Chicken Training Tips

The Short-list: 

  1. Start practicing! 
  2. Plan out your act in advance. 
  3. Film EVERYTHING (you never know what you might catch on tape!).
  4. Make sure that you find a treat your chicken really likes to motivate them. 
  5. Make sure your chickens feel confident in their training environment and comfortable with you, their trainer. 
  6. Training depends on the chicken more than the breed or age…know your chicken. Not every chicken will want to learn to do tricks. 
  7. Train them where the other chickens are not around to interfere.
  8. Optional, create a start button behavior to start a training session.
  9. Start by teaching your chickens simple targeting skills. 
  10. Chickens are drawn to red and green things.  
  11. Older birds tend to do less jumping tricks. 
  12. Have fun! Don’t train if you are feeling frustrated. The chickens will pick up on it and not want to perform. 
  13. Be patient. Training takes time! 

“For me, as a trainer, it is very important that [the chickens] like to engage in their own training. It’s not something I want to do to them, but want to do with them.” 

Laura Knoops