When Hens Turn Out to Be Roosters in a City Backyard

Cock-a-doodle-doo!

We had doubts for weeks.

One of our “5-month-old hens” had been changing — feathers, attitude, everything. We kept hoping we were wrong.

Until one morning at 5am, we got our confirmation — loud and clear.

She… (oops) he crowed.

Since we live in the city (where roosters aren’t allowed), we had to act fast. After two weeks of early wake-up calls for the whole neighborhood, we found him a new home with a family who actually needed a rooster.

We were sad, but also relieved.
At least we still had the other hen.

chick one day old — They had grown up together since they were one day old.

backyard chickens — Always side by side.

Except… the very next morning, that “hen” started crowing too.

What? How is that even possible?

We Googled it. Apparently, some hens can crow. So we told ourselves: maybe she’s reacting to her rooster friend leaving. Maybe it’ll stop.

It didn’t.

It started earlier. It got louder. It got confident.

So we posted photos on Reddit, and everyone unanimously said, “Rooster.”

brahma rooster — One person even wrote: “That’s going to be one big, majestic boy.”

It was a new breed for us, and honestly, the difference isn’t always obvious.

How likely is it to have chicks sexed wrong? Here’s what the store says:
“We have an almost year-round availability of day-old chicks. Most of the chicks are sexed and are about 94% hens.”
Apparently, we found the 6%… twice.

We love our chickens, and saying goodbye to both of them wasn’t easy. But we had no choice. The same family who had taken our first rooster was happy to welcome a second one.

This time, they offered us a little hen in exchange.

backyard chicken san francisco — She’s still a little shy. Look closely — she’s in the background.

🏡 Thank you to our neighbors for being patient. When we told them, “Our other chicken is behaving like a rooster,” they found the situation slightly ironic — and almost comic — at that stage.

🐓 This whole chicken saga reminded us of something: having chickens is a lot like running a business.

You can read all the books.
You can prepare.
You can think you know what you’re getting.

And then at 5am, reality crows.

You adjust.
You learn.
You keep going.

Sometimes the lesson is quiet.
Sometimes it’s loud.

💌 Now for the SoliaVenture part.

Do you remember our cute little chick card?