RE: RIR chicks with white on them- can this be right???

[One Chick Two]

Hi Everyone,

This is our second brood of RIR chicks and they are 2 weeks old. The first brood of pullets are 11 weeks old. The new bunch have some chicks who look different than any of the other RIR, which are usually a fawn/ tan color some with black markings on back and head. The new chicks I'm talking about have a very white chest/ shoulders (none have ever had this amount of white before.) and none of the usual black markings. They are a bit more yellow in the head than tan, although the wing feather edges do have the RIR coloring. Are these still RIR?





Top photo shows the normal overall tannish color of most of the chicks. Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[Habibs Hens]

those are not RIR

Sorry

wait till they feather out and repost so we can see better what they are

 

[Fred's Hens]

Are they hatchery stock? If so, they may well be what that particular hatchery sells for Rhode Island Reds. True bred, honest to goodness Rhode Island Reds aren't available from the average feedstore or hatchery.

Wait and see. My guess is that the once they feather in, they'll look quite different.

 

[One Chick Two]

Thank you so much for your valuable inputs, Habibs Hens and Fred's Hens. These chicks originated from Mac Murray hatchery.

The first batch of hens as I'd previously said, started tan color with black markings. Then as feathers eventually came in, had a tan/ black variation, eventually growing in feathers of deep auburn/ mahogany red (some being more coppery red than auburn) eventually with some striated (is that right?) red and black/ white/ tannish spots in tail feathers. Not as pure breed in the color as we'd like to hope for, but healthy, sweet and friendly girls, nontheless. Unfortunately, with our inexperience, we just don't know the breed well yet.

How can you discern a true Rhode Island Red from a hatchery type? What I mean is- what is really the difference? Is there somewhere I could find out more about what characteristics a true RIR should have? Your thoughts are very much appreciated, so thanks again. : )

 

[Fred's Hens]

There is 2 or 3 year old thread here on BYC https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/407294/the-heritage-rhode-island-red-site

Basically, without having to read the entire thread, just jump in and read a few pages from say, January through April of this year, perhaps. Great photos and great reading.

The true bred RIR is long, brick shaped, deep mahogany red in color and generally differences can be noted in personality as well. You can only get true bred RIR from fanciers and breeders. Similar to the Araucana, which hatcheries say they sell, but really the birds are Easter Eggers.

 

[One Chick Two]

Thank you so much for the thread recommendation, Fred's Hens. This thread helped me alot. I better now understand the nuances between between the heritage RIR breed and PR RIR which is a actually a mixture of different breeds. I wish I could have the heritage breed, but it is unlikely that will happen.

Our little PR are now 6 weeks old. The chicks with the white pinfeathers are all feathering in now, and all ended up being red/dark PR roos.

 

[One Chick Two]

Here is one of the little roos. I know they say you can't tell the difference between the roos and hens when they are 6 weeks old, but the coloring/ size/ body shape/ comb differences on most of them seem obvious.