What is a "house chicken?"

[jacyjones]

It all seems far too alien to me!! Would these people keep sheep or goats in the house wearing nappies? Surely the point is that if you can house train an animal then it can live in the house? Anything that wees and poos whenever and wherever it likes should be outside where it can do those things naturally as nature intended. I stable my horse overnight to try and regulate her weight and keep her away from midges as she has sweet itch, otherwise I try to make her life as natural as possible and I think that should apply to all animals. Otherwise we are guilty of keeping playthings and we are restricting an animal's freedom to be an animal to suit our whims. To me that is wrong!

 

[robinaggie]

Thanks to all of you for answering my question.

It is not legal to keep chickens (inside or outside) where I am. But ferrets, boa constrictors, prairie dogs, iguanas, and other "domesticated animals" are ok. I'm going to put AFECUs on my chickens, and then how can anyone argue that they aren't domesticated?

 

[Solsken Farm]

Okay there are so many hysterical posts on this thread!!!!!!!!!!!

I had never considered this, but we have a parapalegic banty pullet that every day I wonder what the heck I am going to do when the rest of the standard hens/roos grow up. Perhaps we'll just bring her inside. We carry her inside and out of the coop and pen, and she has a BFF. Maybe I can find a spot for both of them.

My dh is going to block this site on my computer. I am certain of it.

 

[Davaroo]

SO is it official, then? They are no longer plain and whacky diapers, but bona-fide AFECU's?

 

[robinaggie]

AFECU seems to work. Now you get to design the unique AFECU for worldwide sales.

 

[Davaroo]

Quote:
Alright! I'm in!

 

[KrisRose]

Well, for my two little house chickens, putting them in my flock of standards would have been a death sentence or at the very least, a disaster. That would be wrong. They are bantam SF's and are very docile. I tried and it soon became clear that they would not survive in my flock. Since it was the end of October and too late to start a new coop project I decide to build an indoor coop with my neighbor's help. We build a box of plywood (2.5x5 ft) with a hinged top and left over hardwarecloth on the top and the front side. An old wooden Canada Dry Ginger Ale crate was put in one end as a nesting box and the top is their roost. Add pine shavings and it was home all winter. I used a pail and a small cat litter scoop to clean out the poops which I dumped into my garden.
When I get home for work I let them out to get some exercise and a treat. They are out for 1 to 2 hours and , yes, they poop on the floor. I clean up with tiolet paper and flush it and than use a disinfectant wipe on the floor. In the evening I also let them out again and we watch T.V. and share an orange. Our favorite show was " Ice Road Truckers".
They were alot less work than my outside chickens and horse. This spring I'm was working on a Lowe's playhouse coop as their summer home. However other chickens needed it so they are still inside and as happy and spoiled as two little chickens can be. I do eat their eggs, very good but small.
Oh, tried the diapers, Sophie and Lacey, I swear, turned into NINJAS. OMG, I had never seen them move that fast, they were a tangled mess in a few minutes. I actually think the diapers ( or AFECU's

)that I got would work if modified a little.

 

[meriruka]

Here's "Boots" my house chicken. She was being used as bait for a coyote trap and had severe frostbite and infected feet. She only has one toe left on each foot.
It took a few months to get her healed up, but now she runs like a roadrunner and flies like a crow. She lives in a big dog cage when I'm not home, and when I am, she either goes outside or hangs out with me in the house. She doesn't wear a diaper because 90% of the time she goes on the newspaper I put under her. She makes a specific noise when she's about to lay so I know to put her in her cage, otherwise it'll be an Easter egg hunt. Sometimes she's a pain (she steals food) but usually she's just too cute for words.

 

[KrisRose]

My chickens also make a certain "cluck-cluck" when they want to lay and I can get them back to their nesting box.
I'm glad to see that Boots is doing so well. Pretty girl.

 

[robinaggie]

Thanks for saving her. Some people should be used for coyote bait.