What breed might this five week old baby be?

[BasicWhiteChick]

I've been fostering this little baby since it was an egg, but I don't know what breed it is (or what sex it is, but I'm suspecting it's a she)

It's a white chicken with a few black spots. Mixed breed?

 

[junebuggena]

Possibly a Leghorn. Definitely a cockerel. And he looks sick. Has he been getting medicated starter?

 

[BasicWhiteChick]

Possibly a Leghorn. Definitely a cockerel. And he looks sick. Has he been getting medicated starter?

What makes you think it's a cockerel?
(I've only been interested in chickens for about six weeks, so I'm just learning)
We gave it medicated starter the first week, then switched to unmedicated.
It's also got one feather on each foot, and a few more are growing out.

 

[junebuggena]

If the legs are feathered, then it's probably a Cochin. And that comb is too pink, too early. Definitely a cockerel. That hunched up way it's sitting is not normal, and indicates illness. The most common illness for chicks is coccidia. Left untreated, it can be fatal. Get some Corid ASAP. Medicated starter should be fed for at least 2 weeks after the first contact with soil, to help prevent against coccidiosis.

 

[donrae]

Mixed breed cockerel.

cockerel (young rooster) due to the large amount of comb for the age. Pullets (young females) don't have hardly any comb to speak of this young.

Mixed breed due to the color and light leg feathering. A white bird with a few black spots is pretty much a mixed breed bird. Feathered legs are partially dominant, so having a few feathers means one parent was feather legged, the other wasn't.

If the chick happened to be sleeping or just huddled down briefly during this picture, it may be okay. If this is how it spends most of it's time, there's something wrong. It may be too cool, or it may be ill. Looks like it's indoors, so the too cool part is less likely, but even at this age he still needs access to a nice toasty warm spot to warm up a few times a day. Toasty warm being around 90 degrees. He doesn't need to spend all his time there, just get warmed up then he should be out and about eating, scratching, etc. at ambient temperature.

I'm not sure what your cocci load would be in Norway. My mind says it's too cold for the little buggers to thrive, but that is something I'd advise you to look into locally. Also makes me not sure about your medicated feed. Here in the States, medicated means it contains a thiamine blocker specifically for cocci prevention. I've heard other countries have other medications added, so you'll need to talk to someone local and see what your concerns are for your area. Sorry I can't be of more help there, you're just so far away and I think there could be a lot of differences in local organisms.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

Agree that cockerel looks uncomfortable. Does he have any friends? Or do you need to start making plans since it's a boy?

Do they have white Marans? Those are light feathered legs/feet compared to everything else I have.

 

[TroyerGal]

Or he's just sleepy...

 

[TroyerGal]

Oh, and about the breed... I have some Lavender Orpington/Leghorns that look like that

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Oh, and about the breed... I have some Lavender Orpington/Leghorns that look like that

First let me say, I love the poem in your signature line. Very pretty.

So you have a lav orp cross lav leghorn?

 

[Phaedre]