mom2jedi]

Both boys sorry! Welsummer girls look almost the same as your light brown leghorn that's in the background of the second picture.

 

[Ariel301]

That is a handsome young rooster.

 

[TheReidHomestead]

Those both be boys!!!

 

[TheReidHomestead]

Could he be a bantam?

 

[gckiddhouse]

Not to hi-jack the thread, but since the question is answered pretty definitively, I wonder if the OP would be interested in this follow up question.

I have had this happen, too. I had it happen with mixed breeds and now with same breeds. It is always the dominant rooster that develops first and crows first (or so it seems). Is it possible that the rooster's pecking order determines how fast he will mature? Like, maybe his hormones are kept in "check" while he has no "privileges"

I had one rooster that looked like just a big chick until I got rid of all the other roosters and then he suddenly matured into a huge beautiful rooster! Any thoughts?

 

[cthrash1]

Quote:
That's a really good question... Hope someone may know an answer to it, or maybe title it for posting in the breeds and genetics threads as well... ID be interested in an answer to that too.

To all the rest of the folks that helped on this. Thank you for clarifying this for me. I was going to trade the pair back to the original owner anyway or give them to some friends if she decided not to raise Wellies. I decided since I can only have one roo pretty much for flock guardian, I am going to keep one of the male Marans and a few Females out of the ones I my broody hatched. I know I at least have a quad out of the 8.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Both boys.

Here's what a pullet looks like:

 

[Rafter 7 Paint Horses]

Quote:
That's a really good question... Hope someone may know an answer to it, or maybe title it for posting in the breeds and genetics threads as well... ID be interested in an answer to that too.

To all the rest of the folks that helped on this. Thank you for clarifying this for me. I was going to trade the pair back to the original owner anyway or give them to some friends if she decided not to raise Wellies. I decided since I can only have one roo pretty much for flock guardian, I am going to keep one of the male Marans and a few Females out of the ones I my broody hatched. I know I at least have a quad out of the 8.

I can only tell you of my experience with this.
I had a nice young flock of Buff Orpington pullets in with my old man Buff roo. They started laying around 7 months of age and everyone turned into beautiful hens. Well, one day one of the hens didn't look so good, so I put her in a pen off to herself. She recovered quickly and DH turned her out to free range. I never thought much about it, I'd see her out pecking in the horse manure from a distance. One day, I was walking out through the horse pasture and this gorgeous Buff roo came walking up to me. I came back to the house and asked DH where that roo came from...he said that is that hen that wasn't feeling good!
I believe he had hidden his gender because he was not about to have a confrontation with my old man! Once he was on his own, he developed quick!

Jean

 

[blasto]

Little One is most certainly a boy. Sorry.

As far as the rooster development question, I have had the same thing happen a couple of times. I hatch small batches of eggs (I have an R-com mini so I hatch 3-5 eggs at a time) and twice I've had three egg hatches where there was one obvious male, one obvious female and one that I wasn't sure about for a long, long time who later turned out to be a non-dominant male. Once the roos went to different homes the straggler quickly came in to his own.

So...either there really is something to the idea of a hormone release/withdrawl or something similar that triggers slower development in males lower down on the pecking-order OR faster-to-mature cockerals just tend to become the dominant boy of the bunch. Or maybe a combination of both

.