A happy wife is a happy life, but a sad flock can definitely lead to a bad professional life as well which is why for today, we decided to bring you a direct guide over why you should be buying your chicken toys and most importantly, what are the best chicken toys on the market that you can choose from.
But before we actually get into that last part right there, we should probably slow it down and bring up why exactly you even need toys for your chicken in the first place.
You might find it funny but that question definitely has a reason as to why it’s so commonly asked by farmers all around the globe and here, we’re about to answer it for you.
Why do Chicken Need Toys?
There is a plethora of reasons as to why your chicken would need toys, but at the end of the day it all boils down to your chicken’s overall mood. If your chicken is sad or downright depressed, getting them a toy is most definitely going to help them. But why would you care about whether they’re happy or sad?
First off, that’s a very rude question, but we’ll let that slide for now. Secondly, there are plenty of outcomes that can be caused by the chicken’s overall mood which can really impact you personally. For example:
- Chicken can end up cannibalizing each other when depressed, this is because they’re a lot more prone to being violent and since chicken can eat anything as long as it’s edible, they can end up killing one another and cannibalizing the remains.
- On a much smaller scale, chicken can also end up bullying one another because of their bad mood. You will often times see chicken downright harass one another for no reason and that can only spread around the negativity which can result in the fear we had above.
- This can also result in the chicken eating its own eggs or eating the eggs of another chicken. This happens a lot, and it can easily be fixed by just buying your chicken a toy instead.
- Regardless of whether it’s about the chicken that’s depressed, or the chicken that surround the depressed individual, they can end up pulling feathers every now and then which can be painful and even life threatening in some cases
- Last but not least, this can also result in the chicken ending up obese, since they’re so used to being sedentary in the first place. Sure, if you plan on eating the chicken, them being obese might not be all that bad news for you but if you want the eggs to keep on coming you better give the chicken a toy so they can exercise a bit.
But alas, if you want to avoid all of those factors you will need to give the chicken the toys it deserves to play around with. So, how can you choose the perfect one? Here are the 22 best chicken toys that we could think of as of 2021:
22. Hanging Swing Mirror
This is a very inexpensive toy that will confuse and entertain your chicken for hours upon hours. It is meant to attract their attention and cause them to attack it, but don’t worry, it will also clean your chicken’s mouths in the process so it’s a win-win for them.
21. Hen Treat Spiral
Essentially this makes for the perfect toy for your chicken because it will help them get their cardio in whether they like it or not.
Chicken love corn, and they will absolutely love messing around with this toy. Sure, you will only be able to put a single corn in the cob inside but it will last quite a long time considering how hard it will be for the chicken to pick it clean.
20. Cranberry Wreath
A simple cranberry wreath is more than perfect for your chicken because you can easily just place it on a metal fence near your chicken coop and have it entertain your chicken all day long. Since chicken love both picking at the coronet and cranberries, this will be a match made in heaven for them.
19. Chicken Xylophone Toy
Chickens absolutely love music, more than you’d think anyways! While most chicken aren’t exactly musicians themselves, they always react positively to the sound of it, which is why they’ll absolutely love this gift.
18. Wooden Jungle Gym
This is a great tool to help them exercise while also being incredibly fun to traverse over. On top of it all, it’s very easy to assemble and very cheap too. It can be used by babies too, and as they grow older you can, instead of throwing it out, give to your feathered babies instead.
17. Tree Branch Gazebo
This is definitely on the harder side to assemble than you’d probably like, but the results speak for themselves. Just look at how happy these feathered babies are after they stand around and walk on the gazebo, it literally makes their day which is why it’s such a good choice for them.
16. Roosting Ladder
Backyard Barnyard 30″ Stretch Chicken Perch
While we usually wouldn’t refer to a ladder as a good idea for a toy, this is a chicken we’re talking about here and they are pretty much famous for how much they love jumping on high places and just standing there. Roosters especially love this.
Just make sure that it is safe for them to jump on, you wouldn’t want the momentum to have them fall off or even worse, for the ladder to fall on them. That might hurt them or even kill them since chickens are so fragile.
15. Chicken Playground with Treat Basket
While definitely on the more expensive side, this chicken playground right here is definitely what we would refer to as one of the best toys you can get for your backyard flock.
It even has two ladders attached to it making this an incredibly fun toy for them to mess around with. If you don’t have a chicken tractor, this might be the best thing for your chicks.
14. Hanging Loofah or Shredded Paper Toys
We decided to put these in the same listing simply because they’re equally fun to play around with and most importantly, they usually come together when you buy a pack.
They are easy to destroy, so while they are not exactly long-term investments, they can still make for some incredibly fun toys that your chicken will absolutely love to mess around with and pluck at until there’s nothing left.
13. Chicken Swing
Since chicken are unable to fly, the concept of feeling the wind beneath their wings is probably pretty much just foreign to them at this point.
But this doesn’t mean that they can’t still get a similar experience! Just give them this chicken swing and see them enjoy themselves to the fullest as they swing back and forth on it.
12. Chicken Superhero Arms
While definitely more of a toy for you than for them, this can not only make them look goofy and funny to look at, but it can also make your farm liven up a bit, and even bring in more customers as time moves on since they’ll remember your farm and especially remember these muscular feathered babies.
Just make sure that you don’t forget to take them off after a while since they’re not meant to be used for longer periods at a time.
