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Who knew chickens were so easy to please?!

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My chickens keep trying to get out, so I decided that I had better find some ways to keep them entertained. No amount of wing clipping and fencing seems to help! So I'm making a list of different ways to stop them from getting bored. Here they are:

1. Give them a layer of dry leaves to scrat about in and turn into mulch.

2. Give them a cat toy (they love to chase mice)

3. Watermelon is great because love to pick the seeds out and the high water content helps with hydration

4. Hang old cd/dvd discs so they can look at themselves

5. Make chicken noises!

6. Scatter their grit around the run so they have to find it

7. Chuck some decaying wood (with lots of tasty creepy crawly things) in the run

8. Put some seed in a plastic container with holes in it so they have to work to get it out

9. Tie their favourite food on a piece of string and dangle it from a pole

10. Chicken pinata - put corn in an egg box and hang it up

11. Seemingly some chickens like to shred newspaper

12. Let them watch you as you do your edges around the beds and then give them the bits you dig up. They are full of worms!

13. Chicken football with pecking balls

14. Sing to them

15. Let them out of the run under supervision

16. Slice an orange in half, scoop it out and fill it with leftover veg

17. Fill a suet feeder with veg

18. Get them to bob for apples

19. Carve a pumpkin into an extra room

20. Make your own pecking blocks with grit, seeds, flour, pellets and an egg.

21. Give them cat jingly balls

22. Stuff toilet rolls with leftover veg

23. Let them watch chicken run (courtesy of Sam & Emma)

24. Give them a radio (courtesy of Emma)

25. Give them indoor and outdoor perches

26. Use an old tire filled with dirt for a place to have a mud bath

27. Hang cooked spaghetti from the chicken wire and make them think it is worms

28. Make a gravel area for them to scrat in

29. Dig shallow holes to let them scratch

30. Put some mulch in the run to attract insects

31. String up some bright or glittery things like buttons, they love to peck

32. Teach them to eat out of your hand

33. Make a 'climbing frame' with branches and wood

34. Hug them

35. Let them perch on you

36. Hang a corn on the cob up from the roof of the coop

37. Up turn some log stumps for them to sit on

38. Make an area of straw for them to nest in the run

39. Make piles of things. They hate piles and will scrat and scratch to make them level

40. Put different things in the run like a plastic rake, a crate or other safe objects to investigate

41. Plant some chicken friendly plants like lettuce and cabbage

42. Add some grass cuttings to the run

43. Put your weeds in the run

44. Put the branches that you prune from bushes in the run so that they have something to investigate

45. Hang up a bunch of nettles upside down from the chicken wire and they will strip it bare

46. Cut a butternut squash in half and let them peck at that

47. Give them a tennis ball to push around

48. Don't give them food in a feeder, it makes it to easy for them to find

49. Plant a tray of grass seed and give it to them when it has grown

50. Make a string of grapes and hang it up

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50 Ways To Amuse Your Chickens > This Week In The Garden

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My chickens keep trying to get out, so I decided that I had better find some ways to keep them entertained. No amount of wing clipping and fencing seems to help! So I'm making a list of different ways to...

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Here are some more fun ideas to keep our chickens happy and healthy during this tough time of year!

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Snowy, sub-zero winter weather, hurricanes or severe weather of any type poses serious challenges for chicken keepers. Once the chickens' safety has been secured from the elements, their safety from one another becomes a concern. Whenever chickens are suddenly confined to spaces smaller than they ordinarily enjoy, boredom and behavioral problems such as feather picking, and egg-eating can result. By having some go-to boredom busters up one's sleeve in lousy weather, chickens can be kept busy, entertained and happy until Mother Nature gets her act together.

A cautionary note about edible boredom busters: Limit edible treats to no more than 2 tablespoons per day per chicken and don't offer edible treats every day. Treats dilute the complete nutrition in a chicken's diet, reducing their ability to be optimally healthy, productive and live long lives. When I refer to treats, I mean anything they eat that is not their chicken feed (fruits, veggies, mealworms, scratch, table scraps, etc.)

When personal space and normal pecking opportunities are limited by inclement weather, cabin fever can set in and chickens can get on each other's nerves. That can lead to aggression, feather picking, injuries and cannibalism. Any of these boredom-busting activities and strategies can help prevent behavioral issues from developing.

IF YOU BUILD IT, THEY WILL ROOST

Chickens have a natural instinct to roost and perch up off the ground. Provide them with a variety of things to roost on and move them around from time-to-time to keep things interesting. By building up, the total square footage available to the flock is increases.

GAZEBO FROM TREE TRUNKS AND GRAPEVINES
(plans for this gazebo are available in my book, The Chicken Chick's Guide to Backyard Chickens)

CHRISTMAS TREE JUNGLE GYM
Don't recycle that Christmas tree until the chickens have had a chance to use it as a jungle gym!

