Should BR bantam roos have red in their combs at 5 weeks?PICS ADDED

[lceh]

I have 3 bantam barred rocks. They were super-slow to feather out, which I guess is typical of the bantams. Of the 3, one of them definitely has wider white bars than the others, and slower-feathering tail feathers which leads me to believe it may be a roo. However, he/she(?) has the smallest comb, and none of the 3 have even a trace of pink in their combs. Is the feather barring definitive? When will I see some red in that comb if it's a roo? I'm eager to downsize, but I don't want to give away a girl in my haste....

 

[sherrydeanne]

I'd give it at least another week. Some get red before 6 weeks but certainly not all. They should all have fairly obvious 'combage' by 8 weeks

 

[lceh]

Thanks. Do you know if the lighter barring is a definite indicator of roosterness?

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

Quote:
Yes, males have two copies of the barring gene, whereas females only have one. The double dose of the barring makes them appear lighter than the females.

 

[lceh]

Okay, here are some pics.

On the left, the one with lighter barring:

Here's a head shot of the ligh barred one too:

Boy or girl?

 

[sherrydeanne]

Both look like girls. Boys are much, much lighter.

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

Yes, both of those are pullets. Congrats!

 

[lceh]

Oh hooray! That means I have 3 girls. Maybe that makes up for having what look like 5 roos in my straight run batch of 6 buff brahma bantys...

Thank you!