Home to Roost Helping city folks raise chickens!

Here is a list of chicken-related terms that might prove helpful when talking about your birds:

Chicken: a domesticated bird kept for eggs and meat. Refers to both male and female.

Cloaca: the place in a bird’s body where digestive and reproductive tracts join. Ends in the vent.

Comb: the fleshy, red thing on top of the head. The comb serves as a radiator, releasing excess heat.

Cock: rooster, a male chicken.

Cockerel: a male chicken less than a year old.

Coop: the protected, solid enclosure where chickens sleep and lay eggs.

Crop: a temporary food-storage pouch located at the base of a bird’s neck.

Limestone: See oyster shell.

Meal worms: larvae of the darkling beetle. They are high in fat (13%). Feed occasionally as a treat.

Molt: to lose feathers. Chickens molt at 18 months of age and will do so once a year for the rest of their lives. They lose their feathers in a cyclical pattern, so they will not be completely featherless. During this time, they stop laying.

Nest box: box enclosed on 3 sides and the top where hens lay eggs; integral part of a coop.

Pullet: a young female chicken that is not yet laying eggs.

Roost: a thick rod or 2×4, raised off the floor, where chickens sleep at night

Run: the part of the coop that is enclosed in wire and does not have any flooring; the run allows birds to scratch in the dirt and spend time outside while protected from predators.

Scratch: chicken crack. This mixture of whole grains (corn, wheat, oats, barley, etc.) is not a complete diet should be given only as a treat, and not on a regular basis. It can also be given in small amounts in the winter time, right before bed, to keep the birds warm.

Spur: sharp growth on the leg of a rooster, used for fighting.

Vent: the opening through which reproductive and waste materials pass.

Wattle: the fleshy, red appendages under the beak. Like the comb, these act as heat radiators.

Any other helpful terms you’d like to see?