Sight Sexing Barred Plymouth Rock Chicks at Hatch

[JR31]

Just bought 20 barred rocks from the local feed store. They said they were 90% sexed. I'm brand new to chickens and I'm wondering what they may have meant by that. The chicks are two to three weeks old and most of them are looking like they fall into the fifty fifty category. Some should be hens eventually if the dark legs are what you've said but most look like males. So do the darker bands mean hen as well or is that just a possibility?

[/IMG]

 

[speckledhen]

Quote: What they mean is that the sexing is supposed to be 90% accurate, that 10% of them will be sexed incorrectly. BRs are easier to sex than others, though it's more an art than a science. Hatchery BRs are what's easier; heritage lines are not as easy, generally.

Barred Rock sexing rules are basically this:

Pullet=small,, defined head spot (no "frosting" coming out and around the back of the head), truly black down color, dark leg wash
Cockerel= spotty, large, irregular head spot, grayish/silvery look to the down rather than really black, almost no dark on the leg fronts or sketchy.


Some have confusing traits and you'll have to wait and see with those, like a large head spot and lighter coloring, but dark leg fronts, like my first ever BR hen had. She was always as light as her sons in her barring color.

For example, this kid is confusing, but because it's feathering so slowly (3 weeks old and still no tail to speak of, bare wing tops) and he had a diffuse head spot, I'm calling cockerel if I'm forced to make a call right now. He has some dark wash on the leg fronts like some pullets would, cockerel head spot, but the comb and wattles are not pink yet.

 

[JR31]

Thanks for the insight and unfortunately most of mine look like they fall into the "who knows" category. I may have about 3-4 pullets at this point for sure but the rest??? Any advice on what I can do with all the potential cockerels since all I'm really interested in are laying hens?

 

[speckledhen]

Thanks for the insight and unfortunately most of mine look like they fall into the "who knows" category. I may have about 3-4 pullets at this point for sure but the rest??? Any advice on what I can do with all the potential cockerels since all I'm really interested in are laying hens?

Advertise them on Craigslist for free or for a crazy low price. They'll most likely to go be eaten, but if you have way too many, it's hard to feed them forever. I've been stuck with groups of them before and it gets expensive feeding them. I had a group of 9 of them 13 weeks old and advertised them on the feed store bulletin board for $2 each. One guy took them all and I knew what was going to happen to them, but I wasn't prepared to process them myself at the time and I'd had no luck rehoming them.

If I have only a couple, I advertise them here on BYC and the local feed stores for free or almost free. If I have a large group that is getting older and older, it's hard.

 

[JR31]

Okay, thanks for the advise!

 

[speckledhen]

Okay, thanks for the advise!

You're welcome. Good luck!


The little barred one who was a "what is it?" is now officially a cockerel, as I suspected. The wattles are suddenly very pink overnight and I see pink in the comb as well. He's just over 3 weeks old now.

 

[JR31]

At how many weeks should I definitely be able to know cockerel from pullet? And when should I separate the two from each other. They already seem to be getting a little hostile towards each other at times

 

[lacianae21]

If you can't help me by looking at this pic I will take individual pics please let me know if you can tell genders

 

[speckledhen]

I'm positive on the two cockerels and the one pullet. The other two I can't really call with certainty.

 

[speckledhen]

Here is Levi, definitely a single factor barred cockerel. Not sure I'll keep him, probably won't unless I can't find a home for him. He'll look very much like his sire, Rex, though, so should be handsome.