How can you tell???

STUPID Question Alert...
If I may ask, What does this mean?
one of the sexes has 2-3 primaries starting to show

What are primaries?

Now I will go hide in the corner, I will be the one red faces shining like a neon beakin....

The primaries are the long wing feathers. Flight feathers if your chickens fly:0). They are the ones that start growing almost immediately on newly hatched chicks.

Thanks Catscan, I thought it was something weird....

Talk about crazy!!! I have been sitting here reading all these comments, and wiping the tears off of my face, I think Sew should take a class on vent sexing!!. She is a little uh uhh. Well lets move on. As for Tim, well hesheit, Priceless just the same. My two birds I hatched, back in November, well he is a she, and, she is a he. My wife just laughs and tells me, Your a real bird brain. What can I say. Haystack.

Then you need to take the calss for vent sexing as well since you did not get yours right either!!! hehehe I am at school right now. I will try to get some new Tim shots tomorrow. They are all really turning out to be beatutiful chickens. Good to know about the primaries. NOT a stupid question MissJester! I did not know what they were called either. You learn something new everyday! I called the wing feathers. hehehe Have a great day all!

Well... I have been over on the daylilies and soaking up the info on pedigree vs mutt flowers.....

Make sure you keep records or your flowers will be mutts......

My first thought was.....Ohhhhhhh kayyyyyyy.. surprise there but realized good to know before I have to start over.

Who knew?

Ginger

Sew!! I can't help myself, My poor wife thinks i'm crazy? I sit with my wife to watch a T V program and just burst out laughing. She does not understand, I get images of you vent sexing your birds, and that comment you made about rubbing fuzzy butts between your cheeks, of course I knew what you meant, but ZZ's lied to you, you sounded very strange indeed. BUT, gotta love you honey, can't help myself. Haystack.

"Dirty Jobs" tonight. Turkey insemination.

LMBO I dont rub them "Between" my cheeks. LOL I rub them on my cheeks-face. I do love the silkies because they stay so fluffy. hehehe Okay, Perhaps that was a bit creepy. I will stick to photos of the birds. :D

I love dirty jobs. He is funny.

Just a quickie to add to what Catscan said about the primaries...
The (usually) 5 big, strong feathers at the wind tip are the primaries. The rest of the feathers from there along the wing edge are secondaries.

At the San Diego Zoo, they clip the 5 primaries and leave all the secondaries on their parrots and and other exotic birds on both sides so that if they try to fly away (as in escape), they can't get any altitude but they can control their glide. They feel that only clipping one side causes the birds to tumble and can result in injury.

And of course there are folks that disagree...
As always.
=0) Jay

Are you suppose to clip the chickens primaries? I hope not cause I dont know how to do that

Oh Haystack! You just made me laugh so hard.. I read the hesheit and thought that was a bad word.. LMBO

I am gonna remember that one!!!!!!!

I know I have a twisted and overactive sense of humor.. but that is the best thing I've read in weeks!!!!!!!

I have learned all my chicken knowlage from you guys, and have read your adventures so I might just give it a try.

If you've got chickens that keep flying out of the coop, you can clip their primaries. I found it very useful with the leghorns and ameracanas I had, but didn't need to do it with RIR, NHR, Buffs, Brahmas... the heavier breeds. I often clipped my new pullets the first time out in the run just so they didn't get in the habit of flying out.

All you do is grab the bird, spread the wing, and cut about 3/4 of the 5 feathers off with a pair of scissors. Just give it a "hair cut", it's very easy. Watch that there are no blood feathers... those are feathers just starting to emerge. You'll be ble to tell them because they are 'sprouting' out of the sheath. They look very different from a fully grown feather.

If you do accidently cut a blood feather A) you will find out why it's called a blood feather, and B) the best way to deal with it is to pull it out with a pair of needle nose pliers. Don't try to stop the bleeding (stiptic or ashes) as a bird can actually bleed out from one of these and if it were to knock the scab off while you weren't around, it could be bad. Better to completely pull the feather out; a new one will start to grow in. This is good to know in case a bird ever damages a blood feather on a cage or something.... just pull it out.

