chicken TOYS?

[bagendhens]

ok so i used to work in a zoo, so im all about "enrichment"

what can i add to the run to add more for the chickens.

would a wide sisal rope make a fun perch/swing? how about some bigger old logs that are starting to rot?
obviously a dust bath...

banches for perches mabe?

right now in there booder pen they have a 2 x 4 as a roost that low to the ground which they sleep on, and a pipe which is about an inch in diameter thats about 14 inches from the ground and they seem to love jumping on and off the pipe, and their feed/waterers onto each other. some have even taken to roosting up there instead of on the 2 x 4...

i want their time in the run to be fulfilling...
and whiel i knwo they will spend most of their time scratching and taking dust baths, id like to give them options as this batch are a little crazy lol

they currently have this thing were a bunch of them stand in a circle then take turns jumping and flapping straight up as high as they can...

and they love shredded paper which they chase eachother around for only to eventually drop it and ignoe that peice.

 

[HEChicken]

I cut the end out of a large oatmeal can and put it in the brooder as a tunnel. They would play chase running through it. Branches as perches is a good idea. Other than that, I think food provides the most enrichment. I tried to offer them different things - beetles I found outside, small moths, scrambled egg, etc., and they would have a blast grabbing a delectable tidbit and then trying to play keep away long enough to be able to keep it for themselves.

 

[elmo]

My observation of chicken nature is that their lives revolve around food. One of the books we have on poultry suggested that poultry mash (crumbles) were preferable to pelleted foods simply because it takes the chicken longer to eat their fill (eating being their favorite pastime). I clip a daily ration of greens in the run, and offer an afternoon treat like a cantaloupe or watermelon rind, an ear of corn on the cob, a handful of bird seed, some mealworms scattered about, etc. But nothing seems to delight them so much as the freedom to run around our yard looking for something tasty to eat. So I try to give them at least an hour a day of free ranging under my supervision.

 

[gryeyes]

Tether Cabbage!

They love it!

I give 'em one about every week. It takes just one day for 9 chickens to turn a whole head of cabbage into this:

 

[Knowing Happiness]

If you hang that cabbage just out of their reach you can watch them jump up for it too. I find that endlessly amusing FOR ME!

 

[chickerdoodle]

As a behaviorist I agree enrichment is important for all animals. I have a play perch, a large parrot ladder, a large marble and a hanging parrot toy with a big bell on it for our five chicks who are now twelve days old. They seem to enjoy it and they are quite curious, friendly and gregarious. We are planning a swing for the girls and are getting the hanging wire ball toy that holds treats. We are really enjoying their chickhood!

 

[NellaBean]

Make a chicken jungle gym.........

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=335181

 

[TurkeyMountainChickens]

I've tried "toys" for them, like cat ball with bells in them, etc., but they are most interested in things they can scratch in, bathe in, or eat.

They do have an old wooden step ladder in their run that they LOVE - much like the jungle gym idea! I also put mulch and chopped leaves (form the lawn mower) for them to dig in.

But really, there is nothing they love better than free ranging. They only have to spend an hour or two in the run before I get up there to let them out in the morning - and they ALWAYS want to come out.

If they have to spend the day in the run (like I know I won't be home before dark to close them up) I usually pull a bunch of weeds from the garden and toss them in. They eat the greens and pull bugs out of the roots.

 

[nancypo]

OMG, I thought I was the only one tracking this way too. I work with kids (elementary librarian) and chickens could get bored! I already added a mirror, I posted that because it was so FUNNY! And I love the cabbage! Someone else posted using a suet feeder full of misc. food, like broccoli. Good ideas!

 

[city kid farm]

Great ideas! I am going to have to try these out. Thanks for the thread. Keep the tips coming!