Self Blue Banty Cochin Pullet, "Shadow" @ 18 Wks(Now 29 Wks-new pic)..

[speckledhen]

Kat, I like the breed you've chosen. I have one Lt. Brahma hen, Miranda, and one Buff Brahma hen, Caroline. Both are sweet girls and a great choice for someone who only wants to raise one breed.

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Hi Cynthia! She's beautiful! Are you sure that is a girl?
She has a 'girly' head, but is it the camera angle or do I see pointy feathers in the hackle and saddle.
If it was a bird here, I'd say cockerel because of the thin feathers in the hackle and saddle area.

Hard to be sure from pics, tho.
At any rate, it is a beautiful youngster.

Lisa

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
Cyn, I sure hope you know I was only kidding. I've never seen any of your chickens that I didn't think was truly beautiful.
Actually, telling myself You only like brahmas...you only like brahmas is my way of coping with my SO's restriction on how many chickens I can have or at least, expect him to pay for.

 

[speckledhen]

Now, Lisa, dont you go throwing a monkey wrench into my little chicken world, LOL. At 18 weeks old, almost laying age, if Shadow was a cockerel, wouldnt she have much bigger comb and wattles? I know the feathers you mean and I did think she was a cockerel for a long time. Those twisty feathers in the saddle area sure do look boy-ish, I agree. Someone, I think Jody, said that the lavender gene does things to the feathers to make them look that way, all twisted up. I am no expert with Cochins or bantams in general and this is my only self-blue bird, too. Others know more than I do, certainly. Most have said pullet with one or two saying cockerel, but that was a month ago. No more comb or wattle development has occurred in that time. Whatever Shadow is, we like her alot. Wish she liked me better. She bit me the other day when I cornered her, trying to catch her. She'll come right to DH. Made me a bit irritated with the little minx, LOL.

 

[hinkjc]

She is growing so nicely Cyn. What a beautiful baby you have there.

Jody

 

[speckledhen]

It's so funny to watch her run across the yard at full speed. She looks like she has on bedroom slippers or that she's a cocker spaniel with feathers. Just hope Dutch never really notices her, being so small. I'm still a bit afraid he'd accidentally hurt her.

 

[megshenhut]

Oh, Cynthia, Shadow is beautiful. Who knows how she will lay? I have 3 bantam cochins. One hardly ever lays. One lays 3 or 4 clutches a year and takes the entire winter off. The last one is the smallest and is a little layer machine. She lays a clutch and goes broody and then repeats that all year. Mine are 3 years old. If Shadow turns out to be a good layer, she will brood bunches of chicks for you. I usually only put 4 or 5 standard eggs under my Bubblegum because she is so tiny, but she does a great job as a mother. When I integrated her and the little ones in the main coop, you should have seen her protect them. No one wanted to mess with the little ball of red fury!! She would chest butt those big hens and send everybody running, roosters included.

 

[SGM]

She's beautiful. Good luck with your jelly bean eggs.

 

[Ellie_NY_chick]

Here are a couple of pics of my Willow and her first egg. She was the first one to lay, and right about the same age as your pretty girl! You can tell the size of the egg from the picture. I have fairly average sized hands.

 

[speckledhen]

Congratulations on that first egg! Shadow is now just over 29 weeks old and still no egg yet. She's just precious and spoiled rotten by my DH, LOL.