Toys for Your Pet Chickens

Chickens are curious and interested in the world around them, but basically the main things that are going to interest them are food and shiny things. When thinking about toys for them, it's important to realize they aren't like dogs, they aren't likely to do things simply to please you, nor are they like cats that will chase most anything. Toys for chickens need to be turned into something that will appeal to them. Food is the main driving force. Toys that involve eating are going to be the most popular and therefore the most useful. Even chicken scratch can be used as a toy if it's tossed somewhere like their bedding or the compost pile where they can dig around for it. This also turns over everything so while the chickens are having fun looking for the bits of corn and grain they're also mixing the compost or bedding for you.

Even when playing with the chickens in a way that doesn't directly involve food, you can make them interested by giving them a treat for doing what they're supposed to. Rewarding a chicken for pecking at a piano key will quickly make the chicken realize that pecking on the piano will get them food. Thus many things can be turned into toys or games, as long as you work with them and are willing to be patient while the chicken figures it out.

Picture from Veebl

Don't force your chickens to perform all the time to get their treats. Once a week or twice a week for non-strenuous activities is good, but you don't want to stress your birds. Just use common sense and everyone can have safe and a rewarding fun.

With all of these toys it's important to remember that moderation is key. Some activity is good for them, but it's not good for the chickens to have to run and jump and chase stuff constantly. Too much jumping can also seriously affect a hen's laying as well. Making a heavy bird jump too high too often is not good for them and can lead to leg problems. Also make sure they're going to have a safe surface to play on. A heavily pitted area should not be used for jumping or running, and a slick surface can be dangerous as well. If there is too much competition and many of the chickens don't ever get the treats, squabbling can break out. Flocks will often compete anyways, but if it crosses the line into too aggressive behavior you will need to make an effort to play with everyone equally or possibly play with only half the flock at a time so everyone has a chance.

Toys Made of Fruits and Veggies

Most fruits and vegetables make great toys, especially ones that roll. Almost all fruits and vegetables are safe for chickens to eat, with the exceptions of potato peels, onions, and avocados. Some ways to make the fruits and veggies into toys are:

• Hang a head of cabbage from a rope so they can jump up and rip off pieces


• Get their attention and then throw a piece of fruit such as a peach across the yard so they can run over there and eat it


• Toss small items like berries and green beans into their bedding so they have to dig through it to find the treats


• Roll peas across a flat hard surface such as a patio so the chickens can race to get them


• Pack an old rotting log with banana


• Place frozen peas into a small kong-type toy that you'd normally use for a dog then show the chickens that if they roll it around the peas will fall out


• Hang leaves of lettuce from a clothesline


• Toss small pieces of fruits and vegetables into the air so the chickens can jump and grab them


• A pumpkin or other squash broken open in the yard is fun for them to dig through and is also a natural wormer, and once they are used to that you can place whole ones in the yard for them to peck at


• A bag of frozen cranberries can be a bag of fun for your chickens if you roll the bright, shiny berries all over for them to chase

Baked Toys

Leftover baked goods or ones you make specifically for your flock can be lots of fun for your chickens. Just be cautious since too-soft bread can be a choking hazard.

• Baked, hard rolls roll really well and are fun for the chickens to chase


• A loaf of french bread threaded onto a rope and hung from the ceiling makes a fun target to jump and rip bites off of


• Small rolls studded on their fence are great for the chickens to peck at


• Bagels and non-frosted donuts are good to hang around the coop as well as hanging from the ceiling or rolling across the ground


• Bake up some chicken cookies to hang around the yard. A simple batter such as that for biscuits or cookies without sugar works well, then incorporate some peanut butter, seeds, and grains and bake until cooked through. They're especially good if you cut holes in the middle before cooking since they're easier to hang then.

Other Food Toys

Not just bread and fruit make good chicken toys, there are all sorts of items you might have in your kitchen that they might enjoy. These are just a few options, there are probably many other items in your kitchen that will make great chicken toys.

• Chunky peanut butter spread on items around the yard such as rotting logs give the chickens a fun thing to peck at as well as giving them extra protein


• Cooked rice make a fun treat when spread on rotting logs as well


• Cooked pasta depending upon the shape can be hung in low bushes for the chickens to jump and peck at


• Hard boiled eggs rolled across the lawn are fun for them to chase and tear up


• Yogurt poured into a bag with a small hole in it then hung up will drip and the chickens can have fun trying to catch each drip that falls to the ground, you can do the same thing with a punctured milk carton as well


• Meaty bones are fun for the chickens to clean up and they can also drag them around the coop playing keep away


• Sprouts are an especial favorite of chickens and scattering them across the coop bedding makes for a fun game of hide-and-seek


• Cornmeal or oatmeal or grits made up can be spread on logs for the chickens to scrape off and seek in all the little books and crannies


• Cereal, especially things like Cheerios, make fun chicken toys, simply string it and hang it in the coop or on the fence line or scatter it around for them to find


• Roll a pine cone in peanut butter then in bird seed and hang where the birds can peck the goodies off


• Make suet out of used cooking grease and seeds and peanut butter and hang for them to jump at

Re-purposed Kiddie Toys

Often baby toys and toddler toys make great toys for chickens. They're designed to attract with bright colors and interesting textures and noises, and the same things that make something a great baby toy often make it a great chicken toy.

• Shiny, kid safe mirrors can interest the birds for a while


• Those popular plastic rings of keys can be coated in peanut butter and tossed to the flock or hung from a low spot for them to peck at


• Plastic kiddie gyms can be set up for the chickens to play with


• Stacking the colored donut rings then hiding something in the middle of them can make a fun challenge


• Wind-up and walking toys can entertain the chickens for a while as well


• A lightweight ball tossed into the pen can occupy the chickens by allowing them to kick it around

Other Ideas for Chicken Toys

• Mirrors can keep the chickens occupied for a time, though be cautious that they won't attack it hard enough to break it


• A Sunflower hung in the coop makes for great fun


• Some parrot toys can be fun for our bigger feathered friends


• Insects, bugs, etc such as worms and crickets released in the coop may scatter everywhere, leading to tons of chasing fun


• Old CDs cast interesting patterns upon the ground when the sun reflects off of them and they move in the wind. This leads to lots of reflection chasing fun


• Sprays of millet hung about the coop are fun for jumping and grabbing, and then chasing if they manage to get a spray loose


• A chunk of sod, with dirt and roots all attached still can be fun for them to dig and scrape through, looking for little tidbits


• A rotten wood log, stuffed with whatever you have available makes a fun toy that will keep your chickens occupied for hours


• A pile of fallen leaves full of bugs and other chicken yummies makes a fun thing for them to play around in


• Taking a handful of weeds that are safe for the chickens to eat and tying it up for them to jump at is really fun for them as well as tossing handfuls over the fence


• A suet cage stuffed with whatever treats are handy makes a nice little chicken piñata


• Plastic Easter Eggs with holes poked in them and filled with seed are fun for the chickens to roll around so that the seed falls out and they can eat it


• Cricket tubes, tubes designed to allow out only one cricket at a time will give the chickens tons of fun as they wait for each of the yummy creatures to venture forth


• A sturdy container such as a plastic tub or coffee can with holes poked in it and filled with seeds makes a fun toy for the chickens to roll all around and eat up anything that falls out