Chickens have amazing intelligence. According to Dr. Lesley Rogers, Professor of Zoology at University of New England, Australia, “It is clear that birds have cognitive capacities equivalent to those of mammals, even primates.” For example, chickens understand that objects still exist even after they are hidden from view. Now I am not suggesting that you play hide and seek with your birds in order to test their cognitive abilities. But I am suggesting that they are not dumb clucks as they have so often been thought to be.
Dr. Joy Mench, Professor and Director of the Center for Animal Welfare at the University of California states, “Chickens show sophisticated social behavior….That’s what a pecking order is all about. They can recognize more than a hundred other chickens and remember them.” Unfortunately, my memory is not so good anymore. I can hardly tell one chicken from another. However, there is one barred rock hen that I do recognize by her incessant complaining. I named her Grumpy. Ah yes, lest I forget, there is also Snoopy who shows great curiosity as to what I am doing when I am out and about the chicken coop. I am thinking about naming the rooster “Chicken Soup”.
Their communication skills are remarkable. According to Dr. Joy Mench, they have more than 30 types of vocalizations and can distinguish between threats that are approaching by land and those that are approaching from the air. And how about this! A mother hen begins to teach these calls to her chicks before they even hatch. She clucks softly to them while sitting on her eggs, and they chirp back to her and to each other from inside their shells!
I have 26 baby pullets that I’m raising. I thought they needed exercise, so I placed a 2 inch sliver of homemade red cabbage sauerkraut in their pen. It probably looked like a worm to them. Chickens being chickens, one of them picked it up and the rest of the chicks chased after her. Soon, another had the tiny morsel and the chase continued. It was like watching a rugby match! Needless to say, the baby chicks got their exercise. Giving them a little unpasteurized sauerkraut provides them with bacteria that aids in digestion and builds their immune system – probiotics for chickens. I use unpasteurized foods for them whenever feasible since pasteurized food is dead by definition. I think it is good to introduce the baby chicks to a variety of healthy live foods in small quantities including vegetable greens and sprouts. It gets them used to a diversity of foods early on in their lives. I also provide them with small grit for their gizzard which they use to grind up food as an aid to digestion.
“3Ask not what your chickens can do for you. Ask what you can do for your chickens.”4
Chickens will benefit from having fresh non-chlorinated and non-fluoridated water. I put a quarter cup of live unpasteurized vinegar in their water (I make my own huckleberry vinegar). Bragg’s unpasteurized vinegar will do nicely. It helps to destroy unhealthy bacteria and promotes digestion. I would venture to say that it has the same beneficial effect on us.
I have been watching chicken behavior for many years. I have noticed that my chickens are very good at determining what foods to eat. Given a choice, they choose healthy food. In this respect, they seem to have a useful capability that most of us humans don’t possess. I feed them (the chickens – not the humans) a great variety of foods and let them decide for themselves what they want. Providing healthy food choices is an important aspect of caring for chickens. When the snow is off the ground, I let them forage for a portion of their food. I highly recommend you invest in easily movable poultry fencing to make foraging on fresh pasture more feasible. Later this year, I will show you how to make oat fodder for your poultry and other farm animals in order to provide them with live green food even during the winter months.
From personal observation, chickens tend to be happy and content when they are given good food, fresh water, and plenty of clean space to live in. Even Grumpy, my barred rock hen, has a lighter side to her when she gets to forage for bugs and fresh greens in new Spring pasture. Chickens like to move and when you give them room, they truly enjoy themselves. With a little bit of effort and much enjoyment, we can raise exceptionally healthy and content chickens. There certainly is ample reason to respect the chicken. Additional Thoughts
You may be aware of the USDA’s move to allow genetically modified alfalfa to be grown in the United States. This is a serious issue that will effect the entire food chain if not stopped. It seems that most ruminants are fed alfalfa as at least a portion of their diet. Because of the USDA’s acceptance (without sufficient evidence to support their decisions) of genetically modified soy, most of our commercially prepared chicken feed and dog food are dangerous to the health of these animals. Note that I am not trying to prove the danger of gmo to us and our livestock. If you want this information, google “gmo” and you will find volumes of information available. What I am suggesting is that there are easily obtainable alternatives to feeding out animals and ourselves potentially toxic gmo feed.
Last year I took a Master Gardener’s course sponsored by the University of Idaho Extension Service in Bonner County, Idaho. I learned that the Extension Service gets approximately one third of its funding from the USDA, one third from the Idaho Department of Agriculture, and one third from the University of Idaho, according to the Extension educator and the Master Gardener course material. The Extension Service is the agency that promotes and manages the 4-H program and other agriculturally related programs. From my perspective, the Extension Service is not doing any more than parroting the mandates of the USDA and related big agriculture concerns. The Extension educator would use terms such as “Our education is research based.” Well, DDT was researched and approved for use for many years. So what? It became clear to me that our major government sponsored agricultural service agencies are not providing sustainable healthy choices for us and our livestock. Even our local Extension service is on the big agriculure unsustainable bandwagon. It seems to me that we need to take responsibility for our food supply. Hopefully, some of my articles may contribute to this endeavor for you.
