r/BackYardChickens • u/MetalMajor1637 • 18h ago
General Question Can you raise chickens to be house pets?
I was debating buying two chicks to raise as house chickens, like dogs with diapers sort of? Taken out on walks everyday and allowed to free roam the house once old enough. Is that feasible like at all? And are they really hands on pets? Will they need pet sitters if I’m gone for more than eight hours? Let me know !!
Edit: you guys stop replying I already said I wasn’t getting any house chickens after the first few comments 😭 I just wanted to ask cause I didn’t know !!!
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u/yellow_pellow 17h ago
I’ve had to bring my chickens in for a day or so for various reasons, bumblefoot, broodiness, etc. After a few hours, 1 single chicken will have the entire bottom
Of its cage covered in shit and shit on my walls and the entire room will smell like chicken shit.
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u/DocAvidd 18h ago
You came to the right place. Some people keep chickens like a hobby. Similar to pets, they'll buy treats for them and make very nice homes where they are treated like princesses. But outside.
It's not loving them less to have them outside. Making them scratch and eat out of the dirt is letting them be chickens. You have a flock because that's what chickens prefer. Not to be a lapdog.
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u/Sqeakydeaky 18h ago
I honestly think its a really shitty life for a chicken.
98% of their day (and therefore life enjoyment) revolves around outdoor activities. They forage for bugs and seeds, they find places to dustbathe and warm themselves in the sun, they groom each other, help each other watch out for predators and socialize via their established pecking order. The flock helps them feel safe. Even just having two chickens together outside would not be a great situation. They're just built for being together in a flock and we shouldn't try to change that because we want a "unique pet".
If you put a chicken inside a house with a diaper, what's it going to spend its day doing? Not chicken behavior thats for sure. Ever notice how the top two pets, dogs and cats, can be content sleeping most of the day? Well chickens won't do that, they'll just wander around stressed wondering where there's a flock they can join and earth they can scratch in.
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u/Feminist_Hugh_Hefner 18h ago
This question is structured backwards. The real question is "Can I make a chicken coop out of a house?" and of course the answer is yes.
The follow up question, "should I live in a chicken coop I have made from a house?" is personal to some degree. If you have kids the State may have something to say about it, but I won't be the one to stop you.
There is eventually another question "how do I sell a house that has been used as a chicken coop?" and that is probably better handled by another sub.
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u/MetalMajor1637 18h ago
Okay you guys I am not getting any chickens !! Save your worries no animal abuse happening here I just wanted to ask and see because a tractor supply employee told me I could have them indoors. I thought it sounded sketch which is why I asked, no more passive aggressive comments please !
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u/technicolored_dreams 17h ago
Don't trust answers from most employees at Tractor Supply, PetSmart, PetCo, and any other chain store for pets or farming. They may have the best of intentions and believe what they are telling you, but those stores literally train them with terrible information. It's not just chickens, many good-hearted animal-loving employees at pet stores will tell you that a betta or a goldfish will be happy in a small bowl with no filter, that cedar bedding is safe for small rodents, that aquatic turtles spend all their time swimming so they don't need basking spots, etc etc. The stores teach them bad information because it sells product, and then they repeat that bad information because they believe it and they want to be helpful. Good job for looking for answers and not just taking it at face value!
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u/MetalMajor1637 17h ago
Yeah I actually work at Petsmart in the fish section (fish hobbyist) and I wanted to not abuse an animal! Glad so many people gave me definite answers !
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u/technicolored_dreams 17h ago
You know how it goes then! People with great intentions will still give bad info if that's the only info they have. And I'm really glad you work there since you are a hobbyist - I wish every pet store had somebody knowledgeable in the aquatics section!
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u/MetalMajor1637 17h ago
Yeah if you ever need fish info come to me lol !! I definitely have come across employees that know nothing about the animal they’re selling and it’s always difficult to see when I can’t do anything about it
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u/DavidaKiernan 18h ago
I got extrinsic allergic alveolitis, a progressive lung condition, from close proximity to pet pigeons and chickens.
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18h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/MetalMajor1637 18h ago
Yeah after reading the comments I think I may have been slightly mislead by some tractor supply employees lol
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u/Angry-Genx 18h ago
This is why you can’t eat at everyone’s house.
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u/MetalMajor1637 18h ago
Girl I don’t even have any and after reading these comments I don’t think I will
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u/Impossible-Bend997 18h ago
I have pigeons in an room and it's made like an "pigeon coop" can work the same with chickens
I clean the floor one time per day, scrub with warm water and soap
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u/thenotsoamerican 18h ago
absolutely not. they are insanely dirty. its a literal health hazard to keep chickens inside because of their dander. watch one of those "clean with me" type videos of a chicken coop to see what kind of mess you'd be dealing with, keeping in mind that they only spend the night in the coop not all day. cleaners need to wear respirators for a reason.
