telling chicks apart

[naturababe]

maybe i should have order 5 different breeds but i have 5 of the same breed. one i can tell no problem because he (we hope) has no feathers but the others all look exactly the same. tell me the tricks to tell them apart...

 

[trilyn]

Gotta wait awhile, like six weeks or so. Sorry! Well, unless you bought a sexlink breed, maybe post some pics?

 

[naturababe]

nope, buff opringtons. hmm, i should figure out how to post pictures, i assume there is a how too somewhere.

 

[MotherJean]

I'm in the same spot - all Light Brahmas. There are some subtle differences in their hackle feathers, but I'm still not able to identify them accurately enough to name them. I have one girl that I can pick out easily only because some smart alec pooped on her back weeks ago and there's still a little stain there just before her tail feathers

I just talk to them as a group - call them The Girls - as in "Come on Girls, treats!"

 

[forrestacres]

I used non-toxic children's markers and put a colored dot on the top of each chicks head. That has helped me to tell Abigail, Charlotte and Eleanor (barred rocks); Sophie, Nadine, Margo, Buttercup and Violet (buff orps); and, Fern and Roxanne (silkies) apart. It works!

 

[CindyG]

I just waited till they were a few weeks old and put numbered bands on their legs. Rather boring, but it works for me.

 

[blueberrychickens]

How about some fingernail polish on a toenail???? Kinda how moms w/ identical twins keep them straight!

 

[naturababe]

Quote:
that's exactly how we tell our favorite chick from the others. For a while we were calling her poopy!

 

[michickenwrangler]

You notice shade variations and personality when they get older. Even my 6 RSL hens I can tell apart by white patterns on their feathers--Amelia has lacing and a small comb, Nellie has lacing and a big comb, Rosebud has darker wings, Brownie is browner, Arrow is pale red all over, Blossom looks like Arrow from a distance but with a little more white in her tail and slighty redder. My cochins are fun because they are all different colors!

My black sex links: Black Beauty has more brown, Blackberry has a dark, shiny beak, Blackbird is the "other"

 

[4 luv of eggs]

I have three, four week old BOs and I go by size, tail development and general scruffiness. The little gal is Claire, the one more feathered with the biggest tail is Juliet and big scruffy little tail is Sun. After awhile you'll develope your own system. Now my three Brown Leghorns are a different story. One is smaller so that's not an issue but the other two are practically identical. Subtle shade differences but they change from day to day so it's hard to keep up with them.