ChickenTok: The COVID-caused chicken keeping (and weeping)

The pandemic was infinitely successful at shutting people in their homes, effectively trapping them with families and a lack of hobbies due to many focusing on jobs or careers. Through the development and rise of TikTok, a popular video streaming app, connections were made across the globe for people who wanted to share all kinds of information. One thing that has gained great support from many people during times of quarantine is the exciting world of self-sufficient and sustainable living. People have opted to attend more thrift stores, bake their own bread from scratch, and even learn how to garden or make clothes. This huge rush of sustainable living has been followed by a wave of inexperienced and ill-educated people to try some new tasks that may be outside of their comfort zone. However, one of these hobbies has more serious consequences if done incorrectly, unlike if someone’s crochet project is left untouched for more than a month.


The practice of chicken keeping became incredibly popularized on TikTok towards the end of the pandemic during 2021, and without proper training it can be difficult to take care of living creatures. Such is the case with the arrival of "chickentok", where suddenly every TikTok account was owning chickens and simultaneously having issues. Often in other types of popular media, we see some questionable representations of chicken keeping in different scenarios. From Chicken Run to “chickentok”, I have analyzed the worthy notes and hearty “don’ts” of chicken keeping that popular culture has decided to share with the public. I have split the information from three media presentations that are semi-popular describing chickens and their relationship to humans*.



                    *Major note: I am not addressing the use of chickens as food in this blog, because although that is

                     important to discuss in the entire relationship as a whole, I do not have the time to cover such an issue

                     here. My main goal was to answer the question of what popularized chicken keeping looks like and

                     what the pros and cons are in these representations. For other information regarding the popular 

                     media relationship of chickens as food see the link at the bottom of the post.



The comparison of the movies Chicken People and Chicken Run along with the analysis of post-COVID “chickentok” has provided a very clear show of how people care for chickens. And boy do people have a lot of opinions on it! Throughout this blog I will give my personal take on the “good, bad and ugly” of popular culture chicken keeping, by lining up some do’s and don’ts from each piece of media.





The "Good"





One chicken owner demonstrates the bathing process that takes place on their show chickens. The attention to detail with trimming the nails, maintaining the feathers, and cleaning the eyes all adds to great chicken care done by the people shown in Chicken People.



Chicken Run:

                            Hear me out. I know you are thinking “there is absolutely no way there is anything positive about this movie that you could bring up. The psycho farmer literally tried to kill her chickens,” but I am here to pause that thinking! Was the farmer not the best at maintaining her patience when it came to egg production? Probably. But she also provided a kick-ass space for her chickens to spend time in. The only downfall is lack of areas to forage, but they did seem to get plenty of exercise and had a calm routine to follow throughout the day. In all comparisons of chicken care, that is not too shabby in anyone’s book.


Chicken People:


                              I think the appeal here is obvious, but I will take the time to lay it out anyways. This is the epitome of chicken care and love when it comes to keeping. A majority of these animals shown are more like pets or beloved family members rather than a simple section of their farm. There are many camera shots of their spacious runs, and their owner's attentive eye makes frequent checks for disease or issues. Pictured above, they even bathe and trim their show chickens nails and beak to keep them in pristine condition, giving even more opportunity to spot illness early on. The only hesitation that would come from such intensive care would be over-bathing, which could dry out their skin without the proper type soap and longer drying times.


ChickenTok:


                              On TikTok there are in-depth tutorials on really anything you want to do, and it can be a very good place to start for beginners who want more information from real people. Whether it is someone who has owned a family farm for years, or people who have just incorporated chickens into their day to day lives, many practices online encourage sustainability and self-sufficiency. It is a mixed bag in such an analysis, but between the three major accounts I found it was for egg production and companionship. All three of the accounts are at varying stages in their ownership of chickens, but have maintained lovely and what I would call achievable homesteads. One account free ranges, but within their fenced yard and has a coop for the nighttime, and a different account has a pre-built coop shown below.





This is one of the most beautiful examples of pre-built coops that are available on the market. It has the run included within the coop build as well, leaving to less time and stress when it comes to starting a new chicken farm. Not all pre-builds are the best, but ones like these offer lots of space and a nice backyard aesthetic.





The "Bad"





Rocky and our main character Ginger hold tight to avoid being sliced into a pie-shaped piece. Mrs. Tweedy had given up on egg production for money, but ironically spent more money to buy the pie machine, fix it after it was broken, and then ultimately not make any pies by the end of the movie. Good movie karma in action if you ask me.



Chicken Run:


                                      Don't get me wrong, there are several things that I could list as the "bad" in this scenario. However, I think killing chickens for pies when they did not produce eggs takes the cake. Mrs. Tweedy seemed to have married into the wrong family if she was desiring fame and fortune. Her husband clearly states in the film that this is a generationally long family endeavor, so she really only has herself to be frustrated with. Also, chickens don't produce eggs for lots of reasons, and a majority of the time this is easily solvable if you want or need eggs that badly to sell.


