Chicken Coop Chatter©
Here at Just Fowling Around, we have our own mascot, Mr. Red, a young Rhode Island Red Rooster, one of our rescue birds, that is not only entertaining to children, but loves to be packed around and snuggled.
Mr. Red follows bro around as he does his chores and makes certain all is well with the various flocks we raise, but even more importantly, Mr. Red serves as a therapy chicken to calm children and for interaction with the children of some of our customers with a variety of disabilities and challenges.
At JFA there are actually several chickens, dog and cat that are so curious and people oriented, they will follow customers around and make their presence known, but Mr. Red actually interacts with people and loves attention, so he has served well for educating and entertaining.
We absolutely believe that chickens are great therapy animals and the more they are handled, the more therapy they can and do provide to children and to adults. Granted, not all chickens are good candidates as therapy animals, but the more docile heritage breeds such as Brahma, Sussex, Orpingtons and Rhode Island Reds that we raise do often make great therapy birds and are typically family friendly. And we do have customers that have purchased chickens from us for the purpose of therapy.
If you or someone you know is an educator or director of special facilities, encourage chickens as a learning tool as well as therapy in nursing homes, adult care centers and special education schools. Chickens help teach children responsibility, and where food comes from. Encourage educators to hatch chicks in spring and to provide a small chicken area for children to have hands on experiences of feeding, cleaning, nurturing and gathering eggs. Remember, this may be the only experience some children will ever have of farm life.
Mary's little lamb followed her to school one day, and entertained the children, so why not a chicken? The more our children understand responsibility and where their food comes from, the better future for them and a lifelong appreciation and fond memory of their experiences.
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Disclaimer: All information and articles are written in good faith. We encourage doing your own research through reliable sources such as State Agriculture Universities and your local County Extension office for expert information. All rights are reserved by © Just Fowling Around. All photographs, text and articles are the exclusive ownership of © Just Fowling Around and © Chicken Coop Chatter. No part of the contents of this website may be used in any written or digital form without express permission of the administrators of Just Fowling Around. December 29, 2011-2016.