I just got home from a week in South America today and my 7 little chicks have turned into minature turkey vultures--or maybe baby eagles. Anyway they are really ugly in a cute adolescent way. One thing that has me concerned, after my first all rooster-pullets experience, is that some of these "pullets" have little nubs where spurs would develop if they were cockerels. Is this normal in pullets? I am sort of suspicious that one of my RIR is a cockerel as well as the Welsummer. Funny thing is the Welsummer I was sure was a pullet has developed massively thick and powerful legs. I will take pictures tomorrow and would appreciate everyones input. I may just be getting paranoid about everything turning into roosters again.......:-)
Spurs or nubs on pullets?
hey, i would be paranoid too!
looking forward to the pictures...
tf
glad you're back!
For what it's worth - all of my "pullet" chicks have nubs where the spurs would be on Roos. They are two weeks old today. Glad you made it home safely...Scott
Thanks, TamaraFaye and Scott--I was too jet lagged today to take pictures. But I am relieved to hear that you have "nubby pullets" too, Scott. I'm sure it is just a breed related trait. Have you seen the newest "Hobby Farms" magazine? It is on "Bantam Chickens" and "Getting Good Eggs". Nice.
waiting for a friend to share her copy...
waiting.......
apparently she isn't reading this thread, i will fix that!
Don't get worried about the spur thing on pullets,its kinda like males having nipples.....
I have one bloodline of WCB Polish that the hens have spurs and in Sumatras the hen having spurs is highly desireable
Do you mean me? Hey, I just got it yesterday! Actually, to rub salt in the wound, the feedstore gave it to me free because they couldn't find it in their computer. But I would be glad to share it.....plain brown wrapper so spouses don't know?
crestedchik, Thank you! I was pretty sure all my pullets couldn't be cockerels AGAIN. The male nipple thing had occured to me..... what threw me was that some of these don't have the nubs--at least not yet. DH just finished the the coop he promised to build 5 months ago when I was talking 3 hens--I don't really have the heart to tell him it is already too small. Did sort of suggest we could build one right next to it and connect them. He looked startled and asked "Why?" ;-)
Why?
Well,cause theres room for a new coop silly man....rotf
catscan, i didn't mean you, but i'll take it! btw how is that welsummer cockerel?
cause theres room for a new coop
Why do they ask 'why?'?
A friend who hasn't driven up this way in a few years is kinda freaked out "i just picture baby chickens running all over your house, & pens scattered all over your property"
"No" i replied. "Baby chicken brooder is just in the dining room. And all the pens are connected to one building. Except the moveable ones that will be in the garden."
She is still too scared to visit. But when her precious cat breathes his last breath [he's ten & ill], she wants a silkie or showgirl for a housepet!
tf
I am still not sure which of my polish crested, cochins,
and ameraucanas are roo's. One amer has really big legs,
and stands more upright than the others. 2 of the cochins
do a 'stare down' and spar with their feet, several are
'nubby'. No crowing, yet, but the big amer does make some
different sounds. I am pretty sure that one is a roo. I lost
7 chicks out of 27 of the mail orderded, so I'm not certain
what we have left. DH is doing really well with my enterprise.
We get our holes dug tomorrow for the coop and run, and he
very early on suggested making the coop bigger, just in case.
Way to go, DH!
I love miss robbi. A big coop to princess kathy!
hoorah DH!
truest, you haven't commented on my poopy drawers. taking news pics to post today...
truest, congrats on DH! My DH finally asked if I thought the coop was going to be big enough--I was diplomatic and said no, if they were going to spend all their time in it, but they will free range in the yard a good bit. Seems to have set the groundworks for a coop expansion.....:-)
I know they sex pet birds--you can even send feathers in and have them sexed. My budgie was sexed that way when I bought him over 10 years ago. So why doesn't some interprising person start up a mail-order chicken sexing company? I know people with large flocks and freezer space probably don't need it---but I would sure pay something to know. Both my Welsummers look like they could be roos, but for very different reasons. The one with the more developed comb is larger and more upright and assertive--even my not very interested DH thinks he is a roo. But the other Wels. has massive legs and is slow to feather--also male traits. Most have nubs--but a couple don't. The Delaware is a real standout--very friendly and curious, even friendlier than the Orpington. And they are on the critically endangered list of the Slow Food/Ark of Taste. Does anyone else have one?
