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video When newborn chickens born into the world dry out, they are almost impossible to distinguish from each other. But how in this case to cope with a very important task, how to determine the sex of the chicken?
For experienced poultry farmers this is a matter of a few seconds, but those who are just starting to breed poultry will have to practice a lot to gain this skill.
The most accurate result is given by the method of determining the sex by DNA and by studying the chromosome set of birds. However, it is unlikely that effective, but extremely expensive and technically complex methods will be available to ordinary farmers and household farmers in the near future. Therefore, in their practice, most of them adhere to the old, proven by a huge number of generations of chickens and roosters methods, which are based on external differences and behavioral features of chicks.
To get the most accurate answer to the question: “How to distinguish a rooster chicken from a chicken?” Is really extremely important. When purchasing chickens or after their birth in an incubator, a poultry farmer needs to accurately represent the composition of the herd being formed. If we are talking about meaty breeds, roosters will be happy in the house, and for getting eggs - not to do without healthy, strong chickens.
The easiest way is to divide chicks to owners of breeds whose roosters and chickens differ in color. In this case, even the one who sees the poultry for the first time sees the task.
But how to distinguish a rooster from a hen, if the chickens are “one person”?
How to determine the sex of a chicken by size?
Many beginning poultry farmers believe that growing larger cocks, being chickens, are also more females. Indeed, there is such a difference, but it is only 1–2 grams, and in some cases the rule does not work at all.
Wanting to know how to determine the sex of a chicken, it is much more efficient to observe not its weight, but external signs. In males, for example, already at day of age, legs are stronger and wider. But experienced poultry farmers trust more about how wing feathers look on the wings of chicks.
How to distinguish a rooster or a hen on the wings of chickens?
This method is popular with the owners of small private farmsteads, and with the specialists of large farms. The growth of plumage and its features are already visible on the first day after birth, therefore, conclusions about gender can be made from the appearance of the wings.
How to distinguish chickens by sex by this method? In males, primary feathers are longer, and wingspan is wider than in future chickens of the same age. Females on the wings can see feathers of different lengths. The sorting accuracy according to these characteristics ranges from 60 to 80%, which allows using the method even in industrial conditions, reinforcing the results with other test options.
How to determine the rooster or chicken from the reflex reactions of the chicken?
It has long been observed that chickens and roosters react differently to these or other interventions. Before you determine the sex of the chicken in this way, the chicks are gently picked up by the legs, turned down with the head or laid back. Chickens usually stretch their necks, while future chickens, on the contrary, are grouped.
A similar reaction can be observed, if something arouse, scare the young. The chickens immediately sit down on the litter, and the cockerels run away alarmed and try to adopt a threatening pose.
Japanese way how to distinguish chickens by sex
The so-called Japanese way of finding out the sex of the chick is common among professionals working on large farms. Although the accuracy of determination reaches 95%, using this technique without sufficient skill will not work.
Before you determine the rooster or chicken chicken in hand, you will have to understand the structure of the genitals in chicks and know their differences.
Males can be separated from females by finding in the anus a genital tubercle, which future chickens do not have:
- First, you should clean the cloaca of the baby from traces of feces.
- Then the chicken is taken in the palm, turned over and the legs spread out so that the nestling's cesspool appears in the field of view of the researcher.
- The opening should be pushed apart while pressing on the abdomen so that the internal structure can be clearly seen.
As for the appearance of the cloaca of a chicken, determine whether the rooster or hen is in the hands of the poultry farmer:
- . In the hens of the cesspool, it looks like a neat little knot with no visible bulges.
- In males, in most cases, a genital tubercle is found.
drawings As with careless or inept handling this method threatens with injuries and infection penetration into the genitals of chickens, it is possible to conduct research only to experienced poultry farmers. Otherwise, not to avoid disease and the loss of part of the population.
How to distinguish adolescent chickens by sex?
In the second half of the first month of life, the bird can already be discerned by appearance. First, the sex of the chicken can be determined by the plumage. In chickens, it is formed earlier and more actively than in roosters, but the size of the males at such a young age may be larger.
In the second or third month, the cock decoration of the head becomes visible: a crest and beard begin to form. At the same age, spurs appear that are not found in young chickens, the shape and length of the tail changes.
Despite the many ways in which chicks can be distinguished by sex, none can provide a 100% guarantee of accuracy. Therefore, people who know a lot about home poultry farming do not rely on only one method, but reinforce the choice with the results of several tests.
Video, how to determine the sex of a chicken, will help you find acceptable ways for yourself, obtain theoretical knowledge in this matter and avoid mistakes when using them in practice.
