Shown above, my flock enjoying a no bake overnight treat form.

Chicken enrichment is providing sensory activities for your chickens to alleviate boredom and stress. In many areas winter means chickens will be spending more time indoors in smaller spaces. Boredom can result in undesirable behavior like feather pecking, over eating, and aggression. Providing your chickens with enrichment supports your overall health care habits for the happiest and healthiest chickens possible.

Here are a few no cost enrichment ideas:

Gathered sticks with foliage. Sticks and large branches can be used to provide additional perches and visually interesting exploration items for your chickens. You can gather sticks that have fallen from nearby trees. Remove or sand down any sharp or protruding edges. Do some quick additional research if there is foliage left on the branches that the leaves are not toxic to your chickens. Don’t gather materials from public property; don’t gather materials from private property without permission.

Gathered greens. Hand gathering greens from your own yard your chickens can’t access and bringing it into their area can provide entertainment! Remember to stick to safe greens for your chickens like long grass, clover, and dandelion greens. Don’t provide your chickens with any greens that have been treated with any lawn chemicals, these are toxic and deadly to your chickens. You can even dig up a small patch of weeds with dirt for your chickens to disassemble!

Spending time with your chickens. Daily maintenance is an essential part of a healthy care habit routine for your chickens. When you’re gathering eggs or inspecting their run and coop for any signs of predator disturbance, take time to linger with them. If possible bundle up and bring a chair out into their area. Observe them and coax interactions with treats. Your presence will be interesting to them and you can enjoy watching them explore!

Here are some low cost enrichment ideas:

Straw or hay puzzle. Purchase a bale of straw or hay. Pull off one section and sprinkle your chicken’s feed or favorite treat on top. They will have lots of fun scritch scratching it apart! Even without the addition of treats chicken’s love to disassemble piles. You also do this when providing them with clean litter. Leave a pile for them to enjoy scattering themselves!

No bake treat forms. You can create interesting treats for your chickens with the feed you already have on hand! Line a container with parchment paper or foil for easy removal of the treat form. Fill the container with your chosen feed and treats. Add filtered water but not enough to submerge the food and treats. Press into the container with your fingers and refrigerate overnight. Pour the form out into a livestock safe dish. This is a visually interesting way to present your chickens with their regular food!

Vegetables and fruit on strings. Treats like cabbage, heads of lettuce, and apples can be hung on strings. Your chickens will have fun slowly picking them apart. Remove the seeds if you use apples. Remove any treats before nightfall to avoid attracting vermin to your chicken area. Check your local grocery or farmers market for clearance fruit and vegetables.

Treat treasure hunt. You can create a treat treasure hunt for your chickens. Hide small caches of treats in your chicken’s run or yard area. Place treats in slightly hidden but discoverable places in areas they have access to in safe dishes and watch the fun unfold! This creates multiple livestock dishes that will need to be gathered and cleaned up at night.

Refresh their bath. Chickens having access to their regular dust bath is important during the winter months. Refresh the materials in your chickens dust bath to help keep them both healthy and amused! Chickens also benefit from grit and calcium supplement in a separate container during the winter months when they have less access to the outdoors.

I hope this is helpful! Do you have tips for keeping your backyard chickens entertained during the winter time? Share them in the comments on our YouTube channel!