woot!...got my shipment from Ideal today

[quadcam79]

We ordered 10 chicks total, received 18...they added some roos for warmth. All the chicks are doing well, except for 1 crevecoeur the runt of the litter...it was very lethargic, off balance and stayed away from the group. it woulnt eat or drink so my GF decided to try and load a syringe withs some cooked oatmeal and feed it that way...it worked, the chick is doing much better now, and chirping louder than the rest of them.

How can I tell which bired I have are the roos? I cant keep those So I'd like to know just how many are in the bunch. I saw something about the wingtips are different on male and females.

 

[silkiechicken]

Unless they were mated specially to be feather sexed, you won't be able to tell till about 6 weeks old. Good luck!

 

[justusnak]

Congrats on the new babies...and where are the pics?????

 

[quadcam79]

LOL, I'll get some pics up soon...somehow my GF has suddenly become chicken mama, shes in love with the babies

 

[SillyChick]

Congratulations!

Thank you for saving the chick. Yes, it can be difficult to sex young chicks. But, there is one fun way to sex them, although not highly accurate. Get a soft object(a hat, handkerchief, cotton, etc.), and sail it above their heads(wave it above them). The chicks that got startled and stretch their necks upward and made some chirping sounds are roos, while the others that didn't seem to mind the object too much and simply crouches by are hens. When I went to the poultry store to buy a couple of chicks(I need females), I brought a handkerchief with me. I waved it over the chicks' heads then immediately grabbed the chicks who didn't bother much.

Hope this helped! Congratulations and have fun with the chicks! I'm sure they look awesome.