How do you tell if a chicken is a rooster or a hen?

Question

I know nothing about chickens, and my neighbors just got one. I want to know if the chicken is going to crow every morning!

Now here's the tricky part--I have to be able to tell from across the street. They have a Pit Bull and I can't get too close. BTW we're in the middle of the city! LOL

Can you help me?

Answer 1

It is VERY difficult to tell male from female at an early age.

Depending on the breed, cockerels (males) develop larger combs and wattles

earlier than pullets (females) and will start trying to crow at 6 to 10

weeks (we had one start to crow at 16 weeks - it's not a precise science,

sorry!) Cockerels tend to bigger and/or taller than the pullets. You may

also observe more aggressive "rooster behaviors", like play fighting,

hassling, mounting and such.

http://www.backyardchickens.com/cgi-bin/...

Answer 2

The comb is the crest or tuft of flesh on a chicken's head. The rooster has a bigger and brighter comb than hens. Their combs tend to be red, while hen combs tend to be small and pale. Just remember that roosters want to attract the attention of female chickens, so they need brightly coloured plumes on their heads.

Feather colours tend to be brighter on a rooster. Hens tend to have less colourful feathers in shades of pale white, or simply a brown earthy col or. Roosters, on the other hand, have bolder colours.

Roosters are larger than hens. Hens tend to be fat and short compared to roosters.

The tail feathers of a rooster tend to be longer and brighter than those of a hen. Along with the plume, these feathers tend to be the most outstanding feature on a rooster.  

Answer 3

Ask your neighbor.

Answer 4

I have a hen at my backyard. I have one, a rooster crows every morning and a hen doesnt crow.. only roosters.. u can tell if its a rooster bcuz theres something red on their head.. hope i helped. give me best answer. plz. thanks

Answer 5

you can wait a day to see if it will crow. then you will know it is a rooster. Rosters also have longer tail feathers that sometimes droop. They also have a bright red crest on the top if their heads. Your neighbor probably got a single hen.