Chickens care for their skin and feathers by dust bathing, which is as much a recreational and social activity as a functional one. Providing a variety of containers filled with potting soil, (without vermiculite or pearlite) peat moss or good ol' sand breaks up the monotony and keeps things interesting. Large flower pots, buckets or tubs are all big hits with my chickens.

SCRATCHABILITY
MIRRORS
Add a mirror to the coop or run, making sure it is securely attached to the wall and cannot fall or break.

Make feed available to chickens all day long instead of rationing their food several times per day. Being allowed to pick up small amounts of feed often throughout the day eliminates competition for feed and provides the opportunity for a normal chicken activity with a purpose.

SIZE MATTERS
Provide feed in crumbles form instead of pellets to extend the amount of time birds spend pecking up feed to satisfy their appetites.

TREAT 'EM RIGHT
TREATS OR SNACKS
Treats can be employed as an occasional distraction, but should not be relied upon as a primary form of entertainment. No more than 5% of a chicken's daily diet should consist of treats. Improper feeding is the main cause of the obesity epidemic in backyard laying hens.

KALE CRANBERRY WREATH
Make a Kale Cranberry wreath for the chickens with a 44″ x 10″ piece of chicken wire. Roll the chicken wire into a tube and connect the ends. Bend back any protruding wire to prevent anyone from being poked. Stuff the wreath form with kale and cranberries and serve. My chickens loved it!

GROW SPROUTS
Provide several containers of sprouts to ensure everyone gets some.

ALFALFA CAKE PROTEIN TREATS
This Alfalfa Cake Protein treat recipe provides chickens with a variety of protein sources while keeping them entertained and active.

PEEPS' PUMPKIN PIE
Peeps' Pumpkin Pie is a vitamin-packed, nutritious treat that can be made in large batches, frozen, thawed and served any time of year.

PUMPKIN IN THE RAW
A single pumpkin can provide hours of entertainment for a flock of chickens. Remove it from the chicken yard before the birds have each reached their 2 tablespoon limit.

ALFALFA SOUFFLé GARLAND TREATS
This protein-packed Alfalfa Soufflé Garland is a delicious way to offer molting chickens several protein sources in one treat while keeping them entertained and active!

HOMEMADE FLOCK BLOCK SUBSITUTE
Get the recipe for my nutritious, Homemade Flock Block Substitute here!

FLOCK BLOCK ON A RISER
Turn a galvanized basin over and place a store bought Flock Block on top to keep it cleaner. As always, remove all food from the run after the flock has gone to roost to avoid attracting rodents.

HANGING EDIBLES
Different hanging foods can be a fun and nutritious boredom buster for the chickens in lousy weather.
*STRING WARNING*
If a chicken ingests string, it can get tangled up in their digestive tract, creating a medical emergency and death. When offering chickens treats attached to string, always use a thick material such as this sisal string or wire that will not easily break, secure it well so it cannot come loose from the structure it is attached to, remove it from the chicken yard as soon as they're done with the treat and closely monitor the chickens while enjoying the hanging treat- you do not want to miss a minute of it!

KALE BOUQUET
Tie up a bunch of kale, mustard greens or collard greens and let the chickens have at it!

HANGING CABBAGE
Securely tie up a head of cabbage and hang it at chicken eye level for hours of swinging fun!

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!
TREAT BALL
Buy a Treat Ball chicken toy, fill it with layer crumbles and let the games begin!

CHICKEN CRICKET
Purchase live crickets online or at a local pet store for a game of Catch-Me-If-You-Can!

CHICKEN CRACK BOTTLES
Use a 1/2″ drill bit to drill holes in empty plastic bottles, add chicken scratch (aka: chicken crack) OR, better yet, layer crumbles, and watch the fun break out! Provide several bottles to the flock at once to avoid conflict & fowl penalties.

In the event best efforts to keep chickens from turning on one another fail and an injury does occur, separate the bird from the rest of the flock to administer first aid and to protect the bird from being pecked by other flock members. Read much more on this topic here.

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20+ Winter Boredom Busters for Backyard Chickens! | The Chicken Chick®

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Snowy, sub-zero winter weather, hurricanes or severe weather of any type poses serious challenges for chicken keepers. Once the chickens' safety has been secured from the elements, their safety from one another becomes a concern. Whenever chickens are suddenly confined to spaces smaller than they ordinarily enjoy, boredom and behavioral problems such as feather picking, and egg-eating can result.

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Just look at all these great chicken toys!

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Best 25+ Chicken toys ideas on Pinterest | DIY chicken toys, Plants for chickens and Chicken perches

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Find and save ideas about Chicken toys on Pinterest. | See more ideas about DIY chicken toys, Plants for chickens and Chicken perches.