Three pullets ... I hope

[Aragon]

@ Kev,

How do you know or what makes you think the other two are mixed breeds? I am asking so I can be better informed.

 

[donrae]

You have three roosters.
Yes, mature laying hens have large red combs and wattles but adolescent birds with that much comb and wattles are male. Hens won't get that much color and size until they get ready to lay, around five months. At 2-3 months, those are boys.

The barred rock is a classic male. He has the lighter color of a male, barred pullets are quite a bit darker. You can also see saddle feathers, those long drapey feathers hanging down in front of his tail. Those feathers are only on male birds.

The white bird with red is male. That coloration is specifically male, females don't have red distributed like that on the body. The thick legs and size/redness of the comb and wattles also say male.

The black bird has the classic boy comb and wattles. I'm not sure if he's wet or if his feathers always look like that? He just looks off.

I'd go back to the seller of the birds, show him you have all males and ask for a refund or exchange.

 

[donrae]

@ Kev,

How do you know or what makes you think the other two are mixed breeds? I am asking so I can be better informed.

I think the barred rock is pure. The white bird is mixed, it just doesn't match up to any standard breed. It may be a male sex link, but they usually have larger patches of red vs these speckles. The black bird could be an australorp, but as I said he just looks off. Aussies are supposed to be glossy and fluffy and rounded, honestly if his feathers always look that way I'd think he was sickly.

 

[SilkiesForEver]

I think the barred rock is pure. The white bird is mixed, it just doesn't match up to any standard breed. It may be a male sex link, but they usually have larger patches of red vs these speckles. The black bird could be an australorp, but as I said he just looks off. Aussies are supposed to be glossy and fluffy and rounded, honestly if his feathers always look that way I'd think he was sickly.

Young birds are often more "slender" then adult birds. So him being less fluffy shouldn't make you think that he's not an Australorp.

 

[hdowden]

Young birds are often more "slender" then adult birds. So him being less fluffy shouldn't make you think that he's not an Australorp.

if he is an assui then yes he is way to slender and should be fluffier even at this age

you have all 3 cockerels

 

[hdowden]

I think the barred rock is pure. The white bird is mixed, it just doesn't match up to any standard breed. It may be a male sex link, but they usually have larger patches of red vs these speckles. The black bird could be an australorp, but as I said he just looks off. Aussies are supposed to be glossy and fluffy and rounded, honestly if his feathers always look that way I'd think he was sickly.

x2

 

[chickenlover89]

all boys sorry!

 

[Chicken Tamer]

The week before Thanksgiving I picked up these three as chicks. The farmer told me they were females. They are starting to grow and I want to make sure they are indeed pullets. The Barred looks like a pullet to me (in my very little experience). But the other two have me wondering. I thought I heard the Buff Orpington attempting to crow. The tail on the Australope is what is calling me into doubt. Also, the Buff and Australope seem to have longer feathers on the back of their heads where the Barred's are smaller. Did I get sold two cockrels and a pullet? Please see pics below.

Thanks for the help!

All of them are Cockerels Im very sorry

 

[Kev]

@ Kev,

How do you know or what makes you think the other two are mixed breeds? I am asking so I can be better informed.

It's familiarity with the breeds, none of these match the 'usual look' for alleged breeds. Others have already mentioned the shape/fluffiness for 'lorp for example. Buffs feather out very obviously buff- light gold color.

That barred rock does come close however his barring, leg color and weight is a bit off.. if pure, then he's quite small/lightweight. But very typical for cross or mixed breed. There is also a very common problem of a specific color being assumed to be a specific breed, barred birds being one example. Almost any bird with his coloring willl be called 'barred rock' by someone even if the bird is say, a cuckoo/barred game cock or cuckoo Marans or..

Try looking up breeds you're interested in, look at pictures of day old chicks, young chicks, juveniles and adults of each breed and color within breed of your interest. To be fair, it will be easy with some- such as comparing buff orps and the bird sold to you as such- vast difference. Others won't be as easy and takes some familiarizing especially for comparing your barred rock with others.. he will be the hardest. with some comparing, the australorp difference will become apparent.

For most fool proof way to get pullets is to order them as pullets from hatchery or see if a feed store near you will have sexed chicks or find a breeder who will be honest and knowledgeable and also happen to have chicks that will be sexable at hatch, such as barred or cuckoo. Pure barred or cuckoo lines will produce male chicks that are visibly lighter than female chicks right at hatch.

If someone is doing a careful sex linked mating such as a RIR rooster over Barred rock hens will give sexable chicks at hatch(males have a white head dot, females don't). Be aware, the breeds reversed will NOT work.. Barred rock rooster over RIR hens will give all identical looking chicks. Same goes for a mixed breed flock of several different breeds or colors... that will not give reliably sexable chicks.

 

[Aragon]

@ Kev,

Thanks for the info. The lope as a few day old chick looked like the typical pictures found online. The "not"-BO, well I have had my doubts for awhile, especially when the feathers started coming in. I was expecting a more orange to tan color typical of a BO. The barred resembled the pictures as a chick even up to several weeks old. I will have to look back at a few pictures I have of them as chicks to see if the BR had the white spot. It just irks me when the farmer said he sexed them and confirmed they were pullets. I am waiting to hear back from the farmer. At the time of sale he said he would trade them if they were cockrels. For the number of chickens the farmer had around his place I would have thought he would know what he was talking about. Live and learn I suppose.