Our Reluctant Rooster

[keesmom]

I have had a few hens with spurs (Welsummers and Asils) so it's not unheard of.

 

[enola]

It's a female. Looks like maybe some chimeria going on, that could have effected her reproductive ability.

I agree with donrea

 

[the1913trio]

That is absolutely fascinating!! I'm huge sucker for a good documentary, too! Honestly, the more I learn about chickens, the more they sound like feathery little mutants! I'm a X-men fan, so I can totally see my flock as a little mutant band of avian superheroes! Oh geez, I might need to draw some of these (I'm an artist)!

Lol! That is an awesome idea, you should go ahead and draw them out as superheroes with their own specialty! It sure would be a fun piece of art.

 

[MissCindy]

It's a female. Looks like maybe some chimeria going on, that could have effected her reproductive ability.

That's a good point - she's definitely not got a normal cycle. In all these months, where everyone else has been laying, Brienne has not. That giant, stand-up little soldier of a comb has been bright red for many, many months, and not a single egg. Now all of a sudden we've gotten 4 eggs from her in the past 8 days (egg, egg, no egg, no egg, no egg, egg, no egg, egg). Time will continue to tell if she evens out, but I would have thought that with such egg-machine breeds (RIR & Plym Rock) she would have started her laying on time, and a bit more regularly. Our other girls are basically like clockwork, with an occasional hiccup, of course.

If she's 100% female, she's the strangest hen I've ever heard of! She chased me out of the run yesterday while the other girls were eating, hollering at me the whole time! It's of these quick little flashes that I wish I could grab video. She alerts at the hawks, the neighbors' cat, and any squirrels or larger birds that come near the flock. She's awkward and clumsy in her movements, though I'm not sure if that's part of her timid nature making her unsure. She'll take food from my hand, but does so voraciously, and will occasionally take a light nip at a finger, just to let me know she's in charge!

I did a bit of research on chimerism in chickens, and it's a bit more common than I'd thought.The proper term is gynandromorphism, and there are two types. In a chimera, the two sexes are present symmetrically, so the bird is divided, one half being male, the other half being female. In a mosaic, the sexes are present like a patchwork quilt, with different bits here and there. The two types happen during different stages of egg development, the former happening early on and the latter during later stages. I've really no idea what Brienne is genetically, but for all intents and purposes she's a she - though I've enjoyed the reading I've done.

Again, I'd like to thank everyone for all the wonderful input here! I'm definitely learning some new things, and learning new perspectives in talking with you all!

 

[ChickenPox]

Did you ever try the food coloring?

 

[MissCindy]

Did you ever try the food coloring?

Lol, no I just couldn't bring myself to do it!

Heehee!!

Really, though, at this point I'm sure it's Brienne laying. We've gotten 5 brown eggs almost every day for the past 2 1/2 weeks, and she's the only one who would lay a brown egg. We have 4 Red Sex Links (Red Star sounds so much cooler lol), 5 white Leghorns, an Ameracauna, an Easter Egger, and a Brienne, who is half RIR (mother) and half Plymouth Rock (father). It's official - Brienne is laying eggs! I guess she just had a bit of a late start in maturing... There's still something decidedly odd about her, but I'm content with letting her be her fabulous self, lol!

I'm a little odd, myself, so they tell me!

PS - She did even out a bit - we've gotten almost an egg a day from her, solid, for the past week!

 

[MissCindy]

Just a follow up on our special little chicken... I finally caught her on film crowing! It's a weak crow, for sure, but there's no doubting that's what she's doing, lol! Every time I try to film or photo her, she immediately stops whatever it is that she's doing and just stares at me!! So this time, since she was on the front step, I had a chance to shoot video through the glass bits on the door! I just thought some of you might enjoy seeing her actually acting like a roo...

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Lol, no I just couldn't bring myself to do it!

Heehee!!

Really, though, at this point I'm sure it's Brienne laying. We've gotten 5 brown eggs almost every day for the past 2 1/2 weeks, and she's the only one who would lay a brown egg. We have 4 Red Sex Links (Red Star sounds so much cooler lol), 5 white Leghorns, an Ameracauna, an Easter Egger, and a Brienne, who is half RIR (mother) and half Plymouth Rock (father). It's official - Brienne is laying eggs! I guess she just had a bit of a late start in maturing... There's still something decidedly odd about her, but I'm content with letting her be her fabulous self, lol!

I'm a little odd, myself, so they tell me!

PS - She did even out a bit - we've gotten almost an egg a day from her, solid, for the past week!

RSL lay brown eggs - the only ones that would definitely NOT lay brown eggs in your list are the leghorns and the Ameraucana if it is a true Ameraucana. The crossings used to bring about EE often result in birds who do not inherit the genetics to produce blue/green eggs and result in birds that lay cream or brown eggs.

 

[MissCindy]

RSL lay brown eggs - the only ones that would definitely NOT lay brown eggs in your list are the leghorns and the Ameraucana if it is a true Ameraucana. The crossings used to bring about EE often result in birds who do not inherit the genetics to produce blue/green eggs and result in birds that lay cream or brown eggs.

Yes, I know, thank you. I meant that all my hens that lay brown eggs were already laying. That's why I said Brienne would be the only one who could have laid the 5th brown egg I was getting daily. She was the only brown layer we had who hadn't started laying yet.

And yes, my Ameracauna is true... her eggs are colored like the sky. My Easter Egger lays slightly greener eggs, but they're still very blue-hued. It's hard to tell the eggs apart unless they're side by side. I thought the Easter Egger might be an Ameracauna... she doesn't have the beard that my other Americauna has, just the muffs. I don't know if that makes a difference. Unless I'm just completely wrong... the differences between EE's and Ameracaunas can be so slight!! All I know is that one of my egg customers has a 5yr old daughter who won't eat any other eggs now but our blue eggs! Lol!! But speaking of EE crosses and egg colors... I recently rescued 4 hens, one of which is an Ameracauna cross... she looks like a barred or Plymouth rock hen with a pea comb, and muffs and a beard! She lays blue eggs. I guess those particular genetic combinations allow for the blue pigment to pass on. Go figure! Chicken genetics is too complex for me!