Polish Pullet or Cockerel

[waltzb88]

Hi everyone!
I have 3 polish chickens that are roughly 7 weeks old. Wondering if ya'll could help me determine if all are pullets or some cockerels? We have a year old silkie rooster who isn't bothered by any of them so he's not really helping me figure this out

The first 3 images are of my golden polish, Tina. I'm thinking Tina is a pullet as their feathers are not super spikey like I'm seeing in google images of golden polish roosters.

The next two images are of my white crested black polish, Cher. I'm almost positive she's a pullet. Her feathers are rounded and her crest has always been very poof ball like.

The last 3 images are of my buff laced polish, no name yet. This one I'm really unsure about. Their crest has been growing in all crazy like, and some feathers are quite pointy.

Thanks so much for any tips you have! Fingers crossed they are all pullets. We really only have enough space for 1 rooster, and our current roo is such a gentlemen. But if one is a cockerel we'll see if we can make the spacing work!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I'm thinking Tina is a pullet as their feathers are not super spikey

Hi there and welcome to BYC!

Pointy male specific saddle and hackle feathers won't appear before 10 weeks (on most non hen feathered breeds).. often closer to 12. Usually well visible by 16 weeks.

Wattle color and size is most telling on chicks this age. Sometimes behavior.

The golden laced looks also bearded. Bearding gene inhibits wattle size. Lacing still appears female.

The WCB.. I agree appears female thus far with almost no wattles despite not being bearded.

The buff laced.. I would wanna see a side shot standing naturally that shows lacing on the wing/shoulder. I don't see anything currently screaming cockerel.. but the thick "looking" legs and something else I can't place a finger on make me cautious that it could be a later developing cockerel. How is the leg thickness compared to the other ones in person? I can't really make out if it's actually bearded or not either.

They're still just chicks to your Silkie fella. Not yet for breeding or competing. That'll come!

I'm sure you will still get more feed back as "guess the breed/gender" game is one of the more fun things to participate in!

 

[Rhodebar Lover]

Since Cher is the only beardless one, she's a bit easier and looks to be a pullet. The others look to be pullets so far but time will tell

 

[waltzb88]

Hi there and welcome to BYC!

Pointy male specific saddle and hackle feathers won't appear before 10 weeks (on most non hen feathered breeds).. often closer to 12. Usually well visible by 16 weeks.

Wattle color and size is most telling on chicks this age. Sometimes behavior.

The golden laced looks also bearded. Bearding gene inhibits wattle size. Lacing still appears female.

The WCB.. I agree appears female thus far with almost no wattles despite not being bearded.

The buff laced.. I would wanna see a side shot standing naturally that shows lacing on the wing/shoulder. I don't see anything currently screaming cockerel.. but the thick "looking" legs and something else I can't place a finger on make me cautious that it could be a later developing cockerel. How is the leg thickness compared to the other ones in person? I can't really make out if it's actually bearded or not either.

They're still just chicks to your Silkie fella. Not yet for breeding or competing. That'll come!

I'm sure you will still get more feed back as "guess the breed/gender" game is one of the more fun things to participate in!

Thanks so much for the insight! Never thought to compare the legs... I'll do that! The buff laced isn't as friendly as the other two, much more skittish around me. I'll do my best to get a standing side shot.