Primary trimming works with all birds.... parakeets, cockatiels, etc. If you like to let your pet bird out of its cage, but worry about it flying into a window (a significant cause of death in pet birds), this is a way to reduce that risk. If you feel you must take your bird outside on your shoulder, this will guarantee it doesn't fly off (another big risk to pet birds). Always check those feathers before venturing outside... even a couple on each side will enable the bird to gain altitude and get gone.

I once watched $40,000 of hyacinth macaw fly overhead in San Diego, where folks just love to walk around with their birds on their shoulder. There's a whole colony of exotic birds on Pt. Loma, started by escaped birds.

WOW, sounds amazing!!! (Macaw's) Too bad about how it began.
Will seagulls eat little chickens? Okay it may be a dumb question but I dont want to find out by experience because I was afraid to ask. They are sky rats and seem to eat anything and everything. They are plowing the fields around my house and they are out in drones. I want to let the babies out for a walk about and I am concerned they will get scooped up by those things.

Er... only if they can catch them?
I sure wouldn't put it past them. I think seagulls are mostly scavengers, but I wouldn't want to find out otherwise.

Maybe you could take the babies out in a pram?
=0) Jay

I think I will do that. They love to go around the yard to the different landscapes (while DH is at work) LMBO But I think I will limit the range and keep them close to shelter. I think they are scavengers too. They love MacDonalds and BK here. ;)

Thanks Jay, I should work up the courage to do that. The big girls and RR are in a enclosed coop so they cant fly out, but the others will go in an open one...

Just had to play. Here is Tim without the background! :)

Tim looks great!!! I do love that bird!!! ♥

LOL I love it....

Glamor Shot Tim. I love it.

Yeah, just wanted to help with his modeling portfolio! The other image was too large, so here is one that fits the screen better. . .

Look at those toes. *fox whistle*

Ooooh, macaws! Here I am with a macaw at the Iowa Parrot Rescue. It's a very friendly one.

Tim(antha) is just adorable. Like a little beanie baby...

Okay.. Catscan schooled me on the hairdo thing.. I went out and checked mine and think I'm gettin the idea..

Here is my final final guess.. This is just a GUESS.. I have no real clue.. I just think this is fun..

Marge = Roo
Pim = Pullet
Millie = Roo
Tim = Hesheit
Waffle = Pullet?
Tilly - Pullet

Ught oh, Claire is going to get a Macaw???? woohooo post picture!

I thin k you may be right ZZ. I have been watching them. These are really tough to tell. :/ I have a friend who wants a banty roo for her flock of girls. I am afraid to pick one out...It may drop an egg eventually. :D

Dang....forgot the pic....

No, I'm not getting one, it's just that my fleece processor also runs the rescue operation, so when I took fleece out there, I visited with the parrots.

WOW, that is one HUGE bird! It is beautiful though. Those people who take the time to do rescue deserve a round of applause. ***Clap clap clap***

Tim's a babe, a real chick magnet... or roo magnet. LOL

Tim is so cute! Thanks for the new pictures,he has not changed much since the last ones.

For those of you that wanted to know how they sex baby chicks so to youtube and go under dirty jobs:mike rowe.I seen this quite awhile ago and found it interesting but kinda felt sorry for the chicks they are awful rough on the babies,then I think what our newborns go through as soon as they are born,cold,suctioned,wiped dry,sometimes held upside down,hats squeezed onto there heads and other things.

Okay, I have determined the sex of my silkies and showgirls.
PIP= pullet
PIM= pullet
Tim= pullet
Milly= roo
Marge= roo
Tilly= pullet
Waffle= roo

Very close to what ZZ said. I am thinking waffle is a roo. Because his hair goes back more than the others. I realized I did not have a picture of Pip on here. So, I will now add one.

Updated pic of Tim (antha) we need a new name!
With Marges butt in picture. lol

Here is Waffle (the white silkie) See the hair sweep back?

Another of Tim(antha)

Here are my first two that hatched from my own eggs. Love!!!! Uno and Swimmy. Swimmy is pure white.

Because Pip was the only surviver of the second hatch I put her in with Swimmy and Uno. They are now inseperable. LOL

How about Phyllis, as in Phyllis Dillar? Hesheit reminds me of some old cabaret, night club star---the grey 'hair' and wrinkly neck.

Or maybe Maggie, as in Margeret Thatcher...

=0) Jay

I love Phyllis Dillar!!! I will talk to dominique!!! Marge needs a boy name. Think on it...