TF, where's your poopy drawers? I want to see!
I love miss rachael, and sending thoughts of tea and
crumpets to princess kathy.;-)
Hi, Cat! How was S.A.? Good to know about the slow to
feather. I have 2 cochins still inside, one is really petite,
the other Very slow to feather, but I've named it Amelia
Earhart! LOL She has a wierd wing thing going on, uses
one more than the other to balance, and leaves it extended
for a long time, like 'she' forgot to fold it. it's funny. DH said
last night he is really enjoying this project, and the son of a
gun went out with DGD Saturday to buy a LOT of tools!!!
His excuse to get them tee hee, My gain! :o)
I love miss traci, and all the LIW. Sending rain to princess
kathy soon.I love Miss Rachael.
This message was edited Mar 18, 2008 11:21 AM
catscan
the test for pet birds is very expensive
I have a Macaw that I still don't know if its male or female
Too cheap to pay for the test
so she remains Airel....my pretty girl
Plus ,by the time you get the test back you'll
probably already know the sex of the chicken
There is a book on sexing birds...
personally I found it useless
but it was interesting reading
One thing I've noticed
The males get their tails faster
Once they do their juvinile molt the males have pointed saddle and
hackle feathers(in most breeds)
(and in polish the crest feathers are pointed on the males
round on females)
the wattles stay smaller on hens,as do the combs
I'm still staring hard trying to sex my 7 five week old pullets (?). I didn't have much opportunity to make meaningful comparisons with my quartet of roos. I think I have a feel now for the "henny tail": It is broader and more downturned. My Marans, Orpington, Delaware and one RIR have this tail. The other RIR has a narrower, longer and "perkier" tail that sort of pops up when s/he is alert. I suspect it is a cockerel. Unfortunately the two Welsummers are so different from one another I can't make comparisons. Frustration, frustrations, frustration! And then with my former roos, I was sure one was a pullet until the first long tail feather popped out. And that was at 4 months. I guess I should just give up and wait for them to start crowing......
Crestedchik, when is the juvenile molt? My chicks are feathered out, but is the juvenile molt after this--it seems that my roos had much glossier feathers come in when they were about 4 months old. Is that about the time to start looking for pointed hackle feathers?
This message was edited Mar 25, 2008 1:04 AM
There is no set time but generally with mine 4-5 months
Thats when they get their adult feathers
Depends on the time of year, breed, weather ,locked in pens or freerange...so many variables...at least here
I know by 6 months most of my spring hatched polish are in good adult feather and can be shown
My Sumatras...take lots longer
I have a bantam sumatra cockerel who was hatched in August
He is just getting his adult feathers in
wow! keep us posted. listen fo rthe first crow!
Thanks, Crestedchick--I know what to look for now.
I know I'm obsessing, but I just noticed that the "cocktailed" RIR has started jumping the other chicks. I let them out to "free range" with Mommy watching this afternoon and the little devil started charging and then jumping on some of the others. Its not the usual jump-kick challenge-- s/he is definitely trying to get on top of the other chick's back. And s/he is picking on just a couple of the others--especially the Delaware who is very henny and tries to avoid him/her. Is this a roo behaviour that anyone else has seen in a chick as young as five weeks?
Don't worry TamaraFaye--you'll be the first to know.
This message was edited Mar 25, 2008 11:54 PM
This message was edited Mar 25, 2008 11:55 PM
This message was edited Mar 26, 2008 12:56 AM
how did you edit at 12:56 AM when its only 12:53 now!
i have 6 chicks out/alive, and 12 pipping!
i have a feeling your neighbor may actually be the first to know/hear the crow LOL
some of my hens are pretty fiesty. hmm, maybe your RIR is part kitty-cat? sounds like pouncing behavrio to me
Heck, for me it is only 11:10 now. I seem to time travel whenever I go on DG.....I'm afraid you are right about the neighbors--but I am determined to crack the sex-identification code. The RIR reminds me of DH's boston terrier trying to mount my border collie. One is very determined, the other is totally bewildered. And both are boys.
Congratulations on the excellent hatch! To what do you attribute your success? I was just informed I have Barnevelder eggs arriving in the next day or so. I thought I was prepared but I seem suddenly to have forgotten all I memorized about incubating. I will need a lot of advice--or Zanax--or both.
