- 1). Look at the tail. Both the cockerel and pullet have short rounded tail feathers, but the cockerel has saddle feathers. Saddle feathers start growing at the base near the tail feathers, and some go beyond the length of the tail feathers sticking upward into the air.
- 2). Look at the comb and waddle. These will both be larger on a cockerel. The comb is skin on top of the head, and it will stand straight up on a cockerel and will flop down to the side on a pullet. The waddle is the skin below the beak that looks similar to a beard.
- 3). Listen to the noises it makes. A pullet will make some clucking noises and squawks, but it doesn't crow. A cockerel will crow.
- 4). View the coloring on the body and the wings. A cockerel has much more coloring in multicolored breeds and has colorful wings and swaddles. The pullet will be mainly one color without much detail or will have neutral coloring.
- 5). See if the bird is laying an egg. Only a pullet is able to lay an egg, and it can start doing so at five months of age. Both a pullet and cockerel will reach their sexual maturity around this age.
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