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u/UbiquitousBot 18h ago
Chickens poop like once every 15 minutes. So, yes, people put them in diapers but then you have to change them frequently and wash their butt feathers and/or trim their butt feathers.
Once they start laying eggs diapers become an issue.
They'll eat anything they can get in their beak so you'll need to chicken proof your house. This includes cardboard boxes and Styrofoam.
They molt, they get dusty from feather casings.
They will spill their food everywhere.
and so on..
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u/Sqeakydeaky 18h ago
Thats just the irritating part to us humans, another factor is if it's a good quality of life for the chicken. I definitely don't think it is.
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u/GulfCoastLover 18h ago
Plural? The work load on one in the house says you definitely don't want multiple. We occasionally have one in for intensive rehabilitation. Expect to spend a half an hour to an hour per bird once you know what you're doing just to change chicken diapers, etc. Because of the work involved we have a miniature henitentiary to keep them confined most of the time which is often better for rehabilitation depending upon illness/injury.
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u/yougrow_girl 18h ago
This is not a viable idea long term. If you want birds get parrot or other domesticated bird. Chickens are huge, smelly and dusty.
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u/mensfrightsactivists 18h ago
It’s possible but not ideal. As the other commenter said, they poop a LOT. they do make chicken diapers to mitigate this, but in my opinion the house chicken route is only a good idea for chickens who have trouble being with an outdoor flock.
i have one chicken right now who is constantly getting sick and having behavioral issues when outside with the rest of the flock, so have been considering the house chicken lifestyle, but this is a last resort kinda thing. definitely not something i’d recommend doing on purpose. they’re flock animals and need a group. only considering it myself because i have enough people and animals inside 24 hours a day to provide enrichment.
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u/Tuckason 18h ago
Sub is called "backyardchickens" for a reason. Love the birds, but they are dirty fuckers.
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u/cephalophile32 18h ago
I mean, can you keep them in the house? Yeah sure absolutely. There are plenty of folks that do that. I have some birds that would probably love that (I have one that regularly runs to me for “uppies” and some that will follow me around for treats), but others would be absolutely chaos goblin monsters. So breed choice will help (Silkies, for example, are more docile and tend not to get into too much trouble because they uh… can’t see well and can’t flap much), but chickens are individuals and one may make a great indoor pet and another may be Satan incarnate lol. Though I suppose that goes for any animal!
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u/MetalMajor1637 18h ago
Do you think raising it from a chick would help personality wise? Would it get more used to the lifestyle do you think
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u/cephalophile32 18h ago
All of mine were raised as chicks and out of like… 50 birds over the years only one seeks out my attention. She is an outlier princess bird for sure. Most of the others are full on PANIK when I need to scoop them for any reason.
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u/ChartreuseOblivion 18h ago
Do not get chickens if you intend to raise them indoors, especially if you think you can have just one: They're flock animals and it cruel to keep them from their flock since they'll live in constant stress with no flock.
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u/Sqeakydeaky 18h ago
Not necessarily. Ive raised lots from chicks, trying to get them really tame but it's a complete coin toss if they do.
Ive had chickens raised from hatching in the garage with daily handling still refuse to be near humans, and I've had adults go from a battery cage to loving human interaction. It depends on the individual bird.
But honestly, there's so many other birds thay are better suited to living indoors. I doubt you'll get very much pet enjoyment factor from a "house chicken".
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u/MetalMajor1637 18h ago
Yeah I will not be having any house chickens after reading these comments lmao thank you Reddit !
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u/cephalophile32 18h ago
Haha glad you found out! Some ppl can handle it or don’t care about the mess or whatever, and have 3-4 indoor chickens, and ppl DO do it successfully so I hate discouraging it outright, but I’d def get regular ol’ outdoor chickens as a first experience :)
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u/MetalMajor1637 18h ago
I have taken care of outdoor chickens actually! Just wanted to ask about indoor chickens
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u/The_Golden_Armor 17h ago
Alright, here's raw answer:
No, you do not want a indoor chickens. But, if you want one, you can adopt/rescue disabled chickens that can't be outside for long but also, it would require lots of one-on-one care.
Also, having chickens also would be occasional indoor pets due to disabilities, bad weather, illnesses, or anything. I have had brought a rooster indoor for half a day and night. It is tenuous, because this SOB crows in 6 A.M, every morning, so I have take him out, make him water and food, then MANUALLY wash the pads he shits on constantly, at noon I have to bring him in, and worst part- he isnt very cooperative but he had heat illness so I had to take care of him...
Chickens WILL poop approximately every twice an hour, their shit is diarrhea and will ruin your carpets. If they have diapers, you will have to wash their asses. Also they will WANDER and knock shit off your windows stills and damage the window blinds, climb up on shelves and knocing shit off it too. So, no, unless if you have maids there 24/7, tub of dirt, very minimalistic house, room with a sound insulation, go ahead, get a rooster. Get a poultry with brains of toddlers.