Should I leg band my Legbar roo chicks?

[Carontheroad]

Hi everyone. First time poster. I hatched 20 Legbar chicks 1 week ago and see that I have 11 girls and 9 boys. I’m worried that once the down is replaced with feathers I won’t be able to tell their sex so I’m thinking I should put leg bands on the boys so it is easier to identify for rehoming. Am I worrying for nothing? Will I be able to still tell in a few weeks?

 

[AinaWGSD]

You should be able to tell even more easily once their down is replaced with feathers

female chick with juvenile feathers

male chicken with juvenile feathers
Pictures from Murray McMurray hatchery website

 

[500Chickens]

Welcome to BYC! I have legbars and one roo legbar I raised from chicks and they were really easy to tell apart even after they got their feathers

 

[Airyaman]

I have Crested Cream Legbars (not sure of other types) and the difference between the roos and hens is very obvious and has been since day one. Besides the obvious differences in combs and wattles, their colors are very different as well.

 

[Carontheroad]

Okay thank you. I shall stop fretting then. I have some that will be Opal but the majority will be Crele colour. More of the roos are Opal which I’m told will help with rehoming. What’s the difference between cream, golden and crele? I do get a bit confused with all the colour variations. But I know the parents of my eggs. Do the roos also have crests?

 

[500Chickens]

Do the roos also have crests?

Yes they do

 

[Carontheroad]

Hi again everyone. Well the legbar chicks are one month old now and coming along nicely and I can tell the sexes apart just as you all said. They were dustbathing outside at 2 weeks old in a little greenhouse. I take them outside about twice a week to gradually introduce them to environmental pathogens so they can build up their immune systems. I raised them from day old in our walk in coop with a brooder plate. My question today is at what age should I start advertising the roos for rehoming? I have 9 and plan to keep 1 or 2 (I have 14 mature hens and 11 pullets). I have never had roosters before.

Also, I helped the last chick hatch (against popular advice) as it was coming out from the non air cell side and it looked like his head wasn’t positioned properly with his leg for birth. It was a rooster with splay leg and crooked toes only on that leg. I fixed the splay leg quite easily with a few days of hobbling but I only started working on the crooked toes now. Is it too late? It would have been easily fixed had I tended to it early. I would like to keep this roo but not sure if his defects are genetic or from difficult hatch. I hope to have my own fertile eggs for future hatches but wouldn’t want to pass on any defects.

 

[Smoothann]

Hi again everyone. Well the legbar chicks are one month old now and coming along nicely and I can tell the sexes apart just as you all said. They were dustbathing outside at 2 weeks old in a little greenhouse. I take them outside about twice a week to gradually introduce them to environmental pathogens so they can build up their immune systems. I raised them from day old in our walk in coop with a brooder plate. My question today is at what age should I start advertising the roos for rehoming? I have 9 and plan to keep 1 or 2 (I have 14 mature hens and 11 pullets). I have never had roosters before.

Also, I helped the last chick hatch (against popular advice) as it was coming out from the non air cell side and it looked like his head wasn’t positioned properly with his leg for birth. It was a rooster with splay leg and crooked toes only on that leg. I fixed the splay leg quite easily with a few days of hobbling but I only started working on the crooked toes now. Is it too late? It would have been easily fixed had I tended to it early. I would like to keep this roo but not sure if his defects are genetic or from difficult hatch. I hope to have my own fertile eggs for future hatches but wouldn’t want to pass on any defects.

Hey there,
I start selling them right out of the hatcher on day 2. You can certainly advertise them anytime you'd like. The beauty of this breed is the auto-sexing ability. Everyone knows exactly what they are getting, whether male or female.
If I was going to keep Legbars for breeding, I would let them grow out until almost laying time to fully examine for breeding quality...that's if you are going to focus on SOP (standard of perfection). The cockerel especially. You cannot really tell until the cockerel is almost fully grown if he will have a short back, tail too high, coloring is off, etc. Just things to keep in mind. If you are interested in SOP, google for characterics of legbars to educate yourself more so you know what to look for.
As for the cockerel with the defects, I personally would not breed him. You do not know if that was genetics or not and don't want that passed on. I stopped helping chicks hatch a long time ago. Every single one I assisted didn't live past a year. I feel like it's mother nature's way of telling us, 'something is wrong' and she deals with it. Of course, this is only my opinion and experience. You have to do what is right for you

 

[Carontheroad]

Hey there,
I start selling them right out of the hatcher on day 2. You can certainly advertise them anytime you'd like. The beauty of this breed is the auto-sexing ability. Everyone knows exactly what they are getting, whether male or female.
If I was going to keep Legbars for breeding, I would let them grow out until almost laying time to fully examine for breeding quality...that's if you are going to focus on SOP (standard of perfection). The cockerel especially. You cannot really tell until the cockerel is almost fully grown if he will have a short back, tail too high, coloring is off, etc. Just things to keep in mind. If you are interested in SOP, google for characterics of legbars to educate yourself more so you know what to look for.
As for the cockerel with the defects, I personally would not breed him. You do not know if that was genetics or not and don't want that passed on. I stopped helping chicks hatch a long time ago. Every single one I assisted didn't live past a year. I feel like it's mother nature's way of telling us, 'something is wrong' and she deals with it. Of course, this is only my opinion and experience. You have to do what is right for you

Thank you for your insight. I will research SOP, good idea.

I feel I need more time for the cockerels to grow in order to pick the 2 I want to keep. I’m worried if I wait too long I won’t be able to rehome the other 7 cockerels

Yes, assisting with hatch is not a good idea but is difficult not to do when they are half out. I must toughen up.