How to tell chickens apart??

[Studio2770]

Well I finally got zip ties on them! I felt a bit like a prison warden strapping on ankle monitoring devices, but at least now I can tell them apart!

They'll probably peck at them for a bit but will quickly get used to them

 

[WilhelminaD]

Keep an eye on the ties over time. As they grow and their legs get bigger you may need to remove them and put on new ones. That's why I like the open/twisted/spiral rings (I know there's a word for it, but I can't put my finger on it right now) - they've got stretch built into them.

 

[lularat]

When mine were young, it was hard to tell them apart...I have 6 sex links. Now that they are grown, I tell them apart by their combs. Each comb is a little different. A couple have a little different feather pattern and are easy to tell apart from the others. Been trying to show my husband the differences, but so far he still has a lot of difficulty telling them apart.

 

[lularat]

I've never used leg bands. Do the other chickens peck at them?

 

[Studio2770]

I've never used leg bands. Do the other chickens peck at them?

Not really. If they have, I've never seen it.

 

[6of6chicks]

I've never used leg bands. Do the other chickens peck at them?

I only saw them pecking for the first few minutes, and even then it was only a couple of test pecks (nothing serious). They seemed curious rather than annoyed. After that I haven't seen anyone bothered by them.

I left them as loose as I could, but tight enough not to get caught on their feet. My girls are still young and I'm guessing only about half the size they will be full grown. So I know I'm going to be replacing them a few times. I bought the jumbo pack of zip ties.

I can also say that I LOVE having the ties on. It's so strange, but as soon as the ties went on I started noticing differences in the birds. The looked identical before, but maybe my brain is just seeing things subconsciously. But I'm finding more and more that I can look at the bird, guess the tie color, and find out I'm right. Strange - no idea why - but very cool.

It's also VERY nice to get answers to questions that help me learn more about them. I'm totally new to birds, so most of the time I'm clueless as to what they are doing. So I read as much as I can, then try to observe my own little flock. For example, I was curious if they were sleeping in the same order on the perch each night. Turns out they are!

I also like that I can track them. A few days before the zip ties, one of the girls got her head caught in the door of the run, and for one horrifying second I thought I had killed her. She was alive and seemed okay - just in shock. I wanted to keep an eye on her to make sure she recovered, but by the next day they were all acting fine and I couldn't tell which that had happened to. Good, I guess, because it meant she bounced back. But with the zip ties I will be able to actually track each bird and do a better job in the future.

Thank you to everyone for your help! I LOVE this site!

 

[funny farmer]

I use colored leg rings on mine. I get them at our local feed store.

 

[Blooie]

I have 5 Golden Laced Wyandottes. You'd think there'd be enough individual feather pattern coloration that they could be identified, right? Nope. So, we just call them "The Quints". I haven't had an easier time with the BOs - except for June, who has been larger than the others since day one. The Marans are the twins.....yep, can't tell them apart either. Thank goodness for the Easter Eggers and the Red Sex Links! I feel a lot less inadequate with them.....

Edited to add: I've thought about leg ties, but I'm a little worried about that.....pecking at them, getting them hung up on something while they are running around the property - I dunno, I guess I can find more ways to make myself worry than there are reasons to worry.

 

[funny farmer]

My girls have had their rings for almost 3 years, and I've only had to replace a couple of them. Another reason I put rings on them is that my neighbor also has Australorps that he free ranges from time to time. I found a couple of stragglers from his flock who showed up for a free meal now and then when my girls were out, and it helped me to identify which ones were mine. Funny story though. One of his refused to leave and insisted on roosting with my gals at night. So after a few weeks, he just gave her to me. I still have her, and she wears a leg ring now...LOL

 

[Janis R]

I use zip ties, much cheaper and easier to find then leg bands and you don't have to buy different sizes. The chickens, ducks and turkeys don't peck at them, but I read not to use red bands.