10 best methods for determining the sex of a chicken yourself

Raising poultry at home involves certain nuances. They concern not only compliance with maintenance rules, but also the characteristics of the bird, age, and needs. Those who are planning to raise chickens need to understand how to determine the sex of a chicken when purchasing. The conditions for caring for poultry depend on this, as well as the profit of the subsidiary farm.

Features of determining the sex of a chicken

Poultry farmers have to separate males from females for various reasons. Hens that will lay eggs should be placed in separate conditions as early as possible. At birth, all chickens look alike, so different methods are used to determine the sex of a bird.

How to distinguish a hen from a cockerel at different ages

Chickens appear on poultry farms in one of the following ways:

• after the completed purchase;
• after brooding by a laying hen;
• after hatching in the incubator.

Each option has its own advantages and disadvantages for a specific poultry farm. Owners can sex their chicks at different stages of chick growth. Purchasing involves acquiring the chick at a later age, so sexing methods may vary.

Daily age

A chicken that has recently hatched from an egg does not have any obvious external differences. The signs by which a cockerel can be distinguished from a hen are at the stage of active formation. Day-old chicks are recognized using laboratory, reflex methods.

In addition, there are methods for determining the appearance of an egg, although the error of this method can be high.

Weeks of age

Upon reaching a week of age, sex determination is associated with an assessment of the bird’s body size. Cockerels grow larger than hens. But you should not focus only on size, because each chick may have structural features.

Monthly age

By the end of the first month of life, visual determination of sex becomes more reliable. It should be taken into account that the error of the visual method still remains high.

Month-old hens begin to actively fledge, while the cockerels remain naked. For them, body growth comes first, and then plumage begins.

Age 2-4 months

At this stage of development, many experienced poultry farmers distinguish the sex of chickens by behavioral reactions. When a poultry farmer tries to get closer to the young, the birds behave differently:

• the cockerels scatter to different corners of the pen, then try to take a more advantageous position;
• chickens flock together and cuddle together.

Age from 5 months

Once this age is reached, distinguishing a hen from a rooster by appearance is quite easy for experienced poultry keepers.

Methods for determining gender

As a rule, several methods are used to determine the sex of chickens. If laboratory analysis is not possible, sex is determined by the appearance, size and temperature of the eggs.

To size

Chickens differ from roosters in their overall size. This becomes noticeable when they reach one month of age. Day-old chicks are difficult to determine by overall volumes because many chicks may be born frail and sickly, regardless of gender.

By feathers and wings

This method is used on farms, although its reliability ranges from 60 to 80 percent:

• in cockerels, wide flight wings are formed; when examining the wings, it becomes noticeable that the feathers that make up the wing are long and dense;
• Chickens have short and sparse feathers, this is due to the fact that they do not need a wide flap; in the future they will be densely covered with down.

In addition, the plumage can easily determine the sex of some breeds.For example, female Brahma chickens are distinguished by the fact that black dots are clearly visible on their heads.

The Leghorn and Lebar breeds are known for the fact that laying hens have a single-color plumage after birth, while the cockerels have a striped color. Representatives of the Rhode Island and New Hampshire breeds become variegated on the second day of life, clear spots appear on the head, and stripes appear on the back. The cockerels of these breeds remain the same as at birth.

In Adler silver chicks, sex determination by appearance is particularly simple. The hens acquire a bright yellow color, while the cockerels have a lemon yellow color, with a black stripe on the head.

By color

Day-old chicks can be distinguished by their color. This is due to the characteristics of the bird breed. This means that paternal qualities are transmitted to the hens, and maternal qualities to the cockerels.

This method can give a 100 percent result if the owner knows exactly who owns the fact of paternity and maternity.

Ventsexig or Japanese method

This option for sex determination is successfully used in poultry factories, its reliability reaches 95 percent. The basis of the method is the difference in the structure of roosters and hens. The determination depends on the experience and knowledge of the person sorting the chicks.

1. The chick is picked up and pressed on the stomach, in this way the rectum is released.
2. Then it is turned over and the cloaca is examined.

A small protrusion can be observed on the cockerel; this is a feature of the reproductive structure. Chickens do not have this protrusion.

Information! The Japanese method is used in Japanese poultry farms. Experts sort up to 700 chickens using this method within 1 hour.

Reflex behavioral method

This method of determination is often called “grandmother’s method.” The chick is turned upside down.At the same time, the cockerels lower their heads down along the body line, and the hens begin to retract their heads.

The reaction is explained by the fact that the cockerels are initially inclined to accept the situation and search for possible options for the development of events, while the hens are trying to group and protect themselves from possible external influences.

By egg

Some poultry farmers have learned to determine sex by the structure of the egg. The basis of the method is that the sharp tip of the egg indicates that it is male. This option is considered the least reliable.

There is a method of determination using an ovoscope. It is turned on, the egg is placed on the surface of the cell, and the egg is illuminated. If the air chamber is located strictly in the center, then the egg contains the future cockerel. When the air chamber is tilted to one side, there is a high probability of a chicken appearing.

Warning! Recognition of sex by size and other characteristics of the egg is possible only if the eggs are laid by one hen.

By gait

The gait of different-sex chicks differs in several ways:

• the paws of males are more massive and long, those of hens are shorter and more graceful;
• The hens' gait is rhythmic, the cockerels walk wider.

Gait can also be affected by body size. When they reach the age of one month, males become larger than females, so their stride becomes wider.

Scientific methods

There are precise laboratory methods that help determine gender with high accuracy. For this purpose, special instruments are used, which are rarely used on small poultry farms due to the high cost of analysis.

Cytogenetic method

The basis of the method is counting and studying the chromosome set of each chick.This option allows you to confidently determine the sex of the bird on the second day of existence. In males, the variety of one of the chromosomes is represented by the majority, in chickens - by the minority. The study lasts from 2 to 4 days. The results can be formulated by technologists who have special knowledge.

Information! The cytogenetic method helps determine sex with one hundred percent accuracy.

Blood test

To determine sex, a blood test is taken from day-old chicks. This test is 100 percent reliable, but can be stressful for the chicks and also costly for the owners.

To determine gender, DNA tests are performed, which require a certain amount of fresh blood. For research, “washed” red blood cells are taken.

Traditional methods

Over a long period, when poultry farming developed independently, before it was formalized as a separate branch of agriculture, poultry farmers learned to use folk methods for determining the sex of birds on small farms.

Among the folk methods, a distinction is made between behavioral methods and methods of determination by external signs:

1. On the first day of existence, the plumage of cockerel chicks is lighter than that of hens. Later it evens out.
2. If you lift a chick by the scruff of the neck, the hens will begin to pull their legs towards their bodies and group together, and the cockerels will begin to look around, looking for the cause of the discomfort.
3. After reaching the age of one month, roosters are identified by their behavior: they are prone to fighting and bullying other chicks.
4. The sex of the egg can be determined by simply feeling it. If you can feel roughness on the pointed end, then you should expect a male.
5. According to the observations of experienced farmers, chickens fledge more actively, the feathers in the first stages become fluffy and silky, in contrast to rooster plumage.

Why determine the sex of chicks?

Many aspects of poultry farming depend on sex determination. When purchasing chickens, poultry farmers focus on the following main areas:

• cockerels are bought for raising for meat;
• chickens are selected to obtain eggs and sell them later.

Sometimes the continued existence of a farm depends on sex determination, so choosing the appropriate sex determination method for poultry farmers becomes one of the main tasks.