two week old "pullets" sparring- is this normal

[MISS MILLIE]

Hi, first time raising chicks. I have 6 chicks in one brooder, different breeds, all are about 2 weeks old. Today I noticed that one of my barred rocks and 1 EE were sparring. They had their wings spread out and were putting their beaks to each other. They are very feisty, and when riled up, try to fly around our brooder. All my chicks are supposed to be pullets. Is this normal pecking order behavior for females, or could this be early signs of rooster-ness?

 

[ve]

Pullets are sparring too.You can not use it for sexing chicks

 

[teach1rusl]

Wow...my girls never did anything like that, especially that young. They chest butted when they were older...maybe 8 weeks or so. I'd be suspicious as well...lol. However, maybe certain breeds are just more assertive/aggressive...what breeds are the two going at it???

 

[MISS MILLIE]

thanks. One of them just "seems" like a rooster. She (the Barred) always stands on the pedestal we have in the brooder and wont let anybody else on. I guess she's just the "head mother clucker in charge" hahaha.

 

[MISS MILLIE]

Quote:
One barred rock and 1 EE. I have two barred, and frankly, dont know if 1 or both of them are acting like this since they're hard to tell apart. But, the EE is not feathering out as fast as the other EE or the other chicks, Uh oh. I have read thats a sign of a cockerel.

 

[Lollipop]

Perfectly normal for chicks to spar. They may even out do a cockeral up to a certain age. Don`t read too much into all the hearsay on how to tell pullets from cockerals.......Pop

 

[MISS MILLIE]

Quote:
Pop- I'll take your word for it. 52 years with chickens, eh? You're my new chicken whisperer. LOL

it was just so weird, fascinating, and a little nerve racking. I really dont/cant have any roosters.

 

[teach1rusl]

Can't help you with your EE, but here's a link that may help you with your barred rock chicks (by the way, my barred rock chick was my most assertive...she's not now). Go a few posts down on the link...one easy thing to spot is if the whitish spot on the head is condensed or somewhat scattered... https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=53603

 

[MISS MILLIE]

Quote:
that was great stuff. I just went to check them. My barred rocks have yellow spots on their heads, not white. I'll upload pics of them in a minute.

 

[pips&peeps]

Quote:
In my opinion, this is rooster behavior.