Help?!

[NatJ]

If the black chicks have a Barred Rock mother, and a Rhode Island Red father: yes, they are female.

(If they have any other barred mother, and any other not-barred father, they would also be female.)

 

[BeezerC]

If the black chicks have a Barred Rock mother, and a Rhode Island Red father: yes, they are female.

(If they have any other barred mother, and any other not-barred father, they would also be female.)

Thank you, that’s exactly the mix. So farther down the line if that male barred rock/rir mix was to breed with either my rir pullet or one of those black pullets would it be the same situation? As I said I’m just learning the genetics of mixes and I appreciate you answering my questions!!

 

[NatJ]

Thank you, that’s exactly the mix. So farther down the line if that male barred rock/rir mix was to breed with either my rir pullet or one of those black pullets would it be the same situation? As I said I’m just learning the genetics of mixes and I appreciate you answering my questions!!

Unfortunately, the next generation does not work the same way.

If the mixed rooster mates with a not-barred hen (RIR or black sexlink), about half the chicks will be barred, and about half will not. But there will be males and females in each color group. (There should also be some black and some red chicks and quite likely some white or columbian-colored ones as well, but that does not matter in this case: barred or not is the basis of this kind of sexlink.)

If you then pick barred females, and not-barred males, you can cross those to get more sexlinks.

So you can make sexlinks in every other generation.

White chicks can be genetically barred or not-barred, but you can't really see white bars on a white bird If you get columbian patterned chicks you will be able to see barring or not on the black parts of their feathers (if you want to search for photos: Delawares are barred columbian, Light Brahmas are not-barred columbian.)

 

[BeezerC]

That’s super interesting! I’m going to do some research now to learn more. I’m going to post a few more pics of the chicks we hatched from eggs I bought. Maybe you could help me with sexes if you think it’a possible? They are 5 weeks this week. I’m hoping the first one who’s an EE is a pullet lol. Someone said they think cockerel though.

 

[NatJ]

I’m going to post a few more pics of the chicks we hatched from eggs I bought.

So you don't know their parents? Then it's down to looking at combs and wattles and guessing.

I am assuming they are all the same age--if some are older than others, my guesses may be wrong.

First picture:
--bottom right corner, head of a cockerel
--middle bird, I think cockerel (but less obvious than the bird on the bottom right.)
--top left corner, head of a pullet

Second picture:
--bird in the middle, I'm not quite sure. I think I see the wattles just starting to get red--so it might be a cockerel who matures slowly, or a pullet who matures fast

Third picture (black chicken):
--only bird shown, I think cockerel because the comb looks big, but I'm not entirely sure because I might expect it to be more red. I cannot see the wattles (sometimes they turn bright red sooner, which can help me decide.)

Fourth picture:
--close bird, I think cockerel because of how red the wattles are, even though they are still so tiny and the comb is still pale
--far bird, I cannot see the comb and wattles, and the bird is to young to have male saddle feathers, so no guesses there

Fifth picture:
--I think pullet, although the wattles are getting just a touch of pink, which makes me not sure

Sixth picture:
--bird on the left side, I'm really unsure about this one. I see some bright pink in those tiny wattles, but the comb is completely pale.
--other two birds, back ends only, no guesses

I'm pretty sure genders will be much more obvious as they get a bit older yet. Either you have quite a few cockerels, or I am quite good at finding bits of pink or red and thinking it's a cockerel So I'll be curious to know later, when it's more obvious, how many I was wrong about

I also don't know how many birds are appearing how many times--so if I say a particular bird is a pullet in one photo, and a cockerel in another, then I must be wrong one of those times!

 

[BeezerC]

Are there any breeds in which the females grow combs early on?

 

[Mamatomany123]

Are there any breeds in which the females grow combs early on?

How early? Some birds lay earlier than others so theyll develop comb and wattle earlier but I would say anything before 10 weeks would be a male.

 

[BeezerC]

How early? Some birds lay earlier than others so theyll develop comb and wattle earlier but I would say anything before 10 weeks would be a male.

The birds in the 6 pics I posted earlier are 5 weeks. I was curious to know how early pullets grow combs. I have some that are growing but are not red or only have a slight tinge of pink in them.

 

[NatJ]

The birds in the 6 pics I posted earlier are 5 weeks. I was curious to know how early pullets grow combs. I have some that are growing but are not red or only have a slight tinge of pink in them.

Cockerels usually have larger combs than pullets, but some breeds do have different size combs. Easter Eggers often have pea combs, which tend to be smaller. Leghorns are known for having big combs. Wyandottes have rose combs that tend to be flat and smaller than many other comb types. Polish have little V-shaped combs that are often hidden in their crests.

I don't know what breeds have white size comb at what age; they all have tiny combs when they hatch, which get bigger at various rates.

I mostly look at the color of the comb and wattles: it seems more accurate to me than fretting about size.

I think it is normal for a cockerel's comb to get bigger first and then get redder--but the "bigger" is often only a little bit, and I don't trust myself to recognize it.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

Check his/her legs against the others‘ legs. If feet and legs are noticeably bigger, then probably a boy chicken. That comb definitely looks boy, but I’ve had pullets develop their combs and wattles early in the past.

Leg size isn't a proven method.