Hen or Rooster!?

[ChicLady82930]

Hello fellow chickeniers!! I am new to chickens, and have fallen deeply in love with my small starter flock. I had purchased 6 chickens from an online hatchery, and I have 2 that I am almost certain are roosters. However! I am really hoping to be proven wrong. They are 14 weeks old and one is a Buff Orpington and the other a Rhode Island Red. They’re wattles and combs are much larger than the other ones I have of the same breeds. But from what I have read, roosters will often have darker red wattles/combs and my chickens are so far quite pink. The buff had shown some aggressive behavior towards me early on, but that has since stopped AND another definite hen had also shown similar behavior which went away with time. Is it possible that some chickens simply mature faster than others of the breed and age? Any and all help is greatly appreciated!!

 

[WingItRanch]

Welcome to BYC! It is possible that some chickens will mature faster or slower than others. However... I believe you have 2 cockerels.

 

[CoopBoots]

Buff is a boy. I think the other is based on comparison to the other birds pictured.

 

[SilverBirds]

Both are cockerels.

 

[ChicLady82930]

Thank you all for your replies!!

 

[Chicken_tiger_catt]

Hello fellow chickeniers!! I am new to chickens, and have fallen deeply in love with my small starter flock. I had purchased 6 chickens from an online hatchery, and I have 2 that I am almost certain are roosters. However! I am really hoping to be proven wrong. They are 14 weeks old and one is a Buff Orpington and the other a Rhode Island Red. They’re wattles and combs are much larger than the other ones I have of the same breeds. But from what I have read, roosters will often have darker red wattles/combs and my chickens are so far quite pink. The buff had shown some aggressive behavior towards me early on, but that has since stopped AND another definite hen had also shown similar behavior which went away with time. Is it possible that some chickens simply mature faster than others of the breed and age? Any and all help is greatly appreciated!!

there are 2 paths ahead of u:

1. get rid of the RIR.


2. buy 12 or so confirmed hens, and enjoy the magic of chicken math

 

[Rhodebar Lover]

Please completely disregard above comments. From an experienced chicken owner and veteran BYC member, the Production Red is a point-of-lay pullet. She has no sex characteristics of a male. At this age, she would have saddle feathers/much more masculine features. The Buff Orpington is a cockerel. Orpingtons are typically a bit slower to mature versus hatchery Rhode Island Reds are bred to mature very quickly. That is leading to a discrepancy in the relative maturity of both birds

 

[Logar]

The buff is for sure a cockerel but I am not seeing any saddle feathers on the RIR. I could just be missing them though

 

[Rhodebar Lover]

The buff is for sure a cockerel but I am not seeing any saddle feathers. I could just be missing them though

 

[Logar]

View attachment 3941510

I meant to say I am not seeing any saddle feathers on the RIR . My brain works faster than my fingers most of the time.

I just fixed it, thanks