Instructions
Listen to the sounds the chicken is making. Hens make clucking sounds, and roosters make a loud crowing noise. The difference in sounds begins when they're chicks.
Compare the physical attributes of chickens. Hens are typically smaller than roosters, appearing shorter and plumper. Roosters have brighter red and longer tail, neck and comb feathers than hens. Roosters are typically darker in color than hens.
Watch chickens while interacting with one another. Roosters tend to act more aggressive than hens and puff out their chests while standing erect and acting alert. Hens cower, staying close to the ground and acting less social.
Look for a chicken that is nesting for 30 minutes or longer without interacting with other chickens. Observe the chicken's behavior of standing up and spreading the feathers out. This indicates the process of a chicken laying an egg, meaning the chicken is a hen. Roosters do not lay eggs.
Place gloves on your hands and vent sex a chicken, only if a trained chick sexer. This requires holding the chick upside down and quickly squeezing the feces out of it to examine the anal area, which can harm the chick if not performed by a trained professional. Look for a bump. A male chick (cockeral) has a shiny and circular bump vs. a female chick (pullet) that does not have a bump.
How to Tell a Chicken's Gender
Replace the antiquated question of "What came first, the chicken or the egg?" with an inquiry that proves a fact: "To lay an egg or not?" Female chickens (hens) and male chickens (roosters) exhibit behavioral differences and dissimilarities in appearance that help indicate the gender. You can compare chickens to decipher the sex by looking at physical features and by watching their interactions within a group to determine the so called "pecking" order.