chick, cock, cockerel, pullet, hen & capon

do you know the difference between a cock and a cockerel? a pullet and a hen? and do you know what a capon is?

a young chicken is called a chick. a male chicken is a cock or a cockerel, depending on its age. similarly, a female chicken is called a pullet or a hen. the age at which a pullet becomes a hen and a cockerel becomes a cock depends on what type of chicken is being raised. purebred poultry producers have very age-specific definitions. a chicken is a cockerel or pullet if it is less than one year of age.

after one year of age, the chicken is referred to as a hen or cock. in the commercial industry a female chicken is called a hen after it begins egg production (around five months of age). a sexually mature male chicken (again, around five months of age) is referred to as a rooster. a capon is a castrated male chicken.

i remember when the children were younger, we decided to let them have the experience of rearing chicks. we bought some baby chicks from a shop at kallang bahru and kept them in a cage. this cage was placed in a recess area outside our front door. the chicks made so much noise, especially at night, that it upset our immediate neighbour. eventually, lay bee took them to school and left them in the school garden, where there were other chickens.