I got them from Meyer Hatchery. They have a page on their website with day old chick pictures to help with the identification. However, so many baby chicks look the same. Meyer Hatchery don't identify chicks when they sell unspecified rare breeds. I did not specified the chick I wanted because by selecting the rare breed bundle you get more change to get more variety and better price.
I have to tell you that this is my first time ever purchasing chicks by mail and the reason why I choose Meyer hatchery was due to their proximity to Indiana (hatchery 4 hours drive one way). They shipped my baby chicks on Monday and I got them on Wednesday morning. I was stressed out thinking they will not arrive alive due to the weather. My chicks arrived safely. Poor babies were all snuggling together to be warm.
Ah, yes, Meyer is usually my go-to if I need chicks quick! ("Need"
) Glad it went well for you. Having chicks shipped is really stressful, on us and on the poor babies! Too bad there isn't a better way to get them sometimes.
So, Meyer's rare breed assortment can include any of the following:
Ancona, Andalusian, Wyandotte, Delaware, Dominique, Jersey Giant, Brahma, Partridge Rock, Light Brown Leghorn, Hamburg, Sussex, German Spitzhauben Appenzeller, Buckeye, Sumatra, Cochin, Polish, Marans, Faverolles, Welsummer, Exchequer Leghorn, Sultan, Ameraucana, Blue and Lavender Orpington, Heritage Barred Plymouth Rock, Mottled Houdan, Easter Eggers, Lakeshore Eggers, Green Queens
Based on that...
1 and 6 both appear to have single combs, so I'd say they're both 'Heritage Barred Plymouth Rocks', but they could also be Dominiques if they have rose combs, as you and
@Faraday40 both pointed out.
2 is either an Easter-egger, Lakeshore Egger, or Green Queen. I don't see any feathering on the legs (Green Queens are Faverolles mixes so it's likely there would be some sparse leg feathering), and I think the Lakeshores are Legbar mixes and don't have fluffy cheeks, so I think she's an Easter-egger.
3 could be a blue Andalusian, Cochin, Polish, Marans, Ameraucana, or Orpington from that list. I see no crest, fluffy cheeks, or feathering on the legs, so she's likely either an Andalusian or an Orp. It should be easy to tell once she's older; skinny hen with a large comb that lays white eggs is an Andalusian, while fluffy hen with small comb that lays brown eggs is an Orp.
4 is a tough one. Does she have feathering on her feet? It almost looks like she has fluffy cheeks on her, so I'm wondering if she's maybe a Green Queen or an Easter-egger. If she doesn't have fluffy cheeks, she could also be a White Cochin if her feet are fuzzy, or a Delaware if not. Editing to add, I forgot about their White Marans, which may or may not be feather-footed, but she could be one of those, too. Marans would have pinkish or white feet when older, while Cochins and Delawares would have yellow feet.
5 also looks like she has fluffy cheeks to me, so I'd say an Easter-egger or Green Queen there, too. If she doesn't have fluffy cheeks, then she's probably a Partridge Rock or Cochin, depending on if her feet are feathered or not.
Number 5 looks a lot like an Easter-egger I got from Meyer last year, my girl Mona. This is her now.
When she was a baby, I called her Brownie or Brownie-Bite because she was so chocolatey-looking.
She lays a super pretty green egg.
