h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Vocabulary and Resources

Just like any activity, chicken keeping has its own vocabulary.

Chicken: Common name for subspecies Gallus gallus domesticus, does not connotate sex or age of the bird.

Chick: Generic term for an immature chicken, either sex.

The Chicken Chick: Kathy Shea Mormino ( http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/ ), a well-known backyard chicken blogger. Her blog includes

reliable chicken information, DIY projects, and recipes.

Pullet: Female chicken up to one year of age.

Hen: Female chicken over one year.

POL: Point of lay--depending on the breed, a pullet 18-24 weeks old, just before egg production.

Cockeral: Male chicken up to one year of age.

Cock: Male chicken over one year.

Rooster: Either a cockeral or a cock.

Comb: Fleshy growth on top of head behind beak. Generally larger in males, though present on both sexes. Come in many different forms

( http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-8-comb-types ), depending on breed.

Wattles: Thin fleshy flaps, usually red, that hang down beside and under the beak. Present on both sexes, though generally larger in

males.

BYC: Backyard Chickens ( http://www.backyardchickens.com ), a well-known chicken forum that has been in existence in various forms

since 1999 ( http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/9631/backyardchickens-com-history ). Considered one of the best online resources for

backyard chicken keeping. Has information on other types of poultry, as well, such as ducks, geese, turkeys, peafowl, swans, quail,

pheasants, emus, ostriches, and rheas. There's even been information on keeping cassowaries

SOP: Standard of Perfection. What show birds are compared to. Has detailed specifications for size, shape, colours and patterns

allowed, comb type, tail angle, etc. Each breed can have different standards in different countries.

for the formatting--I usually fix the copy/paste margin difference errors, but I'd been having trouble getting the laptop to acknowledge it was plugged in, so I thought I'd better post ASAP. I'd been planning on adding more vocab, as well, but I'll add any new terms when I compile and edit everything

Deb