Polish littles - age and sexing

[SpinnyB]

Hey there!!! I picked up 2 polish chicks today - the lady I got them from was a bit questionable - chicks were in her bathroom with about 50 other chicks, various bins and poop everywhere, it was so dirty. Alot of the chicks were missing feathers, and looked like they were in rough shape. She advertised these as 2 month old polish pullets. I have never had polish chickens before so I asked her how she sexed them and she said the roos have bigger crests and the pullets have smaller crests. I had done some research prior to getting these two and it seems like they are sexable as day olds but not so much after.

I feel like they are closer to 4-5 weeks.....the black one has no feathers on its back and these poor things are exhausted. Do these look like 2 month old pullets?

 

[JedJackson]

The little ones is two or three weeks. The larger one is maybe 5 weeks. It is too early to tell gender. With Polish, 8 weeks is a good time to start.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Agree, you can not tell gender this early. They are much younger than 2 months. Poor little dears.
Sounds like you freed them from a bad situation. They could likely use some poultry Nutradrench or similar to pep them up a bit. Helpful with any chickens that have been under stress.

 

[SpinnyB]

Thank you for your reply! I have given them poul-vite (electrolytes) and they are alot more active, eating well. The slept hard for 24 hrs....the place they came from was pure chaos.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Thank you for your reply! I have given them poul-vite (electrolytes) and they are alot more active, eating well. The slept hard for 24 hrs....the place they came from was pure chaos.

Heat would be nice for them to if you have not already thought of it. They look young enough to still need it. Brooder plates are great, mimic the natural environment, no fire risk or awful red light.

 

[SpinnyB]

Oh yes, they are in my house with a brooder plate. I agree so much nicer than the heat lamp!!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Sounds like they will thrive in your care.

 

[SpinnyB]

The little ones is two or three weeks. The larger one is maybe 5 weeks. It is too early to tell gender. With Polish, 8 weeks is a good time to start.

What are things to look for with polish chicks that help determine gender? Besides waddles/comb?

 

[LadiesAndJane]

If they are beardless, wattles tend to come in early in males. Females not until close to laying age.
Females have more rounded, neat crests, males have more punk rocker type crests. These little sweeties do not look like pure Polish though. They could be mixes.
Recommend posting new photos in a few weeks.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Hey there!!! I picked up 2 polish chicks today - the lady I got them from was a bit questionable - chicks were in her bathroom with about 50 other chicks, various bins and poop everywhere, it was so dirty. Alot of the chicks were missing feathers, and looked like they were in rough shape. She advertised these as 2 month old polish pullets. I have never had polish chickens before so I asked her how she sexed them and she said the roos have bigger crests and the pullets have smaller crests. I had done some research prior to getting these two and it seems like they are sexable as day olds but not so much after.

I feel like they are closer to 4-5 weeks.....the black one has no feathers on its back and these poor things are exhausted. Do these look like 2 month old pullets?

I agree that they look 4-5 weeks old. Post again when they’re 8-12 weeks old for help with sexing.