This message was edited Mar 26, 2008 2:26 AM
well, buy a book [or borrow one] QUICKLY!
IT'S NOT EXCELLENT YET... ooops sorry bout caps... i have nine now. two that were pipping didn;t make it. so that leaves seven in there strugging to get out.
since i have good recall, everything i've read on DG has been a tremendous help, & i've rec'd lots of last minute help from truest & silkiechick. & the peeps are getting help from me. i always thought it was a GOOD thing that you could drop one of my eggs from 3 feet to the concrete floor & barely get a crack, but NOT when you are INSIDE the egg wanting out. if only my DH had pointed that out to me sooner, we would have some fine buckeye chicks from Saturday...
just put an update onmy thread, didn't mean to hijack yours.
time for coffee & help a few more chicks...
TF you are so bad.
I am figuring out who is who with my flock. The biggest,
and by far the cockerel-est, is my ameraucana, Big Red.
Big legs, upright stance, and now making warning noises
in the bottom of it's throat. Bossy, too. And likely almost 2x
heavier than the other amer's.
But- No tail feathers yet at 8 weeks this Saturday. The other
Amer's have tail feathers, and in a downward set, like the
'henny tail' explanation. I am wondering if he is going to have
a tail at all, and maybe he has more Auracana in him.
Maybe Crestedchik can help with my polish. I lost a couple
with the sickness, but all the remaining look about the same.
Their crest feathers have a slightly rounded appearance to
the individual feather ends, of the head crest. I am thinking
they are all females, which is likely, as I only ordered 1 male,
and I guess I lost him.
The cochins seem a bit easier. They stand much more
upright, and it looks as if I may have 3 cochin roo's, as their
comb and wattles are more pronounced than some of the
others that act more subdued in behaviour. The biggest
cochin acts very mild mannered and quiet. It is the first to
fully feather, and is not confrontational at all. It also has smaller
comb, and no wattles yet. So, with my cochins, big doesn't
always mean it's a roo, but how it stands.
I have heard that if you make a sudden loud noise, the roo's will
stand up, and the hens will squat. Don't know for sure.
i need to test that squat theory out. i'd like all hens in my bantam group, easier to sell. and i hope to purchase a standard cochin roo to go with my bantam cochins...
gonna be watching for pips Sunday!
Any pips, yet, TF? What color cochin roo are you wanting
to get?
the breeder i am buying from only has blacks.
we seem to have blues, golden laced, and a white. still not sure they are chochin yet!
Based on the squat test, only my Orpington and Marans are pullets! Maybe when they are older?
well, it didn't work for my Buckeyes, so maybe it depends on the breed?
they have to be sexually mature to know to assume the position,LOL
Hi crestedchik--I sort of knew that.LOL. Just thought it was funny that the Orpington and Marans did it. Just read a rather alarming paragraph about the dangers of exposing young birds to too much light. One of the consequences is premature sexual maturity and decreased egg laying permanently. I'll start a new thread about it when I have time (late to work). My chicks have definitely had too much light because of keeping them warm outside at night. Oh well, live and learn.
a red light at night makes them realize it is nighttime and they sleep and stay warm...
I just can't see the red light causing that problem, Cat.
Hope it is not the case. I would think if you used an
incandescent white 24/7 that might be it. Can you clarify
when you start the new thread about this? Good to know.
Hi truest and TamaraFaye, I read it last night in Gail Damerow's Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens. Usual bedtime reading, right? I was sort of vaguely aware that exposing young birds to long periods of light could be problematic and the experts recommended separating the heat source from the light source--but who does that? When I read the details I freaked. Quietly of course. It seems like red light should not be as bad--but I'm not sure it is completely safe. I don't think this applies to very young chicks in the brooder. But those of us who are putting our pullets out through cold nights with the light for heat might be making a mistake. I'll research it more tonight and start a thread to get it cleared up
the breeder i ordered my original sotck from told me to give them white light 12 hours and switch to red 12 hours. i trianed them from early on that bedtime was just that, and they would be quiet all night, but if they NEEDED to get up for a drink they could barely see well enough too... i really think light means just that, white light, and red light is not light at all, it is red and heal...