Is that normal or naughty?

[Enid]

Hello.
Im new here, my name is Hannah.
I was wondering if anyone could advise me with something. I have 3 chickens at the moment but I think 1 of them may be a cockeral. 'he' is bigger in stature than the other 2 and his tail is starting to curl over downwards but the other ones are not. He also is a bit fiesty! Not aggressive as such but rather vocal. When I let them out this morning I watched for a while and noticed him annoying one of the others, as far as pulling the feathers at the back of her neck! Quite harsh I thought. She stuck her ground and ran off....is this 'boy' behaviour. he has the funniest trousers on too, much longer than the other girls have. He/she is taller too.
I hatched them myself in an incubator from eggs my brother gave me from his chickens. His Boy one has a good temprement so Im not ocverly worried my one would be aggressive but i do have 2 children and would like to be aware if I need to be . Any advice would so be appreciated.
They were born on 2nd October 2010.

hannah

 

[dsqard]

If you could post a picture of the bird in question it would help a lot. A pullet or hen at the top of the pecking order can be aggressive like a boy if there isn't one around. It is hard to tell by your description. If you do have a boy and want to keep him I would do a search on training roosters so that they understand that you are the head rooster especially with small children around. Tons of good information on this site!

 

[Enid]

Thankyou for your answer. I just popped outside and took this pic of him/her. Any clues?

Also...if heisa boy...should i get more hens? I would only have 2 others if this isnt 1! i wouldnt want to ware them out or something, Ive read on here that that can happen. Ill do anything to keep them happy and content.

 

[dsqard]

It does look like a boy but still kinda hard to tell. I would look for saddle feathers near the tail. The hackle feathers are looking pointy like a boy's are. Are the other two the same mix? If so I would also compare their wattle/comb development to this one to see if they are the same or if his are larger and redder. Please keep in mind that I have only had chickens for less than a year so I am far from experienced. Very nice looking bird, do you know what the breeds are that in him?
ETA - Sorry I didn't see your second question. If you want more hens then I would say yes!

If he is a boy then I would watch the two pullets and see if they are losing a lot of feathers on their back once he starts mating them. If they are, then I would suggest more hens if you have the room for them.

 

[Enid]

Gosh i wish I knew what breed he was. His dad is white mainly and his Mummy could be one of four hens. I have pictures of the parents and will upload shortly. I'll also upload a picture of grace, she is the same age (barr 4 hours (bless)) and she is tottaly different altogether! Lol.
If anyone has ideas on what 'make' these little poppets are Id be grateful.

 

[zazouse]

Pretty roo.
He looks like a barred rock mix.

 

[Lifesong Farm]

First off

I think he looks like a boy abd he is prob starting to feel like he needs to do his job.

Can I ask what country are you from? I like some of your word usage. Lol
ETA that may also help everyone figure out what breeds your birds are.

 

[Enid]

Im from Essex in England, about 30m east of London.
I have managed to get together pics of Mum and Dad in the hope they may be recognisable!
Grateful for everyones imput.

 

[The Tinman]

You might want to get more girls. If he is a boy he will become protective of the hens and become aggressive toward anyone he feels is trying to take his girls. A good ratio is 8 girls to 1 roo. Also watch him carefully around your children. I have 16 girls and a very friendly roo,but that did not prevent my roo from going after my brother one day. It was pretty funny but if he was a young child it would have been pretty bad.

 

[Tartannik]

Hi Hannah

What a gorgeous chicken you have there and so is his/her daddy!!
I have 10 chickens including my cockeral and it tool me a while to work out what he was and then he crowed lol!!
Be warned though, chickens are addictive!!!