GLOSSARY

Beard. The feathers (always found in association with a muff) bunched under the beaks of such breeds
as Ameraucana, Faverolles, and Houdan.
Bedding. Straw, wood shavings, shredded paper, or anything else scattered on the floor of a chicken
coop to absorb moisture and manure.
Bloom. 1. The moist, protective coating on a freshly laid egg that dries so fast you rarely see it. 2. Peak
condition in an exhibition bird.
Blowout. Vent damage caused by laying an oversize egg.
Breed. 1. A group of chickens that are like each other and different from other groups. 2. v. Pairing a
rooster and hen for the purpose of obtaining fertile eggs.
Breeders. 1. Mature chickens from which fertile eggs are collected. 2. A person who manages chickens.
Broiler. A young, tender meat chicken; also called a "fryer."
Brood. 1. To care for a batch of chicks. 2. The chicks themselves.
Brooder. A heated enclosure used to imitate the warmth and protection a mother hen gives her chicks.
Broody. A hen that covers eggs to warm and hatch them. Sometimes refers to a hen that stays in the
nest for an extended period without producing eggs.

Candle. To examine the contents of an intact egg with a strong light source.
Candler. A device which uses strong light to examine the contents of the egg.
Cannibalism. The bad habit chickens have of eating each other's flesh, feathers, or eggs.
Cape. The narrow feathers between a chicken's neck and back.
Carrier. 1. An apparently healthy individual that transmits disease to other individuals. 2. A container used
to transport chickens.
Chalazae. Two white cords on each side of a yolk that keep the yolk properly positioned within the egg
white; singular: chalaza.
Clean legged. Having no feathers growing down the shanks.
Cloaca. The chamber just inside the vent where the digestive, reproductive, and excretory tracts come
together.

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Clutch. 1. A batch of eggs that are hatched together, either in a nest or in an incubator (from the Old
Norse word "klekja," meaning to hatch), also called a "setting". 2. All the eggs laid by a hen on
consecutive days, before she skips a day and starts a new laying cycle.
Cock. A male chicken; also called a "rooster."
Cockerel. A male chicken under 1 year old.
Comb. The fleshy, usually red, crown on top of a chicken's head.
Conformation. A chicken's body structure.
.Coop. The house or cage in which a chicken lives.
Crossbreed. The offspring of a hen and a rooster of two different breeds.
Cull. 1. To eliminate a non-productive or inferior chicken from a flock. 2. The non-productive or inferior
chicken itself

Dam. Mother.
Debeak. To remove a portion of a bird's top beak to prevent cannibalism or self-pecking.
Down. The soft, fur-like fluff covering a newly hatched chick; also, the fluffy part near the bottom of any
feather.
Droppings. Chicken manure or "poop".
Dub. To trim the comb.

Egg tooth. A horny cap on a chick's upper beak that helps the chick pip through the shell.
Embryo. A fertilized egg at any stage of development prior to hatching.
Exhibition breeds. Chickens kept and shown for their beauty rather than their ability to lay eggs or
produce meat.

Fowl. 1. Domesticated birds raised for food. 2. A stewing hen.

Fryer. A tender young meat chicken; also see "broiler."
Intensity of lay. The number of eggs a hen lays during a given time.
keel. The breastbone, which resembles the keel of a boat.
Leaker. An egg that leaks because the shell is cracked and the shell membrane is broken.
Litter. Straw, wood shavings, shredded paper, or anything else scattered on the floor of a chicken coop,
run or brooder to absorb moisture and manure.
Molt. The annual shedding and renewing of a bird's feathers.
Morbidity. Percentage affected by a disease.
Mortality. Percentage killed by a disease.

Pinfeathers. The tips of newly emerging feathers.

Pullet. A female chicken under 1 year old.

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Purebred. The offspring of a hen and rooster of the same breed.

Roaster. A cockerel or pullet, usually weighing 4 to 6 pounds, suitable for cooking whole in the oven.
Roost. The place where chickens spend the night; the act of resting on a roost; also called "perch."
Rooster. A male chicken; also called a "cock."

Saddle. The part of a chicken's back just before the tail.

Scales. The small, hard, overlapping plates covering a chicken's shanks and toes.
Scratch. 1. The habit chickens have of scraping their claws against the ground to dig up tasty things to
eat. 2. Any grain fed to chickens.
Set. To keep eggs warm so they will hatch; also called "brood."
Setting. A group of hatching eggs in an incubator or under a hen; the incubation of eggs by a hen (called
"sitting" by some).
Sexed. Newly hatched chicks that have been sorted into pullets and cockerels.
Shank. The part of a chicken's leg between the claw and the first joint.
Sire. Father.
Spurs. The sharp pointed protrusions on a rooster's shanks.
Started pullets. Young female chickens that are nearly old enough to lay.
Starter. A feed ration for newly hatched chicks, also called "crumbles".
Starve-out. Failure of chicks to eat.
Straight bred. Purebred.
Straight run. Newly hatched chicks that have not been sexed; also called "unsexed" or "as hatched."
Strain. A flock of related chickens selectively bred by one person or organization for so long that the
offspring have become uniform in appearance or production.
Stress. Any physical or mental tension that reduces resistance.

Vaccine. Product made from disease-causing organisms and used to produce immunity.
Variety. Subdivision of a breed according to color, comb style, beard, or leg feathering.
Vent. The outside opening of the cloaca, through which a chicken emits eggs and droppings from
separate channels.

Wattles. The two red or purplish flaps of flesh that dangle under a chicken's chin.

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GLOSSARY

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