Late this fall i got a few partly grown chicks from a casual local breeder. He keeps several kinds together, but mostly Silkies and Easter Eggers, but has been breeding for several generations, and there may be more in the mix. I don't know exactly how old they are. I'm concerned that the two big ones shown below could be roosters. I don't have prior experience with Silkies or roosters, and i'm not sure how to interpret the signs in a mixed breed. But these two seem to be growing a bit faster, and the feathers remind me of pictures of roosters. They aren't noticeably more aggressive or boisterous than the other chicks we got at the same time, and i haven't heard anything like crowing, expect one time, when she was really disturbed one made the "ba- bawk, ka BAW!" cry that i've heard some of the other hens use often after laying an egg. It's not clear from the picture, but one of these has the extra toe, and the other has heavily feathered feet. Thanks.
Drat! What are the chances that since they haven't started crowing yet, they aren't going to start? We have too many neighbors, too close for Cock-a-doodle-do.
I'm sure that, unfortunately, they will eventually crow. My boys didn't start till they were almost seven months old. Are roosters legal in your area? There are steps you can take to keep them from crowing too early or too late.
Chickens aren't legal, though we are sort of grandfathered in due to the fact that we got ours when the statute was unclear or contradictory. We really want to avoid drawing negative attention to our chickens however, the situation isn't entirely certain. Thanks for the tip about crowing, i'll look that up.
The signs are that patchy, flashy coloring, with the bright colors. Hens are drabber colored, with more even coloring. Also the hackle and saddle feathers are a giveaway. They will crow eventually.
And the two are indeed roosters. They started crowing yesterday. For now they are in a dog crate in the basement-- i think i have a home lined up for them.
