Hen or roo pics.

[TRALALARA1]

This one chick is a real head scratcher. Slow feathering. Yellow comb. He’s from a rir hen and a barred rock roo. He was a yellow chick. He’s very vocal and brave. But the tiniest chick of all. I also threw in a couple other chicks pics for comparison. They are 7 weeks tomorrow.

 

[JedJackson]

The comb looks small and pale, but the coloring is splotchy and its legs are thick. I think it's a cockerel, but give it a little more time to be sure.

 

[Justadoz3nshort]

The comb looks small and pale, but the coloring is splotchy and its legs are thick. I think it's a cockerel, but give it a little more time to be sure.

X2

 

[fluffycrow]

I agree. Give it some more time, but I'm leaning cockerel as well

 

[house1917]

Tough one because the photos are a little blurry. But looks like he’s a barnyard mix with a pea comb. I do think he’s a cockerel, but not sure he’s the combo of a barred rock rooster and RIR hen. That combo result in all barred chicks- so he might be a mix of a mix- because he’s expressing some recessive genes!

Will be really interesting to see his adult feathering.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

A barred rock should always have barred chicks, and he isn’t barred, so either the father isn’t actually a barred rock or the father is another rooster altogether.

 

[TRALALARA1]

Tough one because the photos are a little blurry. But looks like he’s a barnyard mix with a pea comb. I do think he’s a cockerel, but not sure he’s the combo of a barred rock rooster and RIR hen. That combo result in all barred chicks- so he might be a mix of a mix- because he’s expressing some recessive genes!

Will be really interesting to see his adult feathering.

There are two possible fathers but it’s a very unlikely chance. It’s definitely from a full blood rir. No doubt. I have three. All my other hens lay blue or green eggs. This ch came from a brown egg. The question is whether father could be my deceased EE rooster. He was killed about a month before I gathered eggs for incubating. But I guess it could happen. All those chicks in these pictures are from the same hatching. I set 30 eggs and 27 hatched. I’ve sold a lot of the barred chicks and kept the most unusual and possible pullets. Here’s a pic of the other rooster.

 

[fluffycrow]

Yeah he definitely seems like the most probable father

 

[house1917]

Yeah he definitely seems like the most probable father

Yep. Hens can retain sperm for a few weeks- interesting reproductive strategy.

The pea comb, and the lack of barring tell us who the sire is!

Sometimes genetics is a smack in the head, sometimes it reveals some interesting truths.

 

[Chipmunk Chicks]