Do you know there was once a time when roosters had horns? So what happened to them? Let us find out.

There once lived a rooster on a farm. The rooster had horns which was his pride and joy.

One day a dragon came to the rooster and asked him, “Brother, can you lend me your horns?”

The rooster replied, “My horns? But why would you need it?”

The dragon replied, “I have been invited for a feast by the Jade Emperor (Ruler of Heaven) for a feast. The Tiger will also be there, and I am sure the Jade Emperor favors him more. If I wear your golden horns, I will look magnificent. I know I am better than the Tiger, but with your horns on me, the Emperor will know that as well.”

The rooster replied, “While I thank you for your compliment, I cannot give it. Besides, what is in it for me?”

The dragon replied, “I am sure if the Jade Emperor approves of me, I will become the king of all animals. You can be assured of my help anytime you need it.”

To this, the rooster responded, “What you say sounds very tempting. But how can I trust you to return my horns to me?”

“If you do not trust me, you can trust your neighbour, the centipede. He is my cousin, and he will tell you that you can trust me.”

“The centipede is your cousin? How can a tiny worm be related to you?” asked the rooster doubtfully.

“Of course. Why don’t you ask him yourself?” replied the dragon.

The rooster and the dragon went to the centipede. The rooster asked the centipede, “Are you the dragon’s cousin? He wants me to give him my horns. If you give me your guarantee, I can give it to him.”

The centipede was puzzled. “The dragon is my cousin? But how can that be? He is huge, and I am tiny,” he thought. He was about to respond to the rooster when the dragon whispered, “You better say yes. Else, I will eat you.”

Frightened the centipede said, “It’s true. The dragon is my cousin. You can trust him to return your horns to you.”

The rooster then lent his horns to the dragon and stated, “I want you to return this back to me tomorrow in the morning.”

“Sure,” answered the dragon. The dragon then took the horns and went to the feast.

At the feast, everyone admired the dragon, including the Jade Emperor. The dragon thought, “These horns look amazing on me. They are wasted on such an insignificant creature like the rooster. What will he do with it, anyway?”

The dragon decided against giving the horns to the rooster and remained in heaven.

The next day, the rooster woke up, looked towards the Heaven and yelled, “dragon, bring back my horns.”

When the dragon did not come, his face turned red with anger.

He went to the centipede and asked him, “Where is your cousin, the dragon? You guaranteed that he would give me back my horns. He has still not returned it.”

The centipede was trembling with fear. But he did not know how to respond. Hearing no response, the rooster in his anger pecked on the centipede and ate him.

Till this day, the roosters hate centipedes and always eat them while the centipedes try their best to escape the roosters.

This is also the reason why the dragons are never seen on earth – to avoid returning the horns to the roosters.