The Differences between Male and Female Broilers

Broilers are one of the popular species of poultry birds that people raise for money or slaughter for meat production. Some people have been in the broilers farming business for some time but couldn’t differentiate a male broiler from a female broiler. The truth is that I have received many questions from some people concerning this. So, to make it easy for others who may find it challenging to figure out the differences between male and female broilers.

There are quick ways to determine the sex of a broiler chicken. They are as follows:

Combs and Wattles

Generally, male birds develop larger, prominent combs and wattles more than the females. So whenever you sight a broiler with a prominent and large comb and wattle, that broiler is 98% guaranteed to be a male broiler.

Size of body, legs and feet

another way to differentiate a male broiler from a female broiler is by their body size. Male broilers usually have a bigger body size than female broilers. This wouldn’t happen if the male is a “runt”. This is when you see female broilers having a bigger body size than male broilers of the same age. Additionally, a male broiler tends to have longer, thicker and bigger legs than a female broiler.

Crowing

Mature male broilers make noise (crowing), which is a sex-linked trait common to all male birds. Mature male broilers crow like other roosters while it is a rare trait in female broilers.

If you are dealing with broiler chicks, it requires experience and expertise to differentiate both sexes. The method uses include:

• Cloacal Inspection
• Feather Inspection

It is abnormal for female broilers to take on the characteristics of male broilers. If it happens, it is an aberration and it is rare.