How to explain chicken sex to young children

[Rodrad]

My 6 year grandson comes often to visit us. He loves chickens, feeding them and gathering eggs.

I just dread the situation if he sees rooster mating a hen. I really don’t know what I should tell him.

Any advice is appreciated.

thanks

 

[sourland]

Hopefully Mom and Dad have given him some basic information. For my kids being raised around birds/animals it was a normal and easy transition from that fact. Of course I'm from another generation and country all the way. Good luck, and just be factual. "That's how the rooster fertilizes the eggs so that chicks can hatch." Nothing more or less.

 

[Rodrad]

Hopefully Mom and Dad have given him some basic information. For my kids being raised around birds/animals it was a normal and easy transition from that fact. Of course I'm from another generation and country all the way. Good luck, and just be factual. "That's how the rooster fertilizes the eggs so that chicks can hatch." Nothing more or less.

Thank you. I don’t think my daughter and son-in-law gave their son any basic information.

I like to answer, as you suggested, factual.

I just dread a follow up question on fertilization (or even an other question, how the rooster doing that doesn’t break the egg).

 

[sourland]

Well, you could be inventive or just say , "I don't know." End of conversation. Just imagine trying to explain why two dogs are hooked together while breeding.

 

[HappyClucker7]

Just say something like, "He's fertilizing the egg so that little chicks can grow inside!" And then maybe you could distract him by telling him that you could incubate some eggs together? That might be a good project for him anyway. If you're able, of course.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I would just say that's how they make more chicks.

Well, honestly is probably be blunted than that and just flat out say exactly what it is, but that's it.

 

[Isadora]

My children are all very young (oldest is 6 and the youngest is 1 with a couple kids in-between) but they are living on a farm with multiple different kinds of animals and see it all. My husband and I didn't want it to be a weird thing, so it was always a factual but casual explanation. Have you talked about this to his parents? They may have an opinion on what they might want you to convey if he asks.

 

[NanaK]

This happen to me. lol My grandson was just a little guy and he said, "Nana that rooster is hurting that hen!"
I said, "No, he's just trying to give her a kiss."
That satisfied him for a while and I mentioned that to his mom and dad. They laughed and said good thinking! My grandson was very small. As he got older it did not work anymore.

 

[Rodrad]

My children are all very young (oldest is 6 and the youngest is 1 with a couple kids in-between) but they are living on a farm with multiple different kinds of animals and see it all. My husband and I didn't want it to be a weird thing, so it was always a factual but casual explanation. Have you talked about this to his parents? They may have an opinion on what they might want you to convey if he asks.

Thanks, that’s very good point. I will talk to my daughter. Since we haven’t had chickens before I am not sure if she has seen rooster mating hen. May need to send her a video.

 

[Isadora]

May need to send her a video.

That sounds like a great idea!