Backyard Poultry Forum

These two Pekins are about 12ish weeks old, one of them is starting to grow a large comb and i'm getting worried we may have a rooster

This is what they looked like when i brought them home



and now




what do you think?

Blue/red is a boy and silver birchen a girl. If you look at the first photo when they were younger the boy has large redder comb and wattles even then. Pekins can usually be sexed at about 4 weeks. If they were sold to you by aperson stating they were both pullets I would take the boy back as the breeder should have known he was a cockerel even then. In the second photo you can also see the saddle feathers stating to develope just in front of the tail where it meets the back.

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Light sussex, Pekins, lavender, cuckoo and other various colours, Silkies, white and blue, Gold Partridge Brahmas large.

Same
birchen girl
Blue red boy

Thanks for the replies, confirms my suspicions. My chooks are pets so he'd better go before I get anymore attached to him, I'm in the suburbs so no roosters for us. The breeder said I could return any that turned into roosters so I will contact her asap. Unless anyone here wants to give him a home?

it is a lovely rooster and the birchen hen is very pretty. it's a shame that you have to return him back to the breeder. i have heard from most pekin breeders that they are pretty quiet and don't crow as often.

i have mine locked up in a dog kennel until about 8am - 9am every morning and then i let him out. i can't even hear him crowing in the dog kennel at all. once he's out he crows but by then everyone has gone to work or everyone is awake and don't seem to mind.

i must get myself a birchen pekin hen. i am jealous that you have one. she's very pretty girl. you should get a columbian one or a cuckoo coloured one or mottled. pekins come in so many colours and there are so many of them.

sakrava, yes isn't the birchin pretty I also have a black hen and they look lovely together and the rooster is so fluffy around his legs and feet. I would love to keep him but I have a 16 month old toddler and the chooks are 'his' pets he loves them and throws out seed for them and is generally gentle around them but it takes a lot of close supervision when they are together. I'm always on the lookout for when he gets that look in his eye like " ha ha chookies lookout here i come" he can be pretty frightening when he picks up speed and comes running. I don't want to bring a Rooster into the mix, I don't want the chooks to get scary back. I know Pekins are supposed to be quiet, thats why we choose them, but i also know roosters can be protective if anyone looks like they are giving his girls a hard time. Oh i would LOVE a rooster

Yes i understand what you mean. The roosters are great but if you stir up the hens they will attack given the chance that is what i have found out from my previous pekin rooster named Charlie. He was a black pekin rooster i had bought from Queen Victoria Market in Melbourne. It was very rare to see Pekin roosters at the market. I bought him for at least $9.00. He hadn't learn how to crow but he was great with his flock. Try going into the chook pen and stir up the girls. I got attacked and it was not funny. My dad went to collect the eggs and the rooster attacked him too. Luckily Charlie didn't have any spurs back then. He was still growing. Charlie only died about 5 weeks ago from some disorder. His face went all purple and he was cold. He died about half a day later. However, he managed to sire some chicks with some of the girls. I can't wait to see what they are. There is a little black chick that looks like him. However, he didn't crow as much but he was protective.

Charlie was my second Pekin rooster I had. The very first Pekin rooster I had he's name was Jack a lovely buff coloured rooster with blue tail feathers. He was the most quietest and most gentle rooster I have ever had. If I went to pick him up he would detest being handled however, he was happy to wander the backyard and eat from my hand but didn't like being handled much! We left him to his own accord. It was great, he was great with the silkie hens and also the Pekin bantams. He was great... He actually didn't crow that much and one day just didn't bother to crow since he knew that there was no rooster in the area. I liked him very much and it was sad when his whole flock was taken by a fox one night. The only survivor was Millie my cuckoo Pekin bantam hen. I felt sorry for her and actually went and bought Charlie. Jack was from the market and he cost me $6.00 compared with Charlie.

My third Pekin rooster who is my current rooster now is King George whom was advertised on livestock website. He was free so I went to collect him via train ride. It took me 2 and half hours to obtain him. I bought him home to replace the late Charlie. King George is great with the girl and seems like Jack doesn't like being handled too much. He is not aggressive and doesn't mind if i pick up one of the hens for a check up. I haven't had much trouble with Pekins or any other breeds apart from their crowing. King George crows and he crows in the morning and sometimes right through the day depending on his mood.

also I would like to share my experiences and hear from other poultry keeprs of what they have found or learned so that I can learn from them too. However I must say! I do envy you especially with a lovely birchen Pekin hen. That reminded me of my hen that was purchased along with Millie. Her name was Adele, I saw her and Millie at the market and bought her home. Adele was your normal Pekin only one flaw she had a rose comb not a single comb. Also her facial features was a very dark mulberry colour instead of red and she didn't have as much feathering on her feet. I could remember bringing her home and letting her roam the garden with her sister Millie it was great. They were easy to handle and I do miss her, she was pretty gentle like Millie and Millie will continue to still eat from my hand. I felt sad when Adele was killed including the rest of my chickens by foxes in one night. Millie went looking for her sister Adele and it was sad to see a lonely hen cackle continually seeing if they will come back. It was hard to cope especially never experiencing the destruction and loss.

I will endeavour to buy a birchen pekin however, I don't know how Millie react. I already have a pit game hen name Sally, the smallest OEG silver duck wing bantam hen named Tiny, two silkie hens one with a beard and the other one with four toes and a red face instead of your typical silkie skin colour Nikki and Holly and there is King George king of the flock. It is good.

I don't have much trouble with my roosters apart from Charlie who was too protective of the girls. King George has been handled and doesn't mind that the girls are caught. It is great, the chickens love to be fed and in the morning when I go out to feed them they come from the chook shelter and will eat from my hand. Charlie was a rooster that didn't feed from my hand at all. Jack didn't mind being fed.

I know roosters can create a scaryring on the hens back back. That is one thing I have read in the forum. I will keep an eye on the girls to see if any sign of trouble and I will try and trim the rooster's spur to avoid damages to their bodies.

It really depends on the roosters----never had any trouble with my japanese---did have a pekin roo once that "had a go" he was soon sold----always had my kids around the chooks with no trouble---I had the chooks BEFORE the kids cheers pam

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If its any consolation... I have an Ancona rooster - quite big! 2xsilkie roosters and a new Pekin rooster .... to add to the funny farm I also have a 2 year old daughter and 4 year old son - I am always around when they are with the chooks - both to watch the chooks and the kids but as soon as the rooster flaps his wings the kids are gone quicker than you could count to 1.

Although I do understand the dilemma of being in suburbia but my pekin rooster only lets go once or twice when I let him out in the morning and then I don't hear a sound.

Anyway it does take some thinking and planning but I think keeping him could be possible if you were that way inclined

Oh, he's so gorgeous! Shame he's a boy & you have to send him back. We have a Pekin roo as well (not by choice but I decided to give him a chance as we're allowed roosters in the suburb I live in)...he crows a wee bit during the day sometimes but it's no worse than the dog over the road who continually barks (& annoys everyone way more than my chooks do - some didn't even realise I had them until they looked over the fence) & I put him in a cat carry cage at night in the garage with a towel over him & we (or more specifically, the neighbours) can't hear him until I let him out at 8.30/9am (& by then, he's missing his ladies, so he's too preoccupied to crow). He's been handled since we got him at 6 weeks & he's very friendly & is quite happy to sit on your shoulder or have a pat. He's also good with our 2 year old who adores the chooks & often tries to feed them or play with them. Obviously individual roos vary in temperament but Pekins, in general, are reasonably docile & friendly.