When will I be able to tell if my Leghorn pullets are all pullets?PICS

[miss_jayne]

the best i can tell:

pic 1= both may be cockerels

pic 3 = i think two cockerels in that shot, the angle may be swaying.

pics 4 & 5 = pullets


anything with a yellow comb by this age will most likely be a female. anything pink and puffy, male.

i will take a shot of an average pullet and cockerel from the ones in my kitchen in a minute and post them for you.

 

[miss_jayne]

leghorn pullet, 3 weeks old

leghorn cockerel, 3 weeks old

notice on the cockerel that the wattles are present already. that is another tell tale. the wattles should be more pronounced in the males.

 

[ArizonaDesertChicks]

Quote:
Perfect illustration! If you had cockerals, their combs would be even bigger & redder than the one in the above photo due to their age. Notice the difference of feathering between these 3 week old chick & your 4 week olds - a leghorn cockeral would also have a big increase in comb size in that one week.

 

[CovenantCreek]

It would be nice if they all turn out to be pullets, but with 2 peanuts and a margin of error of 10% (up to 2.5 of the 25 ordered), there could be as many as 4.5 cockerels in the mix without Ideal owing me a refund. One that didn't get photographed has black on her, so she has to be counted among the peanuts in a White Only White order...... (but she's also the friendliest and bravest of the crowd).

 

[stormylady]

Hi glad you asked this question, I have Cal. Whites do the same rules apply to them? Cause if I can use these pic. it would be an emmence help. Thanks again for the answers and thanks for posting this question I learn so much here on BYC! Stormy

 

[stormylady]

Quote:
All my chicks stand like that when there trying to see me over the brooder walls. And there all suppose to be females? I think the chicks in the pics look like girls to me. Stormy

 

[HorseFeathers]

I'm thinking all pullets

 

[ArizonaDesertChicks]

Quote:
Yes - same rules apply to CA whites. When we first bought our 2 week old chicks at the feed store, there were some California whites a week or two older in the tub also and the one cockerel was obvious due to his large comb. These two breeds develop combs very early and he really stood out.

 

[ArizonaDesertChicks]

Quote:
You can ignore the statistics. By now, the cockerals should be obvious. Ignore the upright stances, chest bumping, etc. because the females will do them also as they try to establish pecking order. Just look at the combs - if they all look like the ones in your photos, you have 100% pullets. If any chicks not pictured have obvious, larger, redder combs, then they would be a cockeral.

The chick with black on her could be a California white if she looks just like a leghorn, except for her black spots. There are other black and white chickens though, so if she has a different body type or size you may not be able to sex that one yet.

 

[CovenantCreek]

Quote:
I'm pretty sure the one with black is a Leghorn, at least she doesn't seem to have any noticeable differences after 4 weeks. I'm thinking she may actually be an Ideal 236 -- she doesn't have very much black, which seems to be more in line with that variety than the CA Whites. I suppose I'll never know since both were produced to be extremely prolific egg layers there won't really be any way to tell. Not that it matters, I like her whatever she is.

After seeing the pic of the 3 week old Leghorn cockerel, I'm convinced that Ideal "mistakenly" sent me all pullets, or else the cockerels all died within the first few days. I'm not complaining.