Exploring Companion Chicken Health, Welfare, And Care
Research suggests that chickens are likely the third most numerous companion animal in many Western countries. Despite this, there hasn’t been much research into their welfare status or the behaviors and attitudes of their guardians when it comes to chicken care.
Previous studies on companion chickens have mostly focused on biosecurity, egg quality, or limited health measures. The few welfare studies that do exist suggest considerable welfare issues for chickens in the domestic environment, including euthanasia rates almost 30 times higher than dogs.
The purpose of this study was to learn about chicken guardians’ attitudes toward chickens, their care-taking practices, the closeness of the human-chicken relationship, and the barriers to improving non-commercial chickens’ welfare.
The researchers used a 60-question online survey, which they placed on various chicken-oriented Facebook groups in 2021. Self-identified chicken guardians from the U.K. answered questions about indoor chickens, disabled chickens, their own dietary habits, if they ever fed their hens’ eggs back to their hens, and why they did not care for roosters (if applicable). They also weighed in on their use of the so-called “Suprelorin” implant (a hormonal injection that pauses egg laying, which may, according to evidence, improve hen health and welfare).
Most guardians perceived their chickens to be companion animals — nearly 95% said they wouldn’t kill their chickens for consumption, while over 75% didn’t see chickens as less morally worthy than dogs. For many guardians, keeping chickens from going to slaughter was a key motivation for caring for them.
Nevertheless, guardians reported more frequent health problems and death rates compared to previous research. “Egg yolk peritonitis” (an infection caused when an abnormal egg doesn’t successfully leave the body) was a major health problem and cause of death. Other causes of death included predation and sudden death or unknown causes.
0.1% of respondents cared for only roosters, while 19% had at least one rooster in their flocks. Over 12% of respondents had cared for chickens kept mostly indoors, while nearly 20% had cared for chickens with a disability.
Regarding food practices, over 30% of respondents fed their hens’ eggs back to the hens (to some degree). As for their own eating habits, although chicken guardians reported being vegetarian or vegan at twice the rate of the general U.K. population, over 75% still consumed chicken meat and 95% consumed hens’ eggs. Respondents who had removed animal products from their diet tended to have more positive attitudes toward chickens, more desirable care-taking practices, and closer human-chicken relationships.
With over 2,000 respondents, the results of this study have considerable reliability. Nevertheless, readers should be aware that the authors did not measure chicken guardians’ level of expertise, which may limit the reliability of some responses. Also, due to the high number of guardians caring for ex-commercial hens and being based in the U.K., the results may not apply for all non-commercial chicken care in every location.
Animal advocates should make sure that chicken guardians and veterinarians are aware of these results, as understanding the attitudes and reported health issues in this study may support chicken care. Furthermore, the authors note that non-commercial chicken guardians need appropriate infrastructure, knowledge, and support to properly care for their companions, something advocates can help with.
In general, people may overestimate how easy it is to care for chickens. Anyone thinking about caring for ex-commercial chickens should plan carefully beforehand. According to the authors, ex-commercial hens may have more complex health needs than other companion chickens, and bird-flu restrictions are creating welfare concerns and more resource requirements from guardians.
Regarding chicken health, the authors suggest that advocates let chicken guardians know about the Suprelorin® hormonal implant and encourage further research into its effectiveness. The cost is also a limiting factor that should be considered. For chickens who die unexpectedly, it’s important that guardians get post-mortem examinations to generate more knowledge on causes of death.
Advocates can also play a role in shifting societal perceptions of companion chickens. For example, they should raise awareness of proper rooster care and make it clear that negative stereotypes about roosters do not always apply. It’s also important to portray chickens not as farmed animals but as companions, especially in the context of improving their legal status and licensing chicken-specific medications.
Finally, those who care for chickens should consider a vegan and vegetarian diet. This study suggests that such diet changes may lead to welfare improvements for companion chickens as it shifts the mindset and behavior of their guardians.
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/14/2/288