Days olds, attempt at feather sexing. Your thoughts?

[Tomtommom]

I know not all breeds can be feather sexed, but hey, it beats just hoping for the best!

RIR Girl


RIR Girl

WR Girl

WR Girl

BJG, really not sure, too darn poofy!

BJG Boy, if their wings say anything at all.

 

[Pele]

Yes unfortunately it's not possible to determine gender of all chicks via the feather method. The hatchery/breeder has to specifically cross slow feathering birds with fast feathering birds in order to produce offspring that will be identifiable in this manner.

I would post pictures of your chicks in two or three weeks, and it'll be less of a shot in the dark.

 

[Tomtommom]

I learned that part recently.

Initially I learned how to do it, and I was told you could do it on any bird, except for bantams. But like I said, it's better than just picking some chicks and hoping for the best.

You never know, right?

We'll just keep out fingers crossed. No boys, no boys, no boys. My track record is awful.. 2 brothers (only girl), 2 sons, 4 male puppies, 2 male cats, had a litter of bunnies, all boys. Maybe I will get lucky

 

[Pele]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. If it helps at all, there are a couple of things males generally tend to do, even super early. They aren't iron clad items, but rather generalities, but as you said, better than nothing.

A.) Male chicks tend to have more outgoing/curious personalities (usually the 'favorite' is a male)
B.) Male chicks can sometimes have excessively slow feather growth. If you have one chick that is WAY behind on feathering (especially the tail), but is the same age as the others, it is most likely a boy.
C.) Male chicks tend to 'stand tall' to survey their surroundings, while female chicks will keep their bodies horizontal and concern themselves with the ground more. This is early development of behavior that will fully manifest later in their mature lives, when roosters keep an eye out for predators.

Hope that helps you pass the next few weeks with a bit less anxiety .

 

[Tomtommom]

Oh my. Well, I may have a bunch of boys then

One of the RIR is very vocal and does the "tippy toe lookout" thing. One of the rocks is the first to come check things out. The giants are both super shy though. Wouldn't that be something, the ones I think are girls are all boys and the other way around.

We'll see. I like to take my guesses, it's part of the fun. I can sell off the boys or eat them (worst case scenario LOL).

 

[ChickenLover603]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. If it helps at all, there are a couple of things males generally tend to do, even super early. They aren't iron clad items, but rather generalities, but as you said, better than nothing.

A.) Male chicks tend to have more outgoing/curious personalities (usually the 'favorite' is a male)
B.) Male chicks can sometimes have excessively slow feather growth. If you have one chick that is WAY behind on feathering (especially the tail), but is the same age as the others, it is most likely a boy.
C.) Male chicks tend to 'stand tall' to survey their surroundings, while female chicks will keep their bodies horizontal and concern themselves with the ground more. This is early development of behavior that will fully manifest later in their mature lives, when roosters keep an eye out for predators.

Hope that helps you pass the next few weeks with a bit less anxiety .

x 2. That is a lot of boys!!