Factory farming has made us think of chickens as mindless automata. But our downy friends know much more than we give them credit for.
Factory farming has made us think of chickens as mindless automata. But our downy friends know much more than we give them credit for.
I would say that maybe we didn’t value intelligence but rather the contrary when breeding them, and thus we probably put natural selection out of the equation.
Yeah, I can agree.
Since getting the chickens, I’ve met people with pet chickens as opposed to working birds. The breeds that have been bred as pets or show animals do tend to be smarter, even compared to other breeds raised the same way. Your typical Rhode Island red is a bit dim compared to something like a silkie, even when both are hand raised and well socialized.
But I don’t think anyone has bred chickens for smarts at all.