Indentity crisis: please help!

[zany cottage]

Hafa adai (hello!) everyone!

Newbie here and I need help… We are very confused.

Please read below, and feel free to provide any insight you may have to offer.

These 2 chickens hatched in the incubator of a 1st grade class on May 8, 2012.

Sadly, due to some incident or problem that was never determined by the teacher, only 2 of the 26 [or so] chicks that hatched that week survived- these were the 2…

(At the time, I had begun researching/preparing for how to raise a small flock of hens inside an urban environment for egg production, just for our family) so when the teacher asked if we might want the surviving chicks, although I was nervous & uncertain (still just in the prep stage, and unknowing if they were even hens), we decided to bring them home.

We followed the steps of all the “how-to’s” for the 1st couple months, asking questions here and there from folks with experience.
Finally, when the chicks were about 8 weeks, we moved them out into the yard full time (we kept them in the brooder longer than normal I think, particularly at night, because there was just the 2 of them & no other chickens waiting outside)… this was about late June/early July.

All the while of course, crossing our fingers that they were gals.

Fast forward to today.

We’re mostly certain they are hens

(Are they hens?)

Only at 27 weeks, they’re still not laying eggs.

They “bah-gawk” right along with all of the neighborhood dogs, when the dogs are barking at something. One of them especially becomes overzealous with the barking dogs from time to time, and starts to sound more like a rooster crowing then just “bah-gawking”, so that is leaving us really confused & concerned.

I feel like they both possess every single secondary sex characteristic that I’ve read, that belong to hens & roosters. And of course not having any clue as to their breed(s), because they came from a class project, only adds to this confusion.

They eat very well & always have (they finally quit walking up to the kitchen door expecting to come inside, when I’d let them wander around the yard- about 2 months ago.)

So please take a look at these pics. Are they really roosters? Are they hens? What about the “crowing” concern? What about the lack of egg-laying? Any idea of breed(s)?

We can only have a small flock of hens within our city limits, so you can imagine how disheartening needing to re-home would be after the incubator incident, and because we’ve grown attached. HELP!!



THANKS!!

(These pics were taken about 11/01)

 

[gritsar]

Sorry, but I see two roosters.

 

[satay]

They look like 2 roosters to me.

 

[Pele]

Two very manly men

 

[Sk8inChick(en)]

Hi there!

Congratulations on your new chickens! You must be forewarned that these will not likely be your only chickens.

As for breed and gender, I'm no expert, but I can give you my opinion.

First of all, they look like Easter Eggers to me. Unfortunately, the chicken in the first picture looks like a little roo. I think I see some saddle feathers and red comb and wattles. I could be wrong, though. The second one looks like it may be as rooster also. Again, I'm no expert, so I would wait for some more opinions to come along as well.

Congratualtions, and you have some gorgeous birds there! I hope you will get lots of enjoyment out of owning them!

 

[BigECarter]

They look like easter eggers to me. Cute.

 

[hdowden]

both are ee cockerels

 

[zany cottage]

 

[greeneacre]

Appear to both be true ameraucanas given that they have the slate colored legs and are a solid blue. The sickles feather on the first picture says roo as well as the darker hackle feathers on both. I would say two roo. Sorry. but are probably one of the few who actually has ameraucana and not EE. Not they there is anyting wrong with EE thwy are very pretty birds. I put a link to the ameraucana scrap book of a Blue Ameraucans roo.


http://www.ameraucana.org/scrapbook_files/lfbluem.jpg

 

[hdowden]

i know what they look like but considering they were hatched in a classroom the chances are very high that they are ee's instead. i could do ee's that look like that just need the right birds. if egg color is known for these 2 that would also help. a sky blue egg is probably from a true AM while any with greenish tints to green would be ee's though i have heard of true AM's laying lightly green tinted eggs. they maybe pure they may not be...