Sources:
Dr. Joy Mench, Professor and Director of the Center for Animal Welfare at the University of California states, “Chickens show sophisticated social behavior….That’s what a pecking order is all about. They can recognize more than a hundred other chickens and remember them.” Unfortunately, my memory is not so good anymore. I can hardly tell one chicken from another. However, there is one barred rock hen that I do recognize by her incessant complaining. I named her Grumpy. Ah yes, lest I forget, there is also Snoopy who shows great curiosity as to what I am doing when I am out and about the chicken coop. I am thinking about naming the rooster “Chicken Soup”.
Their communication skills are remarkable. According to Dr. Joy Mench, they have more than 30 types of vocalizations and can distinguish between threats that are approaching by land and those that are approaching from the air. And how about this! A mother hen begins to teach these calls to her chicks before they even hatch. She clucks softly to them while sitting on her eggs, and they chirp back to her and to each other from inside their shells!
I have 26 baby pullets that I’m raising. I thought they needed exercise, so I placed a 2 inch sliver of homemade red cabbage sauerkraut in their pen. It probably looked like a worm to them. Chickens being chickens, one of them picked it up and the rest of the chicks chased after her. Soon, another had the tiny morsel and the chase continued. It was like watching a rugby match! Needless to say, the baby chicks got their exercise. Giving them a little unpasteurized sauerkraut provides them with bacteria that aids in digestion and builds their immune system – probiotics for chickens. I use unpasteurized foods for them whenever feasible since pasteurized food is dead by definition. I think it is good to introduce the baby chicks to a variety of healthy live foods in small quantities including vegetable greens and sprouts. It gets them used to a diversity of foods early on in their lives. I also provide them with small grit for their gizzard which they use to grind up food as an aid to digestion.
“3Ask not what your chickens can do for you. Ask what you can do for your chickens.”4
Chickens will benefit from having fresh non-chlorinated and non-fluoridated water. I put a quarter cup of live unpasteurized vinegar in their water (I make my own huckleberry vinegar). Bragg’s unpasteurized vinegar will do nicely. It helps to destroy unhealthy bacteria and promotes digestion. I would venture to say that it has the same beneficial effect on us.
I have been watching chicken behavior for many years. I have noticed that my chickens are very good at determining what foods to eat. Given a choice, they choose healthy food. In this respect, they seem to have a useful capability that most of us humans don’t possess. I feed them (the chickens – not the humans) a great variety of foods and let them decide for themselves what they want. Providing healthy food choices is an important aspect of caring for chickens. When the snow is off the ground, I let them forage for a portion of their food. I highly recommend you invest in easily movable poultry fencing to make foraging on fresh pasture more feasible. Later this year, I will show you how to make oat fodder for your poultry and other farm animals in order to provide them with live green food even during the winter months.
From personal observation, chickens tend to be happy and content when they are given good food, fresh water, and plenty of clean space to live in. Even Grumpy, my barred rock hen, has a lighter side to her when she gets to forage for bugs and fresh greens in new Spring pasture. Chickens like to move and when you give them room, they truly enjoy themselves. With a little bit of effort and much enjoyment, we can raise exceptionally healthy and content chickens. There certainly is ample reason to respect the chicken. Additional Thoughts
You may be aware of the USDA’s move to allow genetically modified alfalfa to be grown in the United States. This is a serious issue that will effect the entire food chain if not stopped. It seems that most ruminants are fed alfalfa as at least a portion of their diet. Because of the USDA’s acceptance (without sufficient evidence to support their decisions) of genetically modified soy, most of our commercially prepared chicken feed and dog food are dangerous to the health of these animals. Note that I am not trying to prove the danger of gmo to us and our livestock. If you want this information, google “gmo” and you will find volumes of information available. What I am suggesting is that there are easily obtainable alternatives to feeding out animals and ourselves potentially toxic gmo feed.
Last year I took a Master Gardener’s course sponsored by the University of Idaho Extension Service in Bonner County, Idaho. I learned that the Extension Service gets approximately one third of its funding from the USDA, one third from the Idaho Department of Agriculture, and one third from the University of Idaho, according to the Extension educator and the Master Gardener course material. The Extension Service is the agency that promotes and manages the 4-H program and other agriculturally related programs. From my perspective, the Extension Service is not doing any more than parroting the mandates of the USDA and related big agriculture concerns. The Extension educator would use terms such as “Our education is research based.” Well, DDT was researched and approved for use for many years. So what? It became clear to me that our major government sponsored agricultural service agencies are not providing sustainable healthy choices for us and our livestock. Even our local Extension service is on the big agriculure unsustainable bandwagon. It seems to me that we need to take responsibility for our food supply. Hopefully, some of my articles may contribute to this endeavor for you.
Sources:
- Specter M, “The Extremist,” The New Yorker, April 14, 2003, p. 64.
- Grimes W, “If Chickens Are So Smart, Why Aren’t They Eating Us?” New York Times, January 12, 2003.
- http://www.chickenindustry.com/cfi/intelligence/
- http://frconnect.blogspot.com/2005/02/real-intelligence-in-chickens.html
- http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/hidden-lives-of-chickens.aspx
- Amazing Apple Cider Vinegar 1999 by Earl Mindell
- Wild Fermentation 2003 by Sandor Katz (exceptional book)
- Storey’s Guide to Raising Chickens, 3rd Edition 2010 by Gail Damerow