Chickens as pets

If anyone would have told me that one day I'd have chickens that I considered pets, I'd have thought them odd. I think I just always thought as chickens as simple farm birds that had a job to do: laying eggs for the table.

But we are all discovering that chickens are very enjoyable creatures, more complex and social than I had once thought.
Each of our chickens have distinct personalities. We have our favorites, but we love them all.
Of course, our favorites tend to be the chickens that are more tame and friendly, of which there are now about 7-9 chickens that readily walk up or jump up to us to have us pet, hand-feed or carry them.

One of the things I also enjoy is picking up a chicken to carry into the house for petting while I watch TV or hang out with the boys playing video games.
Usually after a few strokes of the head and neck, the chicken in my hands falls asleep. They really seem to enjoy being held and petted. So, I guess you could now say that we have Pet Chickens!



We bought a container of tasty meal worms for our pets. They were so excited!
Yummy, yummy!!
The kids enjoy hand-feeding crickets to our chickens, too. We can't stop laughing at how one chick grabs the cricket, takes off running followed by all the other chickens. Then one of the other chickens steals the cricket from the first chicken and the race starts all over again!
Give me that cricket!
Who's gonna grab it first?!

Jenna, Jackson & Jeremiah enjoy hand-feeding the chickens, too.

Happy Kids and Happy Chickens!
Look at those smiles!
Jeremiah especially has come such a long way. From being afraid of all animals, to hand-feeding pecking chickens! Wow.
The chickens, oddly enough, seem to prefer eating out of our hands, over eating from their feeders.
Chow Time!
The chickens have really taken to using the perch I placed in there over a week ago.