Chicken environmental enrichment?

[elmo]

Interesting question. Try to think about it like a chicken would.

Chickens descend from jungle fowl, so try to make the environment in your pen like a jungle. As ground birds, though, chickens wouldn't be likely to appreciate the same kind of environmental enrichment that parrots would.

One problem with chicken runs is that they tend to be just blank, open space. Try to add some vertical objects that make the space more complex: bushes or shrubs in pots so you can swap them out when they get pecked to death, branches, logs, even old cardboard boxes. Give your chickens places to hide behind so if someone is getting picked on, she can escape.

 

[Bosque]

I use cardboard boxes that I get from Costco. The best ones are the heavy duity broc. boxes. The chickens can hide in them and sit on top. When they get dirty, toss them out and get a new one.
I also put a stick in the corner of the coop between the different sides so they can perch. I change locations every now and then to mix it up.
Crickets, meal worms, ants or other moving are fun for the chickens. Food on a stick is lots of fun too. You can also hide food treats in the coop and watch them find them. I hide left over rice under the pine shavings and watch them grab and run. Then the chase is on by the other chickens!
JSome ideas...