Strange Feather Color in Chick *better pics added*

[Mylied]

Thank you. I appreciate the help. I'm pretty upset by it. It has been a rough couple of weeks and this is just one more thing I don't need. Hopefully I can find someone to take them that's willing to lie to me and tell me that they'll live a long happy life.

 

[debid]

I'd go pitch a fit at Tractor Supply. I'd understand one whoops but if you indeed have all males, that means somebody messed up. Give them a shot at making things right.

 

[farmboy22]

That is the risk involved with buying from TSC. I haven't had any problems with their chicks and they are all healthy. I guess the one thing that bugs me though is that they do not clearly define what you are getting.

 

[confusedturtle]

The ones with the darker markings look just like my red sex link roo. He was the sweetest bird but I had to find him another home. Makes me miss my roo. :-(

 

[confusedturtle]

Mylied: I got ahold of a woman thru craigslist. I originally bought 2 chicks from her, she had a ton of chickens and planned to sell the fertilized eggs & baby chicks. One of the ones she sold me turned out to be a roo & I had gotten another roo by accident, she happily took both as she only had 2 roosters at the time.

 

[Mylied]

Thanks everyone. I just now put them on craigslist. I don't want to wait and get more attached to them when you are all saying they're boys (or most are boys). It's sad for me, but hoping they find a good home. I also picked up some new red sex linked chicks and this time they are all brownish and chipmunk striped, so I /know/ they're females.

 

[ohiochickenmom]

I'm thinking maybe TSC either got a mislabeled shipment or the TSC employees don't understand what they're labeling!! I truly think we have the exact same thing currently happening to our family!! We have all talked about getting into chickens for quite some time and decided to do it this year!! Since this is all brand new to all of us, we researched breed types for things like cold heartiness, egg production and color, etc, but trusted TSC employees when they had a brooder clearly labeled "red pullets." Having NOT researched color markings, we simply asked when the pale chicks would "darken up." We were simply told "I'm not sure!" We trusted the answer and bought 32 chicks between our 3 families!! Well, the chicks are now 3 weeks old and with only hints of orange/brown tips, we have researched color and spoken with a long time chicken farmer my sister knows. I am highly suspicious that we purchased 32 red sex link roos!! My dad spoke with TSC tonight and they simply said, "You can speak with the store manager tomorrow." If they truly are roos, I can't keep them!! I live in the city!! I'm heart broken and frustrated beyond belief with TSC!!

 

[Mylied]

If it helps any, mine are definitely pullets. It seems they are amberlinks, which I'm assuming is a type of red pullet. 3 of them have varying amounts of brown feathers and 3 are all white. I would wait it out if I were you. I went ahead and got 6 more chicks when I thought I'd have to give up the other ones, so now I have 16 when I only meant to have 10. Anyway, don't give up hope. You'll know soon one way or the other.

 

[pappy1264]

debid, you said any yellow feathers on the head, it is a male, does that apply to barred rock chicks as well? I was sold two barred rocks, both have (and had) yellow on their heads at a couple days old, so they are males (or is that only with certain breeds?) (Sorry to threadjack)

 

[debid]

debid, you said any yellow feathers on the head, it is a male, does that apply to barred rock chicks as well?  I was sold two barred rocks, both have (and had) yellow on their heads at a couple days old, so they are males (or is that only with certain breeds?)    (Sorry to threadjack)

I think you're talking chick down rather than feathers. Yellow chick down is common and doesn't relate to gender. On a white chick, getting a yellow "hood" (head and neck) is masculine.