Pro - Does anyone else's nest boxes get soaked in rain?

[Heidi-Hi]

Hi, when I have a mixed bunch and not sure what breed they are, what are the tell tale signs to tell between boys and girls? Is it in the wing feathers? Something to do with their faces? Thanks!

[Jools]

It's easier if they're all the same breed and you have a mix of both sexes because then you can compare.

 

Girls tend to feather up more quickly than boys, so wings are a good guide.

 

There's quite a different in comb and wattle development early on in some breeds. Obviously the boys tend to be bigger but another giveaway is that they redden up earlier.

 

Sometimes it's down to colour. Cuckoo Marans are a good example because the boys have two copies of the barring gene while the girls just have one, so at about 2-3 weeks they're looking quite different in colour.

 

Then of course as they mature the boys grow pointy neck feathers and long saddle and tail feathers.

 

It gets easier with practise, but egg laying is usually pretty definitive!

[Heidi-Hi]

Wow, OK thanks Jools

[bostock422]

It depends if the chickens are sex linked, there is a technique called vent sexing which you can do from 12 to 72 hours (I think), but you have to trained to do so.