The Chicken or the Egg-and What About the Rooster?

AuthorOrient, Jane M.
PositionLife in America - Sex change among transgenders

"One can debate endlessly about the role of nature or nurture in molding a person ... but sex is 100% nature. It is not 'assigned.'"

CHILDREN who grow up on a farm learn the "facts of life" at an early age, such as the observation in an old song: "They're laying eggs now/ Just like they used ter/ Ever since that rooster/ Came into our yard."

All species that propagate by sexual reproduction have two sexes, and every new organism arises from one male and one female gamete. Except in the rare hermaphroditic species, every organism has two parents, one male and one female, permitting the wonderful variety that exists in the natural world.

One can debate endlessly about the role of nature or nurture in molding a person--or animal--but sex is 100% nature. It is not "assigned." It is recognized at birth, or on a prenatal ultrasound--or hundreds of years later in a skeleton. If there is ambiguity, it is a medical emergency. The newborn needs to be seen immediately by a pediatric endocrinologist because he or she might die from adrenal insufficiency.

Sexual differentiation begins long before any visible differences--the Y chromosome affects every cell in the body. Skilled persons can sex chicks soon after they hatch.

Gender is a subjective concept these days. If there are not two, how many are there? Who knows?--new designations seem to pop up every day. Doctors are being told to be hyperaware so as to treat each patient appropriately, as defined by the person's self-identity. How about instead of trying to stuff people into artificially created gender/racial/ethnic boxes, treating everyone as an individual?

There is some yang in every yin, and some yin in every yang, but the yin and the yang exist and are not the same. There is not a womb in a transwoman, but there is in a transman who has not had it removed. We do patients a terrible disservice by pretending to treat organs that are not there, or by ignoring organs that are.

Roosters are different, as I learned visiting a farm, where I was attacked by the Bad Rooster. I might have been pecked to death, save for the timely intervention of an eight-year-old boy who thought boys were supposed to protect girls. (1 will be his friend for life.)

This brings us to the reason for wanting to sex chicks. A farmer does not want to waste money raising a chicken that does not lay eggs. You only need a few roosters. They fight and are disruptive. Similarly, if you are raising sheep or cattle, you want to be...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT