Our four new chooks

[purange]

Recently we got our four first chickens for our hen-house, four lovely unsexed young chickens. Its becoming a bit of a debate now in our house though the gender of these birds, so I thought I might try to settle this a little by getting some more professional opionons, as we dont really know what we are looking at.

We were told they were a Barred Rock, a White Leghorn, a Rhode Island Red and a Shaver (All hatched 31st of July, we're not so sure if thats the case with the RIR)

any help would be loved!


White Leghorn

Shaver

Rhode Island Red

Barred Rock

(Chickens are so hard to photograph, they really love the shiny lens XD)

 

[PunkinPeep]

The RIR looks female, and so does the BR. The others are male. Is Shaver another name for Red Sexlink?

Your RIR seems to be missing a tail. Did she have an incident?

And your BR looks different from my BRs somehow, but i can't nail down what's different. Maybe someone else smarter than me will ring in.

 

[Cat Water]

Quote:
The eyes are huge. And pierceing.

 

[purange]

Thankyou peep!
We were wondering where the little red's tail is too, she diddnt have a tail when we brought her home, might it be because she is quite young?
She looked really quite plucked last week but shes fluffing out a little more now, we're hoping she grows a tail soon, as its making her look very bald

I think that might be what a Shaver is, we honestly dont know either, but when I managed to find some images of Shaver hens and Roos, it doesnt look like any of them

 

[purange]

Quote:
The eyes are huge. And pierceing.

All the better to see you with..

 

[PunkinPeep]

Quote:
No, she should definitely have a tail. Looks like all her tail feathers were plucked out at some point, probably by flock mates. She might get a fuller tail when she gets a few weeks older, and then when she molts, it should come in nice and full.

I think your shavers are red sex links; google that one.

 

[purange]

Quote:
Oh poor thing! Well these ones arnt picking on her at least, so a tail should appear soon

Oh yep, I've just looked at those now, they look like a good match,

thankyou so much again Peep!

 

[smarsh2]

if these 4 chickens are less than 2 and half months old, then they are all roos. this said, i would be surprised if that is how old they are.

 

[purange]

Quote:
Sorry to pester you, but how old do you think they might be?

 

[smarsh2]

well if any of them are pullets, then they would have to be pushing egg laying age 18 plus weeks old. if they are roosters they could be 4 to 6 weeks less. it is hard to tell size in pictures, but the lack of tail in the RIR and Barred make me think they are roos at about 12 weeks. I guess the Leghorn could be about that too if a roo. they tail up quicker. the other shaver or whatever it was called, really looks more like a pullet than the others, but would have to be older than the 12 weeks. I am no expert at this, just what i thought.