Chicken fun in the run

[Ccort]

What do you put in your run to keep your chickens entertained?

I currently have a pot of cat grass (huge hit), a bird bath, a stump, some bricks, a lawn chair which was mine but they've taken over and am adding a wooden swing. I thought about adding a tire filled with dirt.

 

[Crazychickengirl2]

I've seen some people hang interactive baby toys with zip ties onto their fence

 

[aart]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-cluttered-run.1323792/

 

[3KillerBs]

The two most used items in my run are a pallet up on blocks and the overturned plastic lawn chairs.

 

[Sally PB]

I like stuff that the chickens can get on top of and go underneath, to make use of some of the vertical space. I have a ramp, a small table, and a chicknic table. Also a log that I put "legs" on to get it a foot or so off the ground.

 

[Ccort]

I like stuff that the chickens can get on top of and go underneath, to make use of some of the vertical space. I have a ramp, a small table, and a chicknic table. Also a log that I put "legs" on to get it a foot or so off the ground.

Did you make the chicnic table? I like the log idea.

 

[HeatherKellyB]

a chicknic table

This sounds absolutely adorable! Do you have pictures?

 

[Ridgerunner]

What does you run look like? Is it dirt, sand, or some type of mulch? How big is it, how many birds, and is it shaded? What are you working with?

I find having enough room is important in keeping them happy, even without them having playthings. Aart's clutter link is a good resource. To me there are three activities that chickens enjoy.

One is perching. They seem to like being up high where they can see over the world. That may be instinctive so they can better look out for predators. If you are worried about integration, perches up high enough that the chickens on the ground can't peck the ones on the perch can really help giving the weaker a way to avoid the more aggressive, but for the fun of perching they don't have to be that high.

Another is scratching. They may be scratching, looking for treats. Maybe they are looking for rocks to use as grit. They may just be rearranging their world. Scratching seems to be one of their pleasures.

They like to lay around, often in the shade. Even when they are not taking dust baths they can just lay around. One of their survival instincts is to fill up their crop with food and then retire to a "safe" place to start digesting it. So they look for what they consider a safe place, either perched or on the ground.

You are getting a lot of good suggestions here. The only thing I'll mention that I haven't seen is to put a compost pile in the run if you don't turn your entire run into a compost pile. If that tire is big enough maybe it will work or maybe stack some tires to get some height. They will scratch in it and scatter it everywhere if it's not contained.

 

[Sally PB]

Chicknic table... back when it was clean and white... Wood was scraps DH brought home from work, paint was leftover from building the coop. Screws were new.

 

[3KillerBs]

A photo of my former run (the new one isn't as busy yet -- I have some projects to work on this summer):