Chicken People:


                                        The fiery burn of competition is good to have, and means people will always strive for better quality breeding and birds. There is a line to be crossed between competitive and obsessive, and this distinction makes all the difference when it comes to taking care of livestock. Bathing animals is important, but it is also smart to not frequently "overbathe" your chickens. Daily bathes could lead to dry skin, feathers falling out and potentially weak or sore nails. Animals are also very intuitive creatures, and the owner's/showman's anxiety and stress can affect the chicken. Winning may be fun, but frequent competitions can cause stress and this lowers chickens' ability to fight disease.


ChickenTok:

                                          Although I won't take time to call specific accounts out by name, lack of preparation and knowledge seemed to be the downfall for some new chicken owners. At least two different accounts that had recently gained chickens since the COVID-19 pandemic have had issues with their hens laying after about 8 months of care. Many different things contribute to lack of egg production, but a majority of these inexperienced owners were using store bought feed that lacks variation and nutrient content. Whether it was too many different supplies, not enough supplies, lack of proper foraging space, lack of variety in diet I was disappointed but not surprised to see the struggles of not preparing yourself before getting your own chickens.






This showman above has all of chicken's lineages memorized, by long sets of numbers. However, he is more keen to "breed the perfect chicken" than he is on the actual welfare of the thousands of chickens he owns. Yes you won sir, but at what cost?



The "Ugly"





Do you see these conditions? I mean come on, where is the social distancing for the bird flu?? Absolutely alarming if you ask me.




Chicken Run:


                                   There are such things as "chicken punishments", but it's more like separating a particularly broody hen from the main flock. I believe Mrs. Tweedy may have taken these a bit too seriously when she was first told she could do it to encourage docility. What I wasn't expecting to see was chicken psychological torture to encourage "naughty" chickens to behave. Isolation is typically terrible for chickens, considering they are flock animals that need interaction in order to survive. Loneliness can cause stress and affect egg production, which defeats the entire purpose of their family farm. Also the dogs? Why would you have such aggressive dogs around your chickens? Just some more added stress and I consider this to be cruel and unusual chicken punishment. Terrible terrible care.


Chicken People:


                                      I am all for doing whatever it takes for a competition, but the mental unawareness and obsessive audacity to bring your beloved chickens to a chicken show during one of the most serious bouts of the avian flu? You’re joking, right? Love ‘em like family until they drop I guess…  I lived through the time as a fellow showman (my livestock of choice was goats) and was entirely surprised this was included within the documentary, knowing how many competitions were canceled in the disease's wake. I never expected anyone to admit, let alone celebrate the fact that some chicken owners essentially ignored a chicken pandemic for the sake of winning a ribbon! For shame, you proud poultry parents.



ChickenTok:

                                    People having no rooster to protect your hens: You need a rooster. If you cant have a rooster, have a roof. Hawks are going to try to get your chickens, they are a nice snack for all urban wildlife predators so please for the love of God do not leave your chickens to only be defended by YOU. I have seen one too many posts of people running full sprint, screaming and waving their arms to ward off their aviary predators. There is no possible way someone can hawk-watch for their chickens without going crazy, and your level of success is significantly lower if you are not nearby your coop's vicinity. Do you realize how fast hawks are? You need a roof, people. Or a rooster. Pick one and don't lose your chickens to flying threats.





Here is Mr. Tweedy: throwing one of his hens head first into a metal bin with little to no air flow. Lack of ventilation can kill chickens, and so can stress if you put them through enough of it!!





On the other hand, we have the overconfident "chicken protectors" who most definitely does not have the time to be watching their chickens 24/7. Although they probably did manage to save their chickens from being snatched this time, it is not wise to rely on your watchful eye to protect chickens from hawks.




A Summarization of Thoughts


Overall, chicken keeping can be a wonderful and exciting process that provides sustainable living opportunities with egg laying and composting, although maybe we shouldn't get all of our advice from our popular media. The "good, bad and ugly" I have described above can potentially act as a guide for my conclusive thought: we should take chicken keeping advice from anyone with a grain of salt. Through my own personal research and interest in living sustainably in my adult life I have gathered a plethora of sources that may help guide to other areas of further research and development but the truth is there is no "correct" way to take care of your chickens.

Some people swear by hand-built wooden coops, while others are content to have something that was prebuilt and may be made of a different material. Free range chickens live a much different lifestyle than hens who are fed layer feed from the store, and there are plenty of other options and variations in how to care for chickens that will still keep them healthy and happy. Popular media representations of chicken keeping are few and far between, but I think the three pieces of media I have chosen are representative of just how broadly chicken keeping and care may look like. As always, doing your own research and consulting local sources on what is best for your local chickens is more important than following what people on the internet or in movies tell you to do.

Don't be afraid to get out there and start your chicken farm, but remember to acknowledge the "good, bad and ugly" that may end up making your homestead a flourishing place.





Long-time chicken farmer (@urbanchickenfarmer on TikTok) feeds his chickens almost anything he can find for compost. In the above screenshot he is feeding his flock a leftover crab boil, which included lots of vegetables and nutrients for them to consume.



References / Continued Research

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