hen or rooster, duck or drake

[barefootcountry]

Hi -
Ordered chickens this year...ordered all hens except for one buff rooster.
Was wondering if our 2 RIR are hens or roosters. (They look the same - tail feathers, crops and combs, just one is darker)
They look like roosters, but are not acting like roosters.



Our Buff rooster has been crowing and acting like rooster for a month plus now. All our chickens are the same age (21wks). Our chickens haven't started laying yet, so I can't tell by egg production.
The Buff has spur nubs but the RIR that look like roosters don't...

Also, (I think I already know the answer) was wondering if one of our ducks is a drake...we specifically ordered 3 ducks for eggs and it looks like we got 1 drake...(Buttons or Uncle Waldo, depending on if it's a duck or drake). Buttons has the raspy quack, orange feet, the dark tail feathers, but I can't tell from the head yet. The ducks are younger then our chickens, so they aren't laying yet either and Buttons has made no attempt to mate yet (15wks)...Buttons is so docile and quiet and doesn't freakout when you catch "him"....whether male or female, Buttons is a keeper


Thanks for any help you can give.....

 

[BantamLover21]

The Rhode Island Red pictured is 100% rooster. He's probably not crowing because he isn't as high in the pecking order as your Buff rooster. Still, he should start crowing in a few weeks. As for your duck/drake question, what breed of duck do you have? It appears to be a drake, but I am not a duck expert, and knowing the breed would help.

 

[barefootcountry]

OOPs forgot - Ducks are Khaki Cambells......Ugh on roosters, knocks my egg production down and will have to find a home for the RIRs

 

[barefootcountry]

Thanks for the info though..... :/

 

[BantamLover21]

OOPs forgot - Ducks are Khaki Cambells......Ugh on roosters, knocks my egg production down and will have to find a home for the RIRs

In that case, I think that your duck is a drake. I could be wrong, but his bill color is that of a drake (females Khaki Campbells, at least those that I have seen, have bluish colored bills, while males have a more yellow colored bill). His general appearance is that of a male, too, though he has yet to develop the dark head and neck color of a Khaki Campbell drake.

 

[ramirezframing]

The duck with the white on the neck is a drake, you can see that his tail feathers are starting to curl up wards like a male. The rir is a rooster also.

 

[donrae]

Both males.

 

[barefootcountry]

Thank you all for your responses....we were afraid that the 3 in question were males...will be keeping the drake, but will have to find a home for the roosters Frustrating, because we are down 3 egg producers. Will have to contact the hatcheries...I can imagine that sexing chickens/ducks is difficult and not always 100%, but we paid specifically (extra money) for females.....Brenda