Our lovely Rupaul - he or she?

[AtomicTea]

Hi there,
We're new to chickens, and have a flock of 12. Of those, three are Silver Laced Wyandottes which we thought were hens. They are now 12 weeks old and we're a little suspicious about one of them, as he or she appears to have a much larger and redder wattle and comb, and is generally larger. I know we're supposed to be looking at the hackle feathers to determine gender, but since we are unexperienced with this sort of thing - we're unsure. Any guesses to our darling little RuPaul's sex? (Rupaul is on the right in the first picture, and right foreground with head down in the second picture. The other two Wyandottes of the same age are also in the pic with same coloring)






Any help is greatly appreciated. We're keeping him/her either way.

 

[angel8035]

That's a cockerel!

 

[AtomicTea]

Quote: We were guessing so. But it's so confusing because I just didn't realize the boys would be as full-bodied. Also, we ordered all hens, lol.

Do you say that because of the face/wattle/combs? Or the feathers? What should I be looking at?

 

[Wyandottes7]

He is a cockerel. This is because of the redder face/larger comb and wattles, as well as his color. Male Silver-Laced Wyandottes have a more blotchy color pattern, with more white on their wings, and more irregular lacing.

 

[angel8035]

We were guessing so. But it's so confusing because I just didn't realize the boys would be as full-bodied. Also, we ordered all hens, lol.

Do you say that because of the face/wattle/combs? Or the feathers? What should I be looking at?

At this age the redness of the comb/waddles are a dead giveaway. You can start to see pointed feathers draping at the back near the tail - these are saddle feathers and only roos have them. Yes, some roos can be quite big! I hope he stays friendly for you - a roo can be a great pet and very entertaining to watch.

 

[AtomicTea]

At this age the redness of the comb/waddles are a dead giveaway. You can start to see pointed feathers draping at the back near the tail - these are saddle feathers and only roos have them. Yes, some roos can be quite big! I hope he stays friendly for you - a roo can be a great pet and very entertaining to watch.

Thanks for the clarification. I hope he stays friendly as well. Hoping SLW roos are friendly guys.