What breed?

[kiwi-chick]

Thank you all for the lovely welcome.

As I said, I am new to the chicken thing, everything I have learnt is from the internet (a lot from this site) in the last 2.5 months since we got our wonderful man.

He is very attentive to his harem and loves to tempt them with tidbits. If I offer them tidbits he gets a little put out, for awhile he would charge at me when my back was turned, but he no longer does that as I now call him over before the ladies. This gives him the option to call the ladies over before I do.

@Cyprus When we got her we were her third home, I'm not sure where she lost her tail feathers or if she even had any to start with.... She is a New Zealand Red Shaver. The Shavers can be red or brown and are a commercial egg laying bird so quite small and lightweight. Her eggs are brown like most New Zealand egg layers. It appears we New Zealanders prefer brown to white eggs.

 

[kiwi-chick]

@aesch I think you may be right! Although I have yet to research sex links and to figure out exactly what they are.

He has doubled in size since he arrived here and the only reason I put him at less than one year old is because when he arrived his spurs were just a color difference on his legs. They hadn't started growing. The spurs are now still less than a quarter of an inch long. He also has a very pronounced breast. It is like two hills with a valley in between. Although he has yet to let me close enough to be able to pick him up I would say he is probably quite heavy as he get fed really well here.

EDIT: Oh, I forgot, he also wasn't crowing yet when he arrived but he did start up within a week or two.

 

[aesch]

I've noticed my roos are between 8 and 12 weeks before they start crowing. Yours doesn't have full saddle feathers but a very nice capelet at this point. Shadrach writes a great article on rooster. You might want to look him up.

 

[kiwi-chick]

This is the third day in the broody cage so I have currently locked the two blacks out of the coop and broody cage to let them stretch their legs and get a bite to eat. We shall see if they need to go back in shortly.
Meanwhile here are a few photos taken just moments ago.

@Cyprus do these help with the legs and body shape?

 

[Cyprus]

Those do look like Black Sex Links.
Do you have Asian Blacks there?

 

[kiwi-chick]

I think I finally understand what sex-link chickens are. It turns out that the Red Shaver breed is not a breed but a sex-link hybrid developed in Canada and very popular in New Zealand.

Yes we have sex-links here.... obviously.

@Cyprus It seems you may well be correct (that's me saying you're right!) regarding the black hens.

Also found this:
"Black sex-links bear a strong resemblance to Black Copper Marans, but there are some distinguishing characteristics. Marans do not have copper on their chests, and also carry feathers on their legs, unlike sex-links."
at https://morningchores.com/red-and-black-sex-link-chickens/

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

You have a red sex link and two black sex links.