The roo that wasn't...?

[HobbitChicken]

These guys are all on their 20th week.

So, I have this EE who can't make up his... her... mind as to what he wants to be when he grows up. Here are photos of him.








He didn't lay the egg but he wanted to sit on it. He's halfway between a roo and a hen it seems. He doesn't make any male sounds at all but sounds like one of the pullets, and has never attempted to crow. He is very light, and can fly over six feet directly up into the air, which I've never seen before in my life!

Can anyone offer some help as to what's going on? Is he just a REALLY late bloomer or is there something deeper?



For a comparison, some of the others. One of my SLW pullets, from today.



Another EE roo.



And another.



I got these three guys together and they're the same age, from the same batch.

 

[enola]

He is a rooster. He is just developing slowly.

 

[fshinggrl]

Your SLW Pullet is gorgeous! All the EEs are roosters! The first one is probably low on the totem pole.

 

[HobbitChicken]

Thanks. Oh and I know that the EEs are roos, I just put their pictures in for a comparison because they are all the same age from the same "group" I got.

He was very weird from day one, even before there was an established "adult" pecking order he was way behind in development. Until very recently he was upper in the hierarchy, now he's sort of lower middle, he broke a toe a few days ago and his movement has been dramatically affected so he's been getting picked on. I have 14 adults right now. The five SLWs are the bottom of the bottom, they are bullied so much that they don't even eat breakfast with the rest of them, and the "slow grower" beats his way in through the other roos to get his fill every time. He was the first to develop comb and wattles but they've stopped growing, they've been that size since twelve weeks, give or take. And as you can see, the girls have got him beat big time in that department lol!

 

[Wyandottes7]

He's a cockerel. I can see saddle and pointy hackle (neck feathers), which are rooster signs. Also, his bright, somewhat patchy coloring is another rooster indicator. He's a handsome boy!

 

[donrae]

He's definitely male. He may be a "special" bird, but that doesn't change his gender at all.

 

[BantamLover21]

He's definitely a rooster.