“Sapphire” genders/combs CCLxLH

[Kris5902]

I bought 10 straight run “sapphire” chicks, a Crested Cream Legbar cock over Leghorn hens. At about 2.5 weeks now and I have 6 which are clearly getting named Foghorn, Soup, Soup, Stew, and I’ll have to pick another Keeper name... they all have large, bright single combs. The three clear pullets have essentially no comb at all, one is 10 days older than the others, one is average size, and one is a runt I didn’t think was going to make it but has surprised me.

I have one chick that confuses me though... it seems to have a pea or rose comb developing, and I’m not sure about it’s gender, or even if it’s the same x-breed. My older chick was a replacement (I think a hold back because the breeder also sells pullets at a much higher price) for a “mis-sorted leghorn boy” that made it into my box. Pics to follow...

 

[JedJackson]

Okay, we'll wait for pics. We can't tell you much without them, but the one with the pea or rose comb definitely has different ancestry than the others, because legbars and leghorns both have single combs, and crossing them would give chicks with single combs.

 

[Animals45]

Need pictures please?

 

[Kris5902]

Boys x2, my oddball x2, a girl x2

 

[Kris5902]

Sorry for the wait... chores had to happen, and we only have recycling once a week here so taking that in before they close was a priority! Thanks for all your input! I’m thinking of getting more hatching eggs from this breeder, so I’d like to know if I’m getting the short end of the deals... eggs seem to be my best bet for %pullets so far...

 

[JedJackson]

You already have a good grasp on their sexes. The oddball with the pea comb is probably a cockerel, judging by the comb size at that early age. But it's worth waiting to see what happens. As for breed, probably a Leghorn crossed with some pea comb breed. Which one is hard to say.

 

[Kris5902]

I’m thinking I’ll just get hatching eggs going forward... 70% cockerels and they were almost a week old when I picked them up? They might have been sexed and I’m a rooster dump. At $15/chick I’m going to keep hoping on the oddball being a pullet... i would take excess cockerels and grow them out for meat (I know they aren’t going to be big!) but not at that price!

 

[R2elk]

I make and sell Sapphires. I cannot sex them as day old chicks. By the time they are 3 weeks old it is usually pretty easy to pick out the cockerels. Some are even sexable as cockerels at two weeks.

 

[Kris5902]

They were supposed to be 5days old when they were advertised... I picked them up 3 days later, I could just be unlucky. The ratio on the hatching eggs I got was more even though. I am guessing they are actually closer to 4 weeks old. I just looked at my calendar, and checked my email... they were supposedly 5 days old on November 17 so they are closer to 4 1/2 or 5 weeks now.

I make and sell Sapphires.

What do you think of the odd comb for a sapphire?

 

[R2elk]

They were supposed to be 5days old when they were advertised... I picked them up 3 days later, I could just be unlucky. The ratio on the hatching eggs I got was more even though. I am guessing they are actually closer to 4 weeks old. I just looked at my calendar, and checked my email... they were supposedly 5 days old on November 17 so they are closer to 4 1/2 or 5 weeks now.

At this age, you can definitely tell which ones are cockerels.

What do you think of the odd comb for a sapphire?

As the others have said that is not the comb of a Sapphire. I have never gotten anything but a single comb from any Sapphires that I have hatched. Single combs can look a little shortened on the ones that get a crest but they look nothing like that comb. It is most likely a different hybrid. There is also the tiny possibility that it could be a mutation.