"Suburbanized farmer?!"

[Jaygood787]

oh please, you know when you posted this you were in for it. Why on earth would you bathe a chicken? Maby your coop should be cleaned out...

It sounds like you should start designing clothes for your birds, and maby even a steak dinner for them every other night.?

 

[Kitty135]

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It's that ridiculous?! Oh, this is a bit embarrassing

 

[ranchhand]

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It's that ridiculous?! Oh, this is a bit embarrassing

No, it's not that bad. Certainly far more than I would do, but that's okay, to each their own.

 

[OkChickens]

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Farmers do not name there chickens because they are farm animals not pets. I do not name my chickens nor do I bathe them. My chicken tasks are about 6:30 go to the coop and fill water and feed as needed and open the door for them to free range. Then check the incubator and chicks in my shop. Then about 8-9pm go to the coop gather 20-30 eggs and close the pop door. Then check the chicks and bator. Then I wash eggs. I enjoy my chickens but I know sooner or later they will become dinner for me or a predator. I am getting ready to get pigs also. Imagine trying to get your kids to eat betty the pig as bacon for breakfast. That's why I do not name my farm animals.

Nate

 

[ben is a terror]

Wait a min. O show people don't you bathe your birds before a show? I do! Who wants to judge a cochin with a dirty butt. I use a little dawn dish soap warm water and nice warm towels. No I don't use a blow dryer or rollers

Mine do watch TV with me sometimes and I do talk to them and when I started with chickens I would..........

sing them to sleep still do when babies are inside I will even talk to the bator at times.

What part of the world are you from?

BTW

 

[Mamma_Duck04]

lol OK, I'm only laughing because, as a parent, it's shed new light on how my kid antics must have crossed my father lol.

My first chickens came to me when I was 7yo. There was a runt who really didn't look like she'd make it, but give a girl a sweet baby & guess what? LOL Her name was Chickadee & she became my new appendage until she grew up & couldn't be identified from the other 4! Finding out MUCH later, dad brought home 5 chicks because he knew "some just might not make it"- HA! Right! Every single one survived & thrived.

What makes me giggle though is the day I was in the garage 'grooming' my chickens & in walks dad with an utterly stumped look on his face... I was brushing them with one of those soft baby brushes... lol See where this is leading right? Well then dad had to explain how feathers worked & their interlocking fibers that keep them protected, etc etc. and that was the last time I brushed my chickens... lol

So... the way you FIRST told it, you washed your chickens weekly, then you later said you just sponge them off with some warm water.
If you WASH them (soap & water) you'll wash off all their natural oils with the soap. If they're really dirty or got into something, that's fine, but to do that weekly to an animal such as a chicken that really needs those oils to survive, I wouldn't suggest it.
If you're just sponging them off with WATER, they probly love it! I don't think you'll harm them by only using water & sponging down their backs or something, but wouldn't suggest 'scrubbing' them up with the sponge as it would again, disturb their feather layers & oils.

Lots of animals love playing in the water & your chickens might just be some. Yes it could be considered 'odd' in a cute way, but it's takes all walks ;-)

& I agree, I think your friend was poking some fun. Farm animals are generally just that, even if the farmers really love them, they usually let them be themselves. Ya know, pigs rolling around to stay cool (even if they get really dirty), horses rolling in the dust, chickens playing around without 'treats' or baths ;-) There's usually too much to do to concern themselves with the foofy parts of turning all their farm animals into 'pets'.

I sorta disagree though, my mom & I both can sustain the 'pet' part with our farm animals, we've just always been that way. The animals do what they naturally do, we just sorta spend some time foofing on them some. We get unimaginable pleasure out of grooming up our horses till they sparkle, knowing FULL WELL once we turn them out again they'll be rolling in a nice wet dirt hole just to rub our noses in it!

 

[CoyoteMagic]

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It's that ridiculous?! Oh, this is a bit embarrassing

If this is the only embarrassment you get on this site, you are getting off lucky!!

No big deal. People who show bathe them. I've seen pictures of them chickens with the funky topknots pulled up out of their eyes.

As long as you don't start putting bows and stuff on them you're fine

 

[earnhardtlvr]

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Wow...i thought we posted on here to tell stories about our experiences and not talk down to what others do?

 

[earnhardtlvr]

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It's that ridiculous?! Oh, this is a bit embarrassing

If this is the only embarrassment you get on this site, you are getting off lucky!!

No big deal. People who show bathe them. I've seen pictures of them chickens with the funky topknots pulled up out of their eyes.

As long as you don't start putting bows and stuff on them you're fine

Hey! What's wrong with bows and stuff??

 

[mommyofthreewithchicks]

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There are quite a few of us that bath our chickens for shows... So I don't think it is out of the realm of thinking- Maybe a bit over the top when bathing them every week. But I think that people carrying dogs in the purse are strange, As well as people who have no regard to their animals... There is a middle ground and we are all searching for it.

To the original poster.... There are those of us who do bath our chickens- 4-H kids are encouraged to do so before they take them to the fair. I thought it was a bit silly until I saw how much they liked it last year and so when my Silkies were dirty (and not going to the fair) I would bathe and blow dry them. I have also done this with a duck or two. I don't think weekly is a good thing as if you are keeping their litter/coop clean they shouldn't get too dirty. And with all the pampering you may be "a city" chicken keeper but

that isn't a bad thing...