Usually the bigger the bird, the more laid back their chichenality is. Remember, young Rhode Island Red females will not grow their wattles and combs for many months, whereas you can see the growth of wattles and combs on young males from as early as 6 weeks old! You will not find rooster listed as one of the breeds. Considering Marans chickens? The 14 things you must know first Believe me, if sexing chickswere this easy, everycommercial hatchery in the world would use these methods. Hens do not have the high curved tail feathers. Rhode Island Reds have a classification with the American Poultry Association, but it's unclear . Roosters are usually a little heavier and larger. You will soon be able to spot the roosters among the hens. In a few lucky instances, its possible to instantly tell the gender of a chick based on color. Youll notice that Rhode Island Red roosters stand more upright, at about 20-22 inches in height, weighing about 15 pounds. 10 Best Chicken Breeds to Keep in California. Just a quick knowledge check. Originally hybridswith complicated lineages,they continued to breed trueanddeveloped into an autonomous breed,such asLegbars (originally bred from Leghorn roosters and Barred Plymouth Rock hens). Blue Cochin6. The female at this time is called a pullet, while the male is known as a cockerel. My question is if there is any benefit of keeping the rooster. This muted color provides natural camouflage for the hen when she has to sit on her eggs. I had some older ones that I kept for my sister in law. Although it seems the hens rely on the rooster for food and safety, they are not helpless little creatures. One of mine will grab food from the others too. Delayed Feathering: Certain pure breeds can be sexed by the wing feathers. Some hens imitate roosters and might start crowing at this point. Understanding Sex-Link Hybrid Chickens - Backyard Poultry Rhode Island Blue | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens