What are characteristics of a roo and at what age do you start to see

[fastpat]

Quote:

It appears to be a pullet.

 

[gritsar]

According to UC Davis Veterinary Care Program.
2. Physical Characteristics (4-6 weeks of age)
a. Comb – The cockerels comb is medium size and pinkish, the pullets is small and yellowish.
b. Legs – The cockerel’s legs are sturdy and long, the pullets are finer and shorter.
c. Tail – The cockerel’s tail is stumpy and curved, the pullets is longer and straight.
d. Back – The cockerel has a thin line of stub feathers down the center of his back, the pullet has more advanced feathering along the center of her back.
e. Side of neck, flank and crop – The feathering in the cockerel in these areas is poorly advanced, the pullets feathering in these areas is well advanced.
f. Wing bows – In the cockerel the wing bows are bare, in pullets the wing bows are covered with small feathers.

 

[BlackBart]

I look at the legs as well as the comb. I have noticed the Roos have thicker, bigger, meatier legs.

This year I am trying the day old feather sexing technique to see if it works (for me). I have banded what I think are the Roos and when they get older I'll see if I was right.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

I think pullet also, but wouldn't guarantee it. It has somewhat of a large comb & thick shanks, not too much, but enough that I would wait before personalizing its Christmas stocking. I don't think it's a Production Red though, maybe a Brown Leghorn or a Welsummer. If it's a Brown Leghorn then it's more certainly a pullet, it's got those feathers on its shoulders with the stripe of light color through the middle that only their pullets have. And BL pullets have large combs that flop when grown.

These are the signs I look for:

2-4 weeks: Males get pinker/redder combs, sometimes larger, shanks seem thicker

4-8 weeks: Males start sprouting little wattles under their chins, looking like teenagers sprouting their first beard hairs.

8-12 weeks: Males start sprouting thin pointy feathers on their hackles & saddles. You can part the feathers behind their necks & in front of their tails to look for these feathers emerging.

12-16 weeks: Males get a metallic sheen to their tail feathers, the curved sickle-shaped feathers start to grow there, they may begin to crow. Young cockerels learning to crow can sound really pathetic!

16-20 weeks: Males attempt mating with their female flock-mates. If these pullets are the same age they'll scream & fuss in protest, they won't be ready yet.

These times are my best-guess approximate estimates. I'm careful to notice these changes in my birds, but lousy at remembering just how old they are when I notice these characteristics. I may or may not remember to check the calendar back in the kitchen after spending time out with the flock, to verify that "oh, those guys look like this and they're that old today!" And of course, individual results may vary. Some cockerels are easy to identify almost right after they hatch, swaggering out of their shells and immediately reaching for the TV remote. Others can keep you guessing right up to the moment when one end crows or the other end lays an egg.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Quote:
You're right, the males often have thicker shanks (the skin-covered part of the legs). Let us know how your feather-sexing guesses result. I thought that only worked for certain breeds especially bred for that trait. I know that White Leghorns are, because it's essential for the industry to identify the sexes right from the start. They use so very many and cannot waste time/resources in tending to any unwanted males. If feather-sexing worked for other breeds the hatcheries wouldn't need to employ so many experienced vent-sexers.

 

[harleyjo]

The reason I said production red was that I sent a picture to the hatchery, Hoover and asked them what it was. It came from there in a box of black sex links. This is what they said in reply to my question about the chicken and I sent a picture.

It most likely is a prod red, Blk sex link are Prod red & Blk sex crossed

.

Everyone is so helpful on here. The comb on this one is not turning red yet and she was hatched around April 20th.​

 

[elmo]

Two weeks may be a little early. I have a batch of bantams that hatched out on May 1, another two batches that hatched out May 5-6. I began seeing a difference in comb development on all three sets of chicks during last week.

 

[BlackBart]

Quote:
I will let you know. I read it worked just for certain breeds too but what the heck I thought I would try, you never know.
I am not at all interested in learning vent sexing

There was a old timer that used to sex his chicks just by years of experience, watching chicks etc..
He was almost 100% but his technique died with him. Pretty sure it was a combination of many factors.

 

[MareeZoCool]

from Ohio , Deffinitely the comb is the one sign of a roo. MOST times. Sometimes a pullet can keep you guessing. If it ain't crowing at 7/8 weeks, you might have an egg in 3-4 months.

 

[harleyjo]

Thanks everyone that helps a lot. Now I have one of my 3 little black ones that makes me wonder. She/he is has real long legs, short little wing feathers and this short stubby tail feather. It will just be 3 weeks old. There is no white on this chick at all. I wonder if this is a male what it is. Not black sex link, no white on the head.