Meyer Hatchery Chicken pics anyone??

[TheCrazyChick]

Thanks for all your opinions about Salmon Faverolles! Maybe it's a typo on the Meyer page. At any rate I am going to give one a try. Very pretty and with everyone's comments about how sweet they are, I think a pullet SF would fit in nicely with my flock plan for coop #2. So far this includes polish, turkens, basques, houdan, and silver penciled rocks, ss hamburg, blue ameraucana, cochin, among others. The polish, hamburg, cochin and blue ameraucana are from Meyer. All beautiful.

 

[MsChickenMomma]

I am about 95% sure that Sunni and Amber are boys... Sunni's feathers are darker, shorter, and thicker than Daffodils, (the other BO) and Ambers feathers are shorter than Ellie's (the other EE) and Amber is behaving just like any other male chick that I've raised. This morning I looked at both of their combs and the base of Sunni's comb is turning red, and Ambers comb is starting to get some red spots. They also both stand really tall and straight and Amber likes to race up to my hands and stands really tall an starts pecking at my fingers. He/she also likes to stand there and move it's head from side to side low to the ground. All of this is typical male behavior. Sunni isn't behaving like a cockerel, but his/her feathers and comb are a big indicator.

I'm really bummed... I can't have any more roosters, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with these two... Keeping them isn't an option, and I don't know anywhere that they could go

 

[NanaLynn]

Integration Update:

Well yesterday I gave the chicks a lot of supervised time together and a little unsupervised time together. My SLW for some reason still wants to chase and peck them, but they have learned to try to avoid her. The other chickens are doing much better at ignoring the little ones and the little ones have learned that they should avoid them. It is getting better. I even left the brooder door opened for the little ones to come and go as they pleased. They were up roosting until the big ones came in last night. When I checked on them later that night they were hiding in the brooder again, so I guess the big ones chased them in.

I was so worried through the night and woke up early to check on them. When I went out this morning they were all out in the run or coop and the little ones were still avoiding the big ones and all of the little chicks looked okay and there was no blood or missing feathers, so right now all is okay. They have plenty of hiding spots, so hopefully this works out until they are bigger. Hopefully one of these nights I will go out and find the little ones up roosting with the others, but I guess it will be awhile.

They still have a separate water dish and feeder that the big ones cannot get to as well. I will continue doing that for a few weeks and I plan on adding another big feeder in the near future.

 

[NanaLynn]

I am about 95% sure that Sunni and Amber are boys...

Sunni's feathers are darker, shorter, and thicker than Daffodils, (the other BO) and Ambers feathers are shorter than Ellie's (the other EE) and Amber is behaving just like any other male chick that I've raised. This morning I looked at both of their combs and the base of Sunni's comb is turning red, and Ambers comb is starting to get some red spots. They also both stand really tall and straight and Amber likes to race up to my hands and stands really tall an starts pecking at my fingers. He/she also likes to stand there and move it's head from side to side low to the ground. All of this is typical male behavior. Sunni isn't behaving like a cockerel, but his/her feathers and comb are a big indicator.

I'm really bummed... I can't have any more roosters, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with these two... Keeping them isn't an option, and I don't know anywhere that they could go

So sorry, I hope you are wrong and maybe they are hens.

 

[nova022]

Integration Update:

Well yesterday I gave the chicks a lot of supervised time together and a little unsupervised time together. My SLW for some reason still wants to chase and peck them, but they have learned to try to avoid her. The other chickens are doing much better at ignoring the little ones and the little ones have learned that they should avoid them. It is getting better. I even left the brooder door opened for the little ones to come and go as they pleased. They were up roosting until the big ones came in last night. When I checked on them later that night they were hiding in the brooder again, so I guess the big ones chased them in.

I was so worried through the night and woke up early to check on them. When I went out this morning they were all out in the run or coop and the little ones were still avoiding the big ones and all of the little chicks looked okay and there was no blood or missing feathers, so right now all is okay. They have plenty of hiding spots, so hopefully this works out until they are bigger. Hopefully one of these nights I will go out and find the little ones up roosting with the others, but I guess it will be awhile.

They still have a separate water dish and feeder that the big ones cannot get to as well. I will continue doing that for a few weeks and I plan on adding another big feeder in the near future.

My SLW was very mean to my new chicks when I tried to introduce them. I ended up putting her in a different pen along with two others that were mean and let the younger ones get used to the rest, then I introduced the older three back one at a time. They all get along great now.

 

[nova022]

Flocks do integrate over time, so I'm not sure who would have said otherwise. I have 6 different broods of chickens in my chicken yard (soon to be 7) from over the past 8 years and if you didn't know which hens came from which year's brood, you wouldn't figure it out by looking at them.

I was told that by many people and at first I feared they were right. I had two distinct groups for a while, but now they intermingle and you really can't say which group they are from. At night they all scrunch together one roost and leave the rest vacant.

 

[NotableNancy]

I am about 95% sure that Sunni and Amber are boys...

