Last week I received my Ideal order of 10 straight run New Hampshires, 10 straight run Buff Orpingtons and 5 Delaware males. One chick is totally different from everyone else. He's sporting black feathers coming in along with a buff color but what is really odd is that he (or she) now has a black mustache forming on the upper beak! Did an imposter slip into the bunch?? I'm starting to see little personalities developing but as always the Buff Orpingtons are the hoods in there. They run away whenever I get near them then they come back when no one gets eaten ^_^
MollyD
One chick is different??
lol mustache eh... call her Frida! haha
Frida lol! And Fred if it's a roo?
MollyD
Hmmm. Delawares are white with black barring on the tips of their tail, wing and hackle feathers, they look like Buff Orpingtons chicks, except lighter yellow with a black smudge on the top of their heads--Buff Orpingtons are classic little yellow chicks. No black there. New Hampshires--no idea, they are red, but the chicks are yellow. Sounds like you have a ringer!
It wasn't an extra added in? When we ordered they put an extra in and it was different than the others. We think it is a hen though. They also sent us an extra in our first order.
No extras. We ordered 25 and got 25 chicks. Only one who looks like that. I snapped some photos and I'm waiting for Paul to come home and get them off the camera. Then I'll post them. I took one face front showing the mustache and one showing the wings. Only chick who looks that way. btw Catscan I ordered 5 Delaware roos and not one looks like what you described. They were a pale creamy yellow all over (at least there were 5 that looked that way). This one with the mustache only developed it this last couple of days. I spotted him yesterday and started to wash his beak thinking what on earth did you get into. Then I realized it was part of him!
MollyD
Okay here is my mustache baby
MollyD
And a view of his wings
MollyD
Funny, my Meyer's Delaware had a black smudge on the top of her head--at first I thought someone had brushed her with a marker--but when I checked the catalogue they showed the same faint black smudge and some show a black stripe across the eye. Maybe a variation? I would guess it is a Delaware--except for the buff coming through. Hmmmm.
Sure is a beauty whatever it is.
Thanks! It has a very sweet disposition too. I'm hoping it's a hen ^_^ LOL makes me think of kid who gets a hold of it's mom's eyebrow pencil!
MollyD
Did you drop your eyebrow pencil in their pen? Ah ha that's where it went! Little chick in the corner applying makeup trying not to get caught. te he
LOL darn! I wondered where that thing went! LOL Poor thing got his face scrubbed a bit before I realized it was all him.
MollyD
24 of these chicks are all the same.. one of these chicks is a little bit different.. sung to the seseme street song.. lol
everytime I see the title to your thread molly I sing that song... she sure is a cutie though!!
Maybe she wants to be a he.. Rhett Butler and "frankly......."
♫ ♫ One of these chicks is not like the others ♫♫
LOL
MollyD
He needs a fake nose and eyeglasses to go with his moustache,LOL! Maybe a trenchcoat too ; )
Yeah, it looks kind of like Clark Gable! What a name.
Did you check with the place you ordered from? Maybe they can help solve the mystery.
You know jasmerr it never occurred to me to do that! I got all of them from Ideal.
I'm getting convinced he's a roo. This morning I put all the chicks on the floor of the greenhouse to run around. Then I added the ducks and geese. Guess who got into an all out brawl with the biggest goose? Yup. Mr Mustachio there. I'm thinking of naming him Hercule Poirot for Agatha Christie's detective who was famous for his mustaches.
MollyD
And his "egg shaped head"! Perfect!
I had forgotten about the egg shaped head Catscan! LOL
MollyD
Molly did you call ideal? I'm curious to hear the verdict...
I sent my contact person an email with Hercule's picture explaining what had happened. She never responded. I don't think I'll be buying from them the next time. We spent almost $100.00 on this order so I would think they'd want to respond.
MollyD
Thats upsetting!
We should all take guesses and see whos right. Winner gets....something?
I am already in with Hercule being a Delaware--its the ones with the buff barring I can't figure out.
LOL winner gets Hercule's autographed picture LOL
MollyD
Hahaah!!! I love it. portrait in sepia.
i wanna play!
Ready, Set, Let the guessing begin!
Catscan's already got dibs on delaware
Any other guess on what Hercule might be? Not to mention those other 4 hooligans!
MollyD
here's the lineup
This chick and others like it had the same color down that Hercule had and the same color legs and feet
Now these are the other gang members. Two with the brown and white speckles, one with the same down as Hercule.
Last right behind Hercule is the other more solid banding type.
hmmm, well they AREN'T Buckeyes or Jersey Giants... don't look like bantams.... so how about dominiques? similar breed, size and color, different feathering in and leg color...
Beats me tf! I never ordered any Dominiques LOL ! I noticed today that Hercule has some buff looking feathers coming out on his shoulders and there are dark ones showing on the back of his neck like maybe his head will be dark later.
There are some chicks that are now developing brown feathers (I'm assuming those are New Hampshires) and one of those is starting to have his beak turn dark. Was probably jealous of Hercule's mustache!
MollyD
I really like Ideal, but I have to admit that they have messed my order up both times I've ordered from them, AND they didn't credit my account on the second order from the mistake on the first. I tend to order one of everything, but I had the woman read the order back correctly,but it was still messed up.
Okay I just got through to Cackle. Seems the web page should have given us a confirmation # once we placed the order and it didn't. They're going to manually look for our order and see where it went. If they don't find it they will call us back to do it again :-(
MollyD
Yikes, don't wanna get charged twice!
And would you believe there has been no call today (it's 4:32pm here). Two more days of this and I'll just cancel since if they can't get the paper part right how can I trust them to fill the order right?
I was looking at the chicks today. There were 5 chicks that looked like Hercule in their down color. 1 of those is one I had that accident with. There are now 3 besides Hercule left. I always thought those 5 were the Delawares till Hercule started doing his own thing. Now the 3 left have cream feathers coming on the lower part of their wings. Nothing on the upper part of their wings yet. Now Cackle has these pictures on their web site for Delawares http://www.cacklehatchery.com/delaware.html If this is right then Hercule can't be a Delaware since they've got light beaks (and no mustache!). The others might be Delaware hens which can't be the case either since I bought 5 roos (not a straight run!). My head is hurting trying to solve this puzzle!
MollyD
Maybe the beak thing is just a fluke, like an individual thing.