Hi! I purchased what I thought were two pullets in April. Turns out one is very much a roo. We added what we were told was another pullet who is supposedly a month younger than the two I have. All 3 are supposed to be buff orpingtons. I trust the person who gave me the 3rd bird since she has about 50 of her own and has been raising them for years, however, I am not convinced. One: the new bird looks slightly different than the other 2 at this age. Is it normal for a bird to turn red in the face one minute and be gone the next? What I mean by this is that the coloring in the facial area turns red (similar to us blushing maybe?) and then the color goes away. It's not injury or anything of that sort. It happens frequently Two: The pullet chases the new one like crazy, as does the roo. Would a pullet chase a new roo (not so new anymore as we have had the new one for over a month)? I have been noticing the roo to give the new bird a bit more attention lately. Three: The new bird likes to dig and lay almost in a nesting like position. Do roo's do that? I just can't figure out is the bird is a he or a she and it's driving me mad. I am going to be sad as it is to remove the roo if he gets to be too much (I live in the city). I am not sure I can stomach having to get rid of 2 and leave just my pullet alone. Thoughts? Thank you!!!
That all sounds normal to me. What do you mean by "turn red in the face"? When a new roo comes into the flock or any chicken for that matter the pecking order that they have is disrupted and everyone will fight for a higher spot. But generally the hierarchy goes in this order: Roos- hens- cockerels- Pullets. With some exceptions. My roosters will lay down and have dust baths just like the hens do. Thats normal. I even had an EE rooster once that would go lay in the nesting boxes for hours. It drove me nuts because the hens would come to lay and he would chase them off! Without pictures its hard to tell if its a cockerel or a pullet. If you posted some pictures on here we would all be able to help you out more.
Nothing you've described makes me think rooster, if that's what you're worried about... I agree that posting a picture would be your best bet.
