Why chickens make great companion pets. This is Ms. Fluffy a sweet little pet chicken. at CHOE.
Chickens are family oriented, live in flocks, have a "pecking" order that determined by seniority. The rooster protects his family and the hen takes care of the baby chicks like children, teaching them to eat, play and protect themselves. Each chicken has a distinct personality and will respond to human attention and affection. If you raise a chicken from a baby chick to adult and give it daily attention such as petting and talking to your chicken you will quickly notice that your bird is paying attention to you and responds to you, will be affectionate toward you, enjoy being petted by you, and if given enough attention a pet chicken can even learn to do tricks. A baby chick with no mother hen will quickly bond with you and consider you as its mother. Often they will follow you, run to you when they see you, snuggle up to you. This is called imprinting.
Once you have established a relationship with your baby chick, it will become a life long bond, usually, even after the chick has grown to adulthood and been integrated into your flock. I have had baby chicks who have grown to adulthood that I integrated into my flock but when they seen me, even if I had no treats in hand would come to me and when I would sit on the ground or a chair near them would get in my lap wanting nothing more than my attention and affection. Nothing will endear you to a chicken faster than realizing your chicken adores you. Your chickens will respond to how you treat them. Chickens who are reared in groups are less likely to bond with you on this level, but even then, there will almost always be at least one that will seek you out for special attention if you are responsive and attentive to them. To test your chickens responsiveness simply wink at your chicken, say the word "wink" when you do it, then wait to see if your chicken winks back. If your chicken does not wink, repeat it until your chicken winks back at you. Once your chicken winks, be sure to praise him or her. Repeat the winks every time you greet your chicken and this will become a signal between you and your bird that can come in handy if your chicken gets stressed and you want to help him or her to relax you will be able to just wink at your chicken which will distract the bird from the stressors. This should only take a few tries to teach your bird to wink. Winking is a universal type of language which most birds and animals respond to. Keep in mind that if you are upset for some reason your pet chicken may react differently, when you get upset, your pet will too.
Once you have established a relationship with your baby chick, it will become a life long bond, usually, even after the chick has grown to adulthood and been integrated into your flock. I have had baby chicks who have grown to adulthood that I integrated into my flock but when they seen me, even if I had no treats in hand would come to me and when I would sit on the ground or a chair near them would get in my lap wanting nothing more than my attention and affection. Nothing will endear you to a chicken faster than realizing your chicken adores you. Your chickens will respond to how you treat them. Chickens who are reared in groups are less likely to bond with you on this level, but even then, there will almost always be at least one that will seek you out for special attention if you are responsive and attentive to them. To test your chickens responsiveness simply wink at your chicken, say the word "wink" when you do it, then wait to see if your chicken winks back. If your chicken does not wink, repeat it until your chicken winks back at you. Once your chicken winks, be sure to praise him or her. Repeat the winks every time you greet your chicken and this will become a signal between you and your bird that can come in handy if your chicken gets stressed and you want to help him or her to relax you will be able to just wink at your chicken which will distract the bird from the stressors. This should only take a few tries to teach your bird to wink. Winking is a universal type of language which most birds and animals respond to. Keep in mind that if you are upset for some reason your pet chicken may react differently, when you get upset, your pet will too.
My pet Silkie chicken named Jasmine wearing her tutu. CHOE 2020.
(If you are thinking of getting a chicken for a pet, think small, such as, bantams, serama, or silkie because they are small, easier to take care of, and make less mess than standard size breeds. Broiler chickens can be very affectionate but do not make very good house pets, as they are genetically altered to gain weight which usually causes health issues after 8 to 10 weeks of age and they tend to be very messy to clean up after. Broilers do not usually live very long-less than six months but I have seen one live as long as one year.
Chickens can be trained easily and are often used as a training exercise in dog training classes due to their quick learning capabilities. The best way to find out how chickens relate to their owners is to ask people who raise chickens as pets, read reliable articles about chicken intelligence, training, cognitive abilities, and watch video's of how people interact with their pet chickens.
