# Is Monster a hen or roo?



## Queen-Elizabeth (Oct 1, 2013)

Can anyone tell me if this is a hen or a roo?


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## Bee (Jun 20, 2013)

Monster is a he.


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## Apyl (Jun 20, 2012)

Definitely a Rooster !


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## Itsacutefuzzball (Mar 16, 2013)

He's a Monster Rooster!


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## kjohnstone (Mar 30, 2013)

Cock-a-doodle-doo, monster is a roo!


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## Queen-Elizabeth (Oct 1, 2013)

Can you help me learn about chickens. He is my first. How did you know that he was a roo?


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## kessy09 (Jun 16, 2013)

Queen-Elizabeth said:


> Can you help me learn about chickens. He is my first. How did you know that he was a roo?


What gives it away is the saddle feathers. Right at the base of his tail you see the pointy feathers sweeping down his sides? Hens don't have those. He's also got huge legs and a very prominent and red comb/waddles (wattles?) those are just the things that made it obvious for me, but maybe the other more experienced posters can chime in with any other less obvious signs I may not know about.


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## avis67 (Oct 27, 2013)

kessy09 said:


> What gives it away is the saddle feathers. Right at the base of his tail you see the pointy feathers sweeping down his sides? Hens don't have those. He's also got huge legs and a very prominent and red comb/waddles (wattles?) those are just the things that made it obvious for me, but maybe the other more experienced posters can chime in with any other less obvious signs I may not know about.


x2 btw the pointy feathers are saddle feathers.


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## jacksonT (Jul 14, 2013)

You can tell by the way he is standing also at this age roosters are sexually mature and will mate with just about anything that moves. He is standing with his wings a bit forward (trying to make himself look big and tough) with his head a little bit lower to the ground he is trying to look tough. See when a rooster fights they put their head to the ground while pecking looking at his opponent, with their wings a bit more forward then what a hen or a immature rooster would do. Then they will put the wing furthest away from the opponent on the ground and dance sorta but not the same way they dance for a hen. Then they lunge into action. Sorry this was kind of off topic but again looking at his body conformation (and the way he stands) it is a boy. A good looking one too. Sorry to get off topic. Good luck with the chickens.


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## Bee (Jun 20, 2013)

Queen-Elizabeth said:


> Can you help me learn about chickens. He is my first. How did you know that he was a roo?


Hackle feathers, some call them pencil feathers, on the neck..slender, pointed feathers that are longer and sharper in the shaping than are neck feathers on a hen. You can just see his as they break up the regular pattern of his barring from the very small barring of the hackle feathers being distinctly smaller than the barring of the feathers directly below them on the shoulders.

On a hen, those neck feathers will have barring that shows a gradual widening of the bars as the feathers flow from the head to the body..on the roo there is often a more marked change in the size of the bars that is less gradual...very small stippling overlying larger bars.

Saddle feathers, as others have mentioned, on a roo will have more of a waterfall effect at the base of the tail and often have a pencil design there as well. Some breeds of hens will have a waterfall of feathers there also but the feathers will be more softly rounded in their color pattern and shape.

Tail feathers on this breed will often be the last indicator,but your roo has good coloring and sickle shaping already, with the roos of this breed having the dragonfly colors and sheen in the black feathering of the tail and hens will not. It's sort of like tropical birds with some breeds of chicken, with the males having more colorful plumage than do the females.

The legs have thicker bones than the hens and a longer length from the knee down, with larger feet as well. Some say the roos of the BRs will have yellow legs and the hens will have yellow with grey on the shanks and toes, but I have one BR with bright yellow legs and one with greyish/white legs~both hens.

The wattles and comb on some breeds can be deceptive, as up to a certain age on some breeds the combs and wattles are prominent and reddened in both sexes..such as leghorns, RIRs, etc. One cannot simply say that a younger bird with big comb and wattles is a rooster no more than they can say a cow with horns is a bull.

The stance of the bird is a good indicator, with most roos having a brick shaped body with the "brick" set a little at an angle causing the bird to walk a little more tall and upright than a hen, who will have more of a gravy boat shape in most dual purpose breeds. Here's a good example of those two different body shapes and stances in the Partridge Rock breed:

















Of all the breeds, I have a more difficult time sexing the Barred Rocks at a certain age when they are young and many have the same difficulty, which is why this is the breed that causes the most posts of this kind on forums...the hackle feathers on some of the hatchery stock breed genetics is iffy, the sex characteristics are similar up to a certain age and the roosters are a little late getting their cock feathering.

Hope this helps.


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## avis67 (Oct 27, 2013)

I agree with the other suggestions, there is another way that works as well. When chicks get old enough and the feathers on their wings have a more visible pattern, the roosters will have a "patch" on their wing that is usually reddish or darker colored ( there can be different colors/ patterns). This doesn't work on all breeds though.


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## avis67 (Oct 27, 2013)

Quote:
Originally posted by Bee:

Of all the breeds, I have a more difficult time sexing the Barred Rocks at a certain age when they are young and many have the same difficulty, which is why this is the breed that causes the most posts of this kind on forums...the hackle feathers on some of the hatchery stock breed genetics is iffy, the sex characteristics are similar up to a certain age and the roosters are a little late getting their cock feathering.

Hope this helps.  [End Quote]

One way I sex young Barred Rocks is by color. Male BRs have two barred genes which makes their barring lighter, while a pullet on the other hand only has one resulting in a darker and clearer barred feathering. It is also said that female Barred Rock chicks have a cleaner/ uniform white white dot on their head, male chicks tend to have a splotchier white spot.


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