11. Lixit Chicken Toy
A very cheap and easy to use toy, all that you need to do with this is you need to fill it with the chicken’s favorite treats, whether that be scratch or mealworms, and just like that your chicken will get the workout of their lifetime as they try to have all of these sweets at once.
Definitely one of the most rewarding toys on our list, just imagine the amount of fun they’ll have as they continue to peck at it, waiting for the goods to come out.
10. 4 Way Play Bird Toy
Chicken love to chew around and that’s a fact. This is why, if you want your chicken to really have the time of their life, we recommend that you get them this toy right here. Don’t worry about the choking hazards either, it’s all FDA approved stuff right here.
9. Vegetable String Bag
This is literally one of the cheapest toys you can get them, and it is also one of the sturdiest ones at that too. While the chicken will eventually peck their way through it, for the time being, it makes for an incredible DIY toy that you can easily get access to in no time.
8. Paper Party Bird Toy
While this toy in itself is great for your chicken, you can make it even better by filling them with treats so that they can get that effort/reward going, so they’ll try their hardest while also having the time of their life.
7. Noisemaking Bird Toy
Just like any other animals out there, humans included, chickens love to hear jingle noises, which is why this is the perfect toy for them. Chicken love to peck at anything that looks remotely interesting, so whenever they hear the noisemaker do its job, they won’t be able to help themselves from pecking at it.
6. Chicken Treat Roller
For this toy all that you need is a roller and some corn. This is another cheap toy that your chicken will absolutely love and on top of that you can also make them work a lot for their treats which means that they won’t be getting obese anytime soon either using it.
You can use most any treats that the chicken like, although you do need to make sure that the holes in the roller are large enough for the treats to fall through. There’s no point in them pecking for the treats if they can’t get to the treats in the first place.
5. Vegetable Hanger Feeder Toy
If you are interested in this toy, we highly recommend checking out Vehomy because they make some of the best vegetable hanger feeder toys on the market.
But don’t worry, they haven’t monopolized the playground either so you can easily get this toy from most any toy shop you can think of.
But alas, this is a great toy idea because it makes the chicken work for their treats, and on top of that it also just looks very good for your farm, it’s one of those toys that children love to see around the coop.
4. Precision Pet Chicken Treat Ball
While definitely being extremely cheap, this is also one of those toys that can offer your chicken hundreds of hours of playtime, and we’re not exaggerating right there.
It is one of those toys that they’ll always come back to because it offers them exactly what they want. On top of that it’s also very easy to attach to your coop and it can be filled with anything, including vegetables or any other treats you can think of.
This toy in particular is made out of metal, meaning that it can also withstand the hardest of pecks out there, so you won’t ever have to be scared that the chicken is playing a bit too rough with it. Definitely one of our personal favorites right here.
3. Cricket Tubes
The best part about the Cricket tubes is definitely the fact that you can either go ahead and buy really cheap ones online or you can simply put just make your own for literally no money whatsoever.
All that you need is a plastic tube and you’re already halfway through your process. Next up just make some holes in it and fill them up with treats.
This will make the chicken start pecking at it, which will result in more treats falling on the ground. It is definitely a very good choice for those that want their chickens to exercise a bit more and it also just looks funny to see them chase after this tube while continuously pecking at it.
2. Rope Bungee Bird Perch
Chicken will always be attracted to things that bounce around a lot. Add in the fact that this toy also looks exactly like something that they’d find crawling under the ground and you’ve got your chicken’s attention right off the bat.
Essentially this is the perfect choice for your chicken if you want to develop their balance, coordination and of course, leg muscles, since they’ll be jumping around after it at all times.
While a bit more expensive than the other toys on this list, it’s worth every penny because it offers so much fun to the chicken.
1. Pillow Flight Foraging Bird Toy
We all know that chicken love to pull and pluck at anything that they can, which is why this is such a perfect toy. It is literally meant to be destroyed, and the chicken know this.
They constantly peck at it, and as they do, they have the time of their lives. While this gift will not last them forever, it will still last a lot longer than you’d think, and during this period your chicken will be having the time of their life.
Conclusion
So, there you have it, the 22 best toys for chicken that you’ll find out there. Sure, a lot of them are just different variations of one another but they most definitely get the job done so why would we ever complain about that?
Regardless of which one of those toys you choose to go for, just remember that your chicken’s mental health is just as important as your own, so look up some toys for yourself while you’re at it too.
It may sound silly but if you’re dealing with stress you will find yourself absolutely needing a stress-ball or something of that sort to calm your nerves. Remember, as long as it’s for your mental health it doesn’t matter how silly it may seem.
Contents
- Why do Chicken Need Toys?
- 22. Hanging Swing Mirror
- 21. Hen Treat Spiral
- 20. Cranberry Wreath
- 19. Chicken Xylophone Toy
- 18. Wooden Jungle Gym
- 17. Tree Branch Gazebo
- 16. Roosting Ladder
- 15. Chicken Playground with Treat Basket
- 14. Hanging Loofah or Shredded Paper Toys
- 13. Chicken Swing
- 12. Chicken Superhero Arms
- 11. Lixit Chicken Toy
- 10. 4 Way Play Bird Toy
- 9. Vegetable String Bag
- 8. Paper Party Bird Toy
- 7. Noisemaking Bird Toy
- 6. Chicken Treat Roller
- 5. Vegetable Hanger Feeder Toy
- 4. Precision Pet Chicken Treat Ball
- 3. Cricket Tubes
- 2. Rope Bungee Bird Perch
- 1. Pillow Flight Foraging Bird Toy
