When do cockerels' combs turn pink?

[lisahaschickens]

I am new to chickens and have been hearing that cockerels' combs turn pink, while pullets' combs stay yellow longer. Is this true, and if so... when do they first turn pink? Or is this only true on some breeds? My babies are nearly 4 weeks old and none have pink combs, but I'm pretty sure at least one is a roo....

 

[what was i thinking]

i had one that was eight days old and it was very close to red.... are any of them larger?

 

[lisahaschickens]

yes, I've been trying to figure out my sexes for a long time. I have six straight run Cuckoo Marans along with 6 EEs and 3 Buff Orps that are all supposed to be pullets. Of the Marans, one is really huge and lighter-colored and from the pics, everyone on here seems to agree he's a little roo. The others get mixed opinions from their pics and they are of varying sizes and personalities and colors. They all have some comb growth and it is still yellow on all of them. It's no big deal if I don't figure it out until they're older... it's just fun to try to figure it out.

 

[what was i thinking]

you did post the pics?

 

[lisahaschickens]

yep in other posts here they are again:

the one people think is a boy:

These are the others, some people think they are all girls, some think half and half:

 

[CovenantCreek]

Of the 5 in question (the first looks like a cockerel to me, too), here are my guesses:

#5 pullet, all others most likely cockerels

 

[lisahaschickens]

hmmm... man oh man. I've been afraid I have all boys... but who knows. I want at least one girl and I'll be satisfied. On my other posts, I have votes for 5 girls 1 boy, 3 girls 3 boys, and now 5 boys 1 girl. It sure will be interesting to see...

 

[lisahaschickens]

p.s. Covenant Creek - what are the deciding factors for your guesses about my chicks? I'm just curious and trying to learn.

 

[CovenantCreek]

the head spots and color -- females usually have a well defined spot on their head while the spots on the males have a tendency to go every which way, and the females feather out darker than the males

several of them are dark enough that I wouldn't be surprised if they turn out to be pullets, but the head spots really made me think they're mostly cockerels

if the kids are almost 4 weeks now, you should be able to see the difference in their combs within 2 weeks -- this is one of my boys at about 6 weeks

here's the pullet for comparison

 

[CovenantCreek]

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