Silver Laced Wyandotte gender

[Ida Brown]

Further to a few weeks ago (the Light Sussex and black Pekin are definitely boys). Any opinions on the 11-12 week SL Wyandotte please? Also, s/he seems a lot smaller than the Light Sussex and RIR, being unfamiliar with Wyandottes and knowing the breeder had bantams, may we actually have a bantam Wyandotte, or are they just quite a bit smaller than Sussex?

Thank you for any help in advance

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

Cockerel. Too much red comb and wattle for a pullet of that age.

 

[Ida Brown]

Thank you.

He's the only one we've been very unsure on, but really need to move him on if he's a boy as we've got three cockerels and not have any lovely Wyandotte girls for him (or the space to get them) he has to go.

Also have a Light Sussex boy (he was pretty obviously a boy early on) and ditto (although we're rehoming him with a lady friend and he will be getting additional ladies).

We're keeping the lovely little black Pekin boy - no idea whether he's particularly typey, but he's very sweet and friendly (for now) and those points have gone in his favour so far. He's already trying to crow and chunters away to our adult Silkie when she's singing her egg song (he has to go in a little run with our other Pekin in the day as they're still so tiny!)

I've been so enamoured by the Pekins!

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Silver Laced Wyandotte pullet - the plumage is that of a female. The comb is large, but at 12 weeks a cockerel's feather pattern would be completely different. She's probably a bantam because Wyandottes are rather large, unless this bird is just slower to mature.

 

[Ida Brown]

Way to throw a spanner in the works! They are so lovely and my gut is to keep, but we can't keep two cockerels, hence the worry. They are a really placid, friendly bird!

Gah! Now not sure again - Don,t want to let a good female go!

(Thank you for yr opinion, though, I really hope you're right!)

 

[TheKindaFarmGal]

Well, I hope I'm wrong. I guess you'll know for sure soon.

 

[greenfeathers]

That's a pullet.





Pullet on the top. Cockerel on on the bottom. About the same age as yours.


And that's her eating a squash a couple weeks ago.

 

[Ida Brown]

It's the red that makes me suspicious. They are the eldest of the youngsters we have (about 1-2 weeks older, so about 12-13 weeks) - the other girls (well, they should be - a light sussex, a pekin and a RIR) are all very pale comb-wise (the difference between the female and male LS and ditto for the Pekins is very clear!)

Looking at your photos, Greenfeathers, I would say they look more like your pullet (just much redder) than your cockerel - I don't think they have the same elongated feathers towards the back (I'm very new to cockerels and young chickens having always bought POL before!)

 

[Ida Brown]

Just popped out to get a closer picture of top - took a while (fending off photo bombing LS and the RIR who wanted to sit on me!) There is a green tint to the black tail feathers - I don't know much about Wyandottes (and thought that this one was going to be a LF rather than a bantie - although, tbh, it was a bantam SL Wyandotte that I was originally after, but the breeder I bought them from - this one at about a week old, the others were a couple of days old - from said they didn't have any bantams Ws left

so I thought sod it, I'll take the larger one, then, plus a RIR I wasn't planning on either, but hey.)

I've got someone coming on Wednesday to pick up the LS (as I got them for a friend, I was never planning on keeping them) and I mentioned I was umming and ahhing about the Wyandotte and they said that they'd take them and gamble either way, so time's a ticking.

Just a pity to let a nice bird go if they're female (and turn out to be the bantam I was after anyway!)

 

[iLikeMineFried]

This is my 11 week old gold laced wyandotte cockerel. Same age range as yours. Looks totally different at this age than the pullets.