Chickens can help people over come stress, depression, and empty nest syndrome (this I know from experience). They are sensitive and need protection and care. I have an overwhelming desire to protect them and sometimes, I suspect they understand me when nobody else can. So while the rest of the world is going crazy I am just relaxing petting my chicken or watching them play, or taking care of their needs every day. A pet chicken isn't for everyone. If you are a super neat freak who would be horrified if a chicken pooped on your floor (or on you if the bird is upset with you) you most likely wouldn't do well with a pet chicken. It's simple to clean up with a paper towel and a wet wipe (not like dog pooh).
Keep in mind that even if you keep a chicken indoors as a housepet you should also have a safe place for them to play outdoors every day for at least a few hours, this encourages them to develop natural instincts, allows them to take dust baths, get fresh air, and sunshine which is very good for their health. My pet chicken Jasmine sleeps in a pop up pet carrier I picked up at Walmart. I made a nest box from a cardboard box and put timothy hay in it and line the pet carrier with puppy pads and a small amount of pine bedding. The puppy pads allow me to roll up her used bedding and put it in the trash, then dump the old nest box bedding in the trash, shop vac pet carrier and nest box then put fresh puppy pads, pine bedding and hay. I prefer the pop up carrier because it's easy to clean, I can hose it down if I want to and bedding doesn't get kicked out of it because the sides have fine mesh netting. I am also careful to put the pop up carrier in a place, where other pets (like my cat) cannot jump on top of it and collapse it on my chicken. I use a plastic coffee can with a automatic poultry water cup for her drinker and a glass bowl with a flat bottom for her feed and grit. She also has a play pen outdoors where she goes outside to play with my pet chicken Lil' Snowball (who has her own pop up carrier) for a few hours each day and at night I return her indoors to her pop up carrier. She loves it and I sleep better knowing that no predator is going to get her while I sleep. On rainy days she stays in her pop up carrier. When I take her out to hang out with me, I put a chicken diaper on her. Call me crazy but I just love my chickens like children but I also know they need dirt baths, fresh air, sunshine and some stray insects to keep her happy and healthy.
See more about pet chickens below.
Chickens can be trained easily and are often used as a training exercise in dog training classes due to their quick learning capabilities. The best way to find out how chickens relate to their owners is to ask people who raise chickens as pets, read reliable articles about chicken intelligence, training, cognitive abilities, and watch video's of how people interact with their pet chickens.
Chickens can help people over come stress, depression, and empty nest syndrome (this I know from experience). They are sensitive and need protection and care. I have an overwhelming desire to protect them and sometimes, I suspect they understand me when nobody else can. So while the rest of the world is going crazy I am just relaxing petting my chicken or watching them play, or taking care of their needs every day. A pet chicken isn't for everyone. If you are a super neat freak who would be horrified if a chicken pooped on your floor (or on you if the bird is upset with you) you most likely wouldn't do well with a pet chicken. It's simple to clean up with a paper towel and a wet wipe (not like dog pooh).
Keep in mind that even if you keep a chicken indoors as a housepet you should also have a safe place for them to play outdoors every day for at least a few hours, this encourages them to develop natural instincts, allows them to take dust baths, get fresh air, and sunshine which is very good for their health. My pet chicken Jasmine sleeps in a pop up pet carrier I picked up at Walmart. I made a nest box from a cardboard box and put timothy hay in it and line the pet carrier with puppy pads and a small amount of pine bedding. The puppy pads allow me to roll up her used bedding and put it in the trash, then dump the old nest box bedding in the trash, shop vac pet carrier and nest box then put fresh puppy pads, pine bedding and hay. I prefer the pop up carrier because it's easy to clean, I can hose it down if I want to and bedding doesn't get kicked out of it because the sides have fine mesh netting. I am also careful to put the pop up carrier in a place, where other pets (like my cat) cannot jump on top of it and collapse it on my chicken. I use a plastic coffee can with a automatic poultry water cup for her drinker and a glass bowl with a flat bottom for her feed and grit. She also has a play pen outdoors where she goes outside to play with my pet chicken Lil' Snowball (who has her own pop up carrier) for a few hours each day and at night I return her indoors to her pop up carrier. She loves it and I sleep better knowing that no predator is going to get her while I sleep. On rainy days she stays in her pop up carrier. When I take her out to hang out with me, I put a chicken diaper on her. Call me crazy but I just love my chickens like children but I also know they need dirt baths, fresh air, sunshine and some stray insects to keep her happy and healthy.
See more about pet chickens below.
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And Jesus answered him. saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. St. Luke 4:4
