Weekly Chick Growth - Marans, Olive Eggers, Cream Legbar, Buff Orphington, Wyandotte

[heidibee]

Hello! I've had hens before, but this is my first time raising chicks! I'll be keeping four of the eight once I figure out how many roosters I have! Fun guesses are welcome, although I know it is too early to tell who is a roo. I picked these up from a local breeder last weekend and was told they were 1-2 weeks old. I haven't come up with names yet.

Here are their 'first day home' pictures at 1-2 weeks.

Black Copper Marans #1 (black & white)

Black Copper Marans #2 (mostly black)

Buff Orphington (the youngest - all others came from another bin, she may not even be a week old yet here)

Wyandotte (blue laced red?)

Crested Cream Legbar - the only one I know for sure is a pullet! (she looks the oldest)

And now the Olive Eggers! Their mom was a Cream Legbar, and their dad was a Black Copper Marans.

Olive Egger #1 (mostly black)

Olive Egger #2 (Full eyeliner and lighter beak than her twin #3. Thinking this is a pullet compared to #3)

Olive Egger #3 (Markings around eye and black beak are unique to this one. Thinking this one is a roo. Quite a comb forming compared to #2!)

 

[heidibee]

Here are pictures from today (6 days after the previous set). They are supposedly 2-3 weeks old. My little Buff Orphington sure looks tiny next to most of the others!

Black Copper Marans #1 (black & white) - Coppery wing feathers are now appearing.

Black Copper Marans #2 (mostly black) - More coppery wing feathers are coming in.

Buff Orphington - Wing feathers are filling in. Truly a chicken nugget.

Wyandotte - Wing feathers are coming in, and the back is turning from a brown/red color to more of a gray.

Crested Cream Legbar - Thinking she is maybe a week ahead of the others. Closer to 3 weeks right now? Her back and chest are feathered out this week. Her head is molting a little bit, so her crest poof that was present last week is less obvious this week.

Olive Egger #1 - Not much has changed with this one aside from the wings and tail feathering out a bit fuller. This one is closer in size to my tiny Buff Orphington.

Olive Egger #2 (suspected pullet) - Her body looks larger than #3. Her comb is black, so I'm having a hard time judging if it is smaller than his now. This chick is the hardest to catch and the most hesitant to eat from my hand.

Olive Egger #3 - (suspected cockerel) He is going through the ugliest molt of them all. His head is somewhat bald right now. Back feathers are coming in slower than #2. This chick's comb is the most apparent of the group.

 

[moniquem]

That little baby comb is so cute!

 

[heidibee]

Week 3 - these were taken on Sunday the 18th.

I'll trickle these out. Not sure I have time to post everyone right now. I'm out of town. They're going to look so big once I'm home!

Black Copper Marans #1
This chick is looking more like a roo with these reddish waddles coming in. This one is friendly and isn't afraid to walk up to me. I really love this little petite one and was hoping to keep it, but ordinances don't allow a roo where I live.

Black Copper Marans #2
This chick's comb has grown a bit. There is a lot of brown/black showing up all over the wings and chest. This one has a full panic attack when I take her out for pictures. So much sad chirping!

 

[heidibee]

Week 3

Buff Orphington
Still the baby of the coop. She finally figured out the roost bar. Everyone has been sleeping up there without her on warmer nights. We have more cold weather this week, so they're all back under the heat plate. Feathers are coming in on the wings. This chick is friendly and not afraid of me. She is calm when I hold her.

Wyandotte
This chick runs from me and really stresses out when I hold her. I am absolutely loving the light feathering that's coming out. I'm not sure what color she will be and I'm excited to see how the feathers fill in.

Crested Cream Legbar
She must be about a week ahead of everyone else, because she looks like a full blown hen right now. She is gentle and sweet. She is one of the easiest to catch and she coos and purrs when I hold and pet her!

 

[heidibee]

Week 3

Olive Egger #1
This chick has a very small comb! She is supposed to be from a Cream Legbar hen and Black Copper Maran roo. She is looking a lot like my other brownish chick. This one is really skittish.

Olive Egger #2
This chick is the eyeliner girl (hoping). I can't tell what these waddles are trying to do. Comparing with #3 makes me question what I'm seeing.

