Guide to Sexing Chicks
Sexing Chicks
How to tell if your chicks are male or female
Sexing chicks the traditional way
The sex of most breeds of chicken cannot be determined at hatching. Usually, by 6 to 8 weeks of age, the combs and wattles of male chicks will be larger and redder than those of females, as in the photo of sablepoot chicks below (male on the left and females on the right). Often the legs of males are chunkier too. Male chicks may start to crow from around 12 weeks old but they can start much later. Sometimes you can see differences in behaviour between males and females. Male chicks can strut from an early age with their chests out and head in the air. Some breeds are notoriously difficult to sex, e.g. silkies, in which case you may not be able to determine their sex until they are adults and they either start to crow or lay eggs!
Auto-sexing breeds
There are several breeds of chicken that are auto-sexing, meaning you can tell whether their chicks are male or female when they hatch - usually by the colour.
- Cream Legbar (Auto-sexing breed)
Females have dark stripes on their backs. They may have a tiny white spot on their head but much smaller than that on males (left)Males are paler and duller than females and have a large white patch on their head (right)
Sex-linked chickens
By crossing certain breeds of chicken carrying specific genes, sex-linked chicks are produced. You can tell whether chicks are male or female when they hatch.
Blacktails (Sex-linked)
Females are golden brown (left)Males are yellow (right)
Gold Top Bantam (Sex-linked)
Females are golden brown with small patches of black (top)Males are yellow with small patches of black (bottom)
Feather-sexing
Feather-sexing or wing-sexing, which involves looking at the different lengths of the wing feathers, can be used on particular cross-breeds but it does not work on the majority of pure breed chickens.
Vent-sexing
Commercially-reared chicks may be vent-sexed by looking at the genitals inside the vent. This is extremely difficult to do and can damage the chick if done incorrectly and should not be attempted by hobby chicken keepers.
Important Note
It is easier to sex chicks if you have a few so you can compare their colouring and markings. If you are unsure, wait until you can sex them using the traditional methods. Do not dispatch male chicks until you are certain that they are males.