Sunni's feathers are darker, shorter, and thicker than Daffodils, (the other BO) and Ambers feathers are shorter than Ellie's (the other EE) and Amber is behaving just like any other male chick that I've raised. This morning I looked at both of their combs and the base of Sunni's comb is turning red, and Ambers comb is starting to get some red spots. They also both stand really tall and straight and Amber likes to race up to my hands and stands really tall an starts pecking at my fingers. He/she also likes to stand there and move it's head from side to side low to the ground. All of this is typical male behavior. Sunni isn't behaving like a cockerel, but his/her feathers and comb are a big indicator.

I'm really bummed... I can't have any more roosters, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with these two... Keeping them isn't an option, and I don't know anywhere that they could go

The only thing I can suggest is Craig's List. I was resigned to just giving mine away on there rather than charging a fee. I bet you will get a taker. But wait a while... maybe one is really a pullet??

Integration Update:

Well yesterday I gave the chicks a lot of supervised time together and a little unsupervised time together. My SLW for some reason still wants to chase and peck them, but they have learned to try to avoid her. The other chickens are doing much better at ignoring the little ones and the little ones have learned that they should avoid them. It is getting better. I even left the brooder door opened for the little ones to come and go as they pleased. They were up roosting until the big ones came in last night. When I checked on them later that night they were hiding in the brooder again, so I guess the big ones chased them in.

I was so worried through the night and woke up early to check on them. When I went out this morning they were all out in the run or coop and the little ones were still avoiding the big ones and all of the little chicks looked okay and there was no blood or missing feathers, so right now all is okay. They have plenty of hiding spots, so hopefully this works out until they are bigger. Hopefully one of these nights I will go out and find the little ones up roosting with the others, but I guess it will be awhile.

They still have a separate water dish and feeder that the big ones cannot get to as well. I will continue doing that for a few weeks and I plan on adding another big feeder in the near future.

It sounds very stressful but seems like you are doing everything right! You started them getting used to each other so young I'm sure they will be one happy family before you know it!!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I am about 95% sure that Sunni and Amber are boys... Sunni's feathers are darker, shorter, and thicker than Daffodils, (the other BO) and Ambers feathers are shorter than Ellie's (the other EE) and Amber is behaving just like any other male chick that I've raised. This morning I looked at both of their combs and the base of Sunni's comb is turning red, and Ambers comb is starting to get some red spots. They also both stand really tall and straight and Amber likes to race up to my hands and stands really tall an starts pecking at my fingers. He/she also likes to stand there and move it's head from side to side low to the ground. All of this is typical male behavior. Sunni isn't behaving like a cockerel, but his/her feathers and comb are a big indicator.

I'm really bummed... I can't have any more roosters, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with these two... Keeping them isn't an option, and I don't know anywhere that they could go

Don't get rid of them just yet, especially not Amber. Easter-eggers are tricky. If you have an updated picture of her, especially a full body picture and a shot of her comb, I'd be glad to tell you what I think. However, it's best to wait until 6 weeks old on EEs to know for sure.

The behaviors you're describing are ones I saw in my babies last year. Mine turned out to be hens, or at least they lay an awful lot of eggs for roosters. That's not saying for sure that your babies aren't boys, but those behaviors are certainly not 'typical male behavior' from my experience.

 

[MsChickenMomma]

Don't get rid of them just yet, especially not Amber. Easter-eggers are tricky. If you have an updated picture of her, especially a full body picture and a shot of her comb, I'd be glad to tell you what I think. However, it's best to wait until 6 weeks old on EEs to know for sure.

The behaviors you're describing are ones I saw in my babies last year. Mine turned out to be hens, or at least they lay an awful lot of eggs for roosters. That's not saying for sure that your babies aren't boys, but those behaviors are certainly not 'typical male behavior' from my experience.

I won't be re-homing them until they are a few months old, that way I can know for sure. I've never had EE's before, so it is very hard to know with them. I have had BO's before, and now after doing lots of research this morning, I am about 99.9% sure Sunni is a cockerel. He doesn't have bow feathers and his tail is very small and the feathers are curled. Both of those are pretty sure signs of a cockerel. I was also doing some comparisons between Daffodil and Sunni, and Sunni's legs are longer and thicker than Daffodils. Another sign of a cockerel.

Amber has some bow feathers and his/her tail is straight, but very short. His/her legs are only a tiny but bigger than Ellie's. So I'm not sure just yet. I can go out and try and take some comparison photos of the EE's and the BO's so you can tell me what you think. I'm going to wait and see with Amber, but I am almost positive Sunni is a cockerel.

 

[MsChickenMomma]

The only thing I can suggest is Craig's List. I was resigned to just giving mine away on there rather than charging a fee. I bet you will get a taker.  But wait a while... maybe one is really a pullet??

I'll most likely end up using Craig's List. I did that last year when I had to re-home 6 cockerels. I found homes for them easily. The only thing I don't like about re-homing on Craig's List, is that you never really know who they are going to, and how they will be cared for. I got good luck last year and 3 of the boys went to a small farm, 1 went to a breeder, 1 went to a friend of mine, and I kept the last one.