Olive Egger #3
This chick is pretty likely a roo. Personality and waddles are saying so. He came at me when I was cleaning and kicked my arm! Such sass. I also see him picking a lot of mini fights. His tail is not as full as #2 and his head has taken a long time to grow feathers back in.

 

[Shepshill]

Here are pictures from today (6 days after the previous set). They are supposedly 2-3 weeks old. My little Buff Orphington sure looks tiny next to most of the others!

Black Copper Marans #1 (black & white) - Coppery wing feathers are now appearing.
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Black Copper Marans #2 (mostly black) - More coppery wing feathers are coming in.
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Buff Orphington - Wing feathers are filling in. Truly a chicken nugget.
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Wyandotte - Wing feathers are coming in, and the back is turning from a brown/red color to more of a gray.
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Crested Cream Legbar - Thinking she is maybe a week ahead of the others. Closer to 3 weeks right now? Her back and chest are feathered out this week. Her head is molting a little bit, so her crest poof that was present last week is less obvious this week.
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Olive Egger #1 - Not much has changed with this one aside from the wings and tail feathering out a bit fuller. This one is closer in size to my tiny Buff Orphington.
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Olive Egger #2 (suspected pullet) - Her body looks larger than #3. Her comb is black, so I'm having a hard time judging if it is smaller than his now. This chick is the hardest to catch and the most hesitant to eat from my hand.
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Olive Egger #3 - (suspected cockerel) He is going through the ugliest molt of them all. His head is somewhat bald right now. Back feathers are coming in slower than #2. This chick's comb is the most apparent of the group.
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Your photos are fantastic! I am dazzled.

 

[heidibee]

Week 4 - It is getting harder to keep them still for pictures! I was out of town, and they look HUGE one week later! They are going through a trough of food so much faster. I am having to refill it twice per day now. I'm transitioning them to grower feed and have started offering a bowl of grit along with it. They're going through about 3/4 a gallon of water per week now. I'm using a gravity-style bucket with chicken nipples only. No more little chick waterer that fills with shavings! Woo!

Black Copper Marans #1 - Leaning toward cockerel for this one. The waddles came in red tinted last week, and the crest is raised in the middle. I'm no expert!

Black Copper Marans #2 - Really leaning toward pullet for this one. Waddles are coming in with no red hue at all. Although this chick has some pretty thick legs. I'm not sure if my two marans were hatched at the same time or not. This one has much more developed feathering on the legs.

Buff Orphington - The youngest of the bunch! I'm thinking she is a full two weeks behind some of them. Feathering out more every week. Still much smaller than some of them. She is finally a pro at roosting with the others!

Wyandotte - Such beautiful light feathers are coming in! The back is really filling out now. Reaaaaaally hoping this one is a pullet! I am not allowed to have roosters here.

 

[heidibee]

Week 4

Crested Cream Legbar - Her crest is coming in much more full this week! I love it!

Olive Egger #1 - Thinking this is a pullet.

Olive Egger #2 - Still not sure about this one, but leaning toward cockerel. This one is terrified of me and is really hard to catch.

Olive Egger #3 - I'm thinking cockerel for this one still. His waddles have been really dark red since last week. He has calmed down a little as far as trying to fight me goes. He doesn't run when my hand approaches him, and I can pet him while he eats!

 

[heidibee]

Week 5

Black Copper Marans #1
A little cockerel! This brave dude has been mounting the back of my Cream Legbar, the largest pullet. In turn, she has been picking his tail feathers out! He had bloody spots on each side of his tail over the weekend and I separated the bully girl until yesterday. They're pretty okay now, and he has healed. He's calm and easy to catch and hold.

Black Copper Marans #2
Still not sure about this one. The comb and wattles are growing (especially the wattles!), but they are still a fleshy color. This chick is really afraid of me, so it's been nearly impossible to get a close-up!

Buff Orphington
This is the youngest who is just at 4 weeks old while the others are closer to 5-6 weeks. It's starting to look like a cockerel. He's very friendly and comes right up to me. We've been calling this one Lil Peep.

Wyandotte
I'm leaning toward pullet. This one is sort of calm, but also sort of flighty. Some darker brown/mahogany colored feathers are starting to come in on the wings. Her head is also sprouting darker grey feathers. This one has such a full fluffy back and butt! Wattles are starting to get a little pinkish.