Identifying gender and breed?

[WallyBirdie]

I have a beautiful Blue Laced Red Wyandotte named Adam.
I've raised chickens for a while but this is my first Wyandotte. I don't know if Adam is a hen or roo! Any assistance would be helpful. He or she is just shy of 3 months old.

I also have a beautiful little lady named Ira that I like to call my 'mystery chicken'. She came in a mixed batch- but she doesn't match up with any of the breeds I ordered.
The closest breed I can find is a Cochin, but Ira has FIVE toes on both feet, with leg/foot feathers. When I first got her, I thought I'd accidentally ended up with a Silkie. She's definitely not a silkie...
She's a couple weeks younger than Adam.

 

[featheredplanets]

The Wyandotte is a cockerel.

My best guess is that the pullet is a mix, there’s only a couple of breeds with five toes. But it’ll be interesting to see what others say

 

[Eelantha]

@Deej - I'm not a chicken expert, but based on my own experience with raising chicks, I'd say your blue laced red wyandotte Adam is a rooster. His crest is quite big and red compared to those around him, his chest is prominent in that proudful way all roosters share, and unless my eyes deceive me, his tail feathers are starting to curl.

Your white lady sounds like she might have been crossed with a Dorking, which is one of the few breeds I know of that has five toes. Someone I met a while ago told me Silkies also have five toes, but that's to verify. Cochin is most likely, but Brahma is also a possibility.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Extra toes is actually a fairly common mutation. I think your lady is as close to pure cochin as hatchery stock gets.

 

[featheredplanets]

Extra toes is actually a fairly common mutation. I think your lady is as close to pure cochin as hatchery stock gets.

Why do they grow an extra toe if they’re pure breed? Do hatcheries use five toed breeds to create new colours in four toed breeds?

 

[sylviethecochin]

Why do they grow an extra toe if they’re pure breed? Do hatcheries use five toed breeds to create new colours in four toed breeds?

When a chicken is growing in the egg, the number of wings and toes and where they're placed is determined by hormone gradients. Those gradients change as the baby chickens grow, and sometimes they're subtly off (resulting in things like webbed toes and extra toes).

Some breeds are especially prone to extra toes, due to a genetic predisposition, but sometimes something goes wrong in the development process and it just pops up randomly. I've seen several posts where cochins were found to have extra toes, and I think the breed might just be prone to getting them.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-many-toes-does-a-standard-cochin-normally-have.270485/ (If you read the thread, they're accusing the breeder of this and that, but the extra toe is very likely not from a fifth toe gene. A fifth toe should be separate, not fused. Looks like a mutation to me.)

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/cochin-siblings-both-have-one-foot-with-five-toes.838271/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-cochin-has-5-toes-surely-he-is-a-cochin.436050/

 

[featheredplanets]

When a chicken is growing in the egg, the number of wings and toes and where they're placed is determined by hormone gradients. Those gradients change as the baby chickens grow, and sometimes they're subtly off (resulting in things like webbed toes and extra toes).

Some breeds are especially prone to extra toes, due to a genetic predisposition, but sometimes something goes wrong in the development process and it just pops up randomly. I've seen several posts where cochins were found to have extra toes, and I think the breed might just be prone to getting them.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-many-toes-does-a-standard-cochin-normally-have.270485/ (If you read the thread, they're accusing the breeder of this and that, but the extra toe is very likely not from a fifth toe gene. A fifth toe should be separate, not fused. Looks like a mutation to me.)

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/cochin-siblings-both-have-one-foot-with-five-toes.838271/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-cochin-has-5-toes-surely-he-is-a-cochin.436050/

Wow! Well I’ll be backing the Chicken X-Men when they form. Thank you for taking the time to explain that. I guess you learn something new everyday! I gotta Google webbed chicken feet now...

 

[WallyBirdie]

The Wyandotte is a cockerel.

My best guess is that the pullet is a mix, there’s only a couple of breeds with five toes. But it’ll be interesting to see what others say

Thank you for your help!

 

[WallyBirdie]

@Deej - I'm not a chicken expert, but based on my own experience with raising chicks, I'd say your blue laced red wyandotte Adam is a rooster. His crest is quite big and red compared to those around him, his chest is prominent in that proudful way all roosters share, and unless my eyes deceive me, his tail feathers are starting to curl.

Your white lady sounds like she might have been crossed with a Dorking, which is one of the few breeds I know of that has five toes. Someone I met a while ago told me Silkies also have five toes, but that's to verify. Cochin is most likely, but Brahma is also a possibility.

Thank you for the help! I thought Adam might be a roo judging by size and the early comb but he's so docile and sweet (and round!) that I was uncertain.
I ordered pullets and ended up with at least three roosters. Hopefully I can keep them without any trouble.

 

[WallyBirdie]

When a chicken is growing in the egg, the number of wings and toes and where they're placed is determined by hormone gradients. Those gradients change as the baby chickens grow, and sometimes they're subtly off (resulting in things like webbed toes and extra toes).

Some breeds are especially prone to extra toes, due to a genetic predisposition, but sometimes something goes wrong in the development process and it just pops up randomly. I've seen several posts where cochins were found to have extra toes, and I think the breed might just be prone to getting them.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-many-toes-does-a-standard-cochin-normally-have.270485/ (If you read the thread, they're accusing the breeder of this and that, but the extra toe is very likely not from a fifth toe gene. A fifth toe should be separate, not fused. Looks like a mutation to me.)

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/cochin-siblings-both-have-one-foot-with-five-toes.838271/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-cochin-has-5-toes-surely-he-is-a-cochin.436050/

Thank you so much for all the information and help here.
I'm glad Ira has been identified. She has a wonderful personality.