Pets or Produce?

[speckledhen]

I think folks may have always had a special one they claimed as a pet out of the laying flock, but it just wasn't something they advertised to everyone. I remember banty hens sitting on our shoulders as kids out of my grandfathers flocks. Now that chickens are showing up in urban backyards, they are living closer to their human keepers, who see more in them than the average farmer might, who keeps them at arms' length and goes out to grab one on the spur of the moment for that night's supper. JMHO. So, they've become more popular as pets than they used to be. They're easier to leave overnight or for a couple of days than a dog would be. I don't plan to have another dog after my elderly girl passes on because I do find lots of pet qualities in chickens, as well as the usual eggs & fertilizer.

 

[jeff spahn]

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Same here. Sometimes I just sit and watch them.

 

[Pony Trotsky]

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Well, that makes sense. What I don't get, though, is the degree of real animosity that seems to be directed at the Pet People.

I happen to live on a farm, and I can't even imagine putting clothes on a chicken - but then, I also can't imagine hating on somebody who does, or looking down on a person clever enough to build one of those adorable suburban coops with pretty colors and chicken toys and so on.

Sneering at that kind of enthusiasm just seems . . . well, it seems oddly mean-spirited to me, so I'm very curious about the reasons for it.

 

[RThomas]

Thanks for all the great responses! I keep mine almost exclusively as pets. We enjoy the eggs, and we like giving them to friends and family. Ours free range during the day, and we get a lot of enjoyment out of their unique chicken behaviors. We never eat ours. And, although chicken is my favorite meat, I don't think I could kill, butcher and eat our "pets".

As for the term "produce", it isn't necessarily just fruits and vegetables: Produce is a generalized term for a group of farm-produced goods and, not limited to fruits and vegetables (i.e. meats, grains, oats, etc.). More specifically, the term "produce" often implies that the products are fresh and generally in the same state as where they were harvested. Wiki

 

[Pony Trotsky]

^ Why thank you! I didn't know that - especially the "local" part. I'll know better next time.