chickens as house pets? Opinions and views

[KentuckyRooster]

My boys will eat (and insist on part of) pretty much everything. They're like circling sharks when you have food. They just mauled my bagel and yogurt

 

[silkiemother]

sooooooooooooo true never go into the coop with half eaten food it never works

 

[AnotherMeOhMy]

really?our birds are treated monthly to protect them from diseases and theiy are trained not to go to the bathroom in the bathroom when they come in to get a bath.

Hi there! Can you tell me what you do to prevent disease in your house chicken?

 

[Hyper_Chicken05]

No. I simply don’t believe that.
Chickens are outdoor animals and they prefer to be outside. Unless your house is crawling with bugs (and it will be if you let them live indoors), what are they going to do all day? Roost on your furniture and poop, that’s what. And if you have children? Not a good idea. It’s absolutely disgusting, as a matter of fact.

Actually you can train them to not poo at certaon times, You have to do something they dont like (eg. Quickly move them on the ground or push them to the ground), And then they will ascociate that pooing in that certaon area or time will result in the punishment. You underestimate the intellectual capabilities of chickens

 

[Hyper_Chicken05]

Actually you can train them to not poo at certaon times, You have to do something they dont like (eg. Quickly move them on the ground or push them to the ground), And then they will ascociate that pooing in that certaon area or time will result in the punishment. You underestimate the intellectual capabilities of chickens

Oops i meant certain

 

[Aapomp831]

Actually you can train them to not poo at certaon times, You have to do something they dont like (eg. Quickly move them on the ground or push them to the ground), And then they will ascociate that pooing in that certaon area or time will result in the punishment. You underestimate the intellectual capabilities of chickens

I do not underestimate the intellectual ability of chickens. I doubt that anyone, especially a child, would have that sort of time to waste. Training a chicken like that would take an enourmous amount of time and effort... much better spent in school or doing other activities. Just because something is possible doesn’t make it realistic.

 

[silkiemother]

I have plenty of time to waste after school and I have plenty of imagination to train my birds and right now I am making a pair of breeches for my hen baby out of an old pair of undies ,because my school only goes to 2:30.and we use natural,non-expensive medicines that come from plants thats why be put the herbs in their oatmeal and the also have an entire herb garden to roam and for some reason theiy won't stay away from the chives and the blueberries,strawberries,rasberries and of course the apples the harvesters throw into their coops also.also my birds loooove to read with me after they stop trying to devour the book and my food.

 

[silkiemother]

is it normal for silkies to molt in the fall?

 

[RollTideChicken]

Look, I mean no disrespect to any animal lover out there, but many times people try to do best by their pets from our (human) perspective and not the animals. Every single animal out there does better without us than with us. They are all born with the innate knowledge of how to survive, and surviving, mating, and surviving some more is what makes animals happy. The rest is us projecting our needs and desires on to them.
We keep them because we want them not the other way around.
A chicken will not be happier in a house than outside of it. You will be made happier with this arrangement but not the chickens.
And I apologize if anything on this thread has changed since the first few pages...

 

[Shadrach]

I just can't help myself. I looked at this thread and thought, no, do not want to get into that!
I look after free range chickens.....phew, that's okay then. No one throwing bricks!
There's a catch; part of their range is my house. (waits for the booos and beer bottles to stop flying)
I didn't invite them in and they don't live there but they do come and go as they please.
I've lived with dogs, fleas, ticks, sick on floor, crap on floor if they don't get out last thing at night. Chewed furniture, broken ornaments and of course, they don't always like the guests.
I've lived with cats......yuk, filthy selfish flea riiden, torturing, scrtching, smelly little *******.
The chickens are really well behaved compared to the above.
I didn't want them in the bedroom and to discourage them I taped a wire accross the doorway; there is no door, and ran a small electric current through it. They don't step over the wire.
Sometimes a pullet will jump onto my work table but if a senior hen is there the pullet get a few serious pecks when I put her back on the floor from the senior hen.
They have never brought fleas into the house,or any other pest. They don't drag in other dead creatures either.
Mostly they sit under my chair as I work, or lay an egg in the egg box and leave.
They do shit on the floor though and I have been told that it is posibleto house train them but I wouldn't; I just clean up a lot.

So, for me it's not a question of can you keep chickens in the house; it's should you keep chickens in the house and my answer is an emphatic NO!