From roast to roost: The therapeutic benefits of chicken companionship

There has been a rise in ‘pet’ chicken keeping in the UK. This in part might be due to chickens being more accessible, part of eco-friendly lifestyle and push for healthy food. There is evidence to suggest chicken keeping is beneficial due to providing company, they are therapeutic to watch and give people a sense of purpose. To date there is limited empirical research to explore how the participants perceived chicken to affect their health and welling. Therefore, this study was an exploratory research on this topic. This study used a mixed method approach to collect data by conducting an online questionnaire. 337 people completed the questionnaire. The key finding of this research illustrated chickens provide a range of benefits which include providing a sense of companionship, happiness, routine and a sense of purpose. There were also practice benefits such as egg production, gardener fertilizer and meat. This study concludes that further exploration is required.