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Chickens are hilarious and surprisingly adorable. All plans of eating ours went right out the window when I brought home the first wave of day-old chicks. They

by tomcam 1y ago

Chickens are hilarious and surprisingly adorable. All plans of eating ours went right out the window when I brought home the first wave of day-old chicks. They can be very mean to each other. “Pecking order” is literally true and the results can be heartbreaking. Ours have never pecked each other’s eyes, thank heaven, but I’m guessing most of that is from the roosters, not the hens. Roosters can get disgustingly rapey and have to be separated from the hens, who can get seriously injured during the mating process.

natmaka 1y ago
I heard from someone who raised chicken that they are way more agressive towards each other when their diet lacks adequate proteins.
- eMPee584 1y ago
  Low Protein intake => low neurotransmitter levels => lower emotional balance / control is a causal chain I've learned about a few years ago from a therapist named Julia Ross who treated thousands of patients with this insight and published three books about it, the most recent one (The craving cure) being a comprehensive practical resource about this phenomenon. It seems to be a major factor in depression, addiction, obesity, and dysfunctional social behaviour.. and little surprise it affects chicken, too. In my view, we have massive problems (child brain development, social problems) in the world because of protein scarcity, as capitalism excels providing everyone with ample cheap carbs but cheap sustainable protein, not so much. I dream of open source bioreactors for algae (spirulina etc) too boost availability of Protein & Omega 3 (which is another hugely undersupplied nutrient, esp. in non-coastal regions and as appetite for sunflower-fried batter goes up, because Omega 6 cancels out 3).. here in Dresden, we have a small start-up https://algenwerk.de https://algenwerk.de that is trying to commercialize it but the cost really has to be brought down a lot, rn one jar is about 8€ for some green goo that tastes like nothing, but it has potential and they are a talented team.
  - dillydogg 1y ago
    I'm no dietitian, but for the "cheap, broadly available protien" I think beans and lentils fit the bill. I do not know if they are sustainable, which you mention as a requirement in your post, but surely plant based is more sustainable than meat.
dyauspitr 1y ago
>disgustingly rapey This anthromorphization is deeply annoying. What next? Turtles don’t care about age of consent?
- bowsamic 1y ago
  We have indoor rabbits and our boy rabbit often mounts the female one (they are both neutered). What else is there to call it but rape? He mounts her, she rejects it and runs away, he insists, eventually she has enough and they have a fight. It’s basically impossible to not call it rape
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
  - mc32 1y ago
    It’s mating behavior. The don't have the concept of rape. They don’t have peers who punish them for this behavior. It all instinct and nothing else.
    - bowsamic 1y ago
      It doesn't matter if they have a concept of it, I'm talking about our concept of it, and their behaviour accords to that concept
      - quesera 1y ago
        Zero chickens are aware of human concepts of order. You might as well rail against clouds for forming, or rain for falling.
        bowsamic 1y ago
        Agreed, of course
  - quesera 1y ago
    It's a loaded word though, with psychological and social implications that far exceed the simple description of the act. Absent the psychology and society, what is it? Obnoxious dominant behavior, maybe. But in context, is it even obnoxious or is that just humans having opinions again? The hens don't appear to love it, but they don't like being rained on either. And just like being caught in a rainstorm, they shake themselves off, and get on with their day. Is this OK? I don't know, but it's thoroughly normal and necessary for species survival. Hens do not go into heat or have sex drives, so the hen will never initiate or encourage sex. So all chicken mating is nonconsensual. What does consent even mean here? Yet they survive as a (now domesticated) species. Similarly, is it "murder" when a coyote eats a chicken? Maybe, but only if we're anthropomorphizing. Really it's just predation. It sets off our moral triggers, but it's an essential function of life -- and for that matter, we do it too and rarely feel bad about it.
uncircle 1y ago
> Chickens are hilarious and surprisingly adorable. They are, but also extremely dumb. I always think of Herzog's rant about chickens and their stupidity. As they are literal dinosaurs, the terrifying aspect of gigantic carnivore sauropods with the "intelligence" of a chicken has never been properly depicted in movies.

by tomcam 1y ago

natmaka 1y ago

I heard from someone who raised chicken that they are way more agressive towards each other when their diet lacks adequate proteins.

eMPee584 1y ago
Low Protein intake => low neurotransmitter levels => lower emotional balance / control is a causal chain I've learned about a few years ago from a therapist named Julia Ross who treated thousands of patients with this insight and published three books about it, the most recent one (The craving cure) being a comprehensive practical resource about this phenomenon. It seems to be a major factor in depression, addiction, obesity, and dysfunctional social behaviour.. and little surprise it affects chicken, too. In my view, we have massive problems (child brain development, social problems) in the world because of protein scarcity, as capitalism excels providing everyone with ample cheap carbs but cheap sustainable protein, not so much. I dream of open source bioreactors for algae (spirulina etc) too boost availability of Protein & Omega 3 (which is another hugely undersupplied nutrient, esp. in non-coastal regions and as appetite for sunflower-fried batter goes up, because Omega 6 cancels out 3).. here in Dresden, we have a small start-up https://algenwerk.de https://algenwerk.de that is trying to commercialize it but the cost really has to be brought down a lot, rn one jar is about 8€ for some green goo that tastes like nothing, but it has potential and they are a talented team.
- dillydogg 1y ago
  I'm no dietitian, but for the "cheap, broadly available protien" I think beans and lentils fit the bill. I do not know if they are sustainable, which you mention as a requirement in your post, but surely plant based is more sustainable than meat.

dyauspitr 1y ago

>disgustingly rapey This anthromorphization is deeply annoying. What next? Turtles don’t care about age of consent?

bowsamic 1y ago
We have indoor rabbits and our boy rabbit often mounts the female one (they are both neutered). What else is there to call it but rape? He mounts her, she rejects it and runs away, he insists, eventually she has enough and they have a fight. It’s basically impossible to not call it rape
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- mc32 1y ago
  It’s mating behavior. The don't have the concept of rape. They don’t have peers who punish them for this behavior. It all instinct and nothing else.
  - bowsamic 1y ago
    It doesn't matter if they have a concept of it, I'm talking about our concept of it, and their behaviour accords to that concept
    - quesera 1y ago
      Zero chickens are aware of human concepts of order. You might as well rail against clouds for forming, or rain for falling.
      - bowsamic 1y ago
        Agreed, of course
- quesera 1y ago
  It's a loaded word though, with psychological and social implications that far exceed the simple description of the act. Absent the psychology and society, what is it? Obnoxious dominant behavior, maybe. But in context, is it even obnoxious or is that just humans having opinions again? The hens don't appear to love it, but they don't like being rained on either. And just like being caught in a rainstorm, they shake themselves off, and get on with their day. Is this OK? I don't know, but it's thoroughly normal and necessary for species survival. Hens do not go into heat or have sex drives, so the hen will never initiate or encourage sex. So all chicken mating is nonconsensual. What does consent even mean here? Yet they survive as a (now domesticated) species. Similarly, is it "murder" when a coyote eats a chicken? Maybe, but only if we're anthropomorphizing. Really it's just predation. It sets off our moral triggers, but it's an essential function of life -- and for that matter, we do it too and rarely feel bad about it.

uncircle 1y ago

> Chickens are hilarious and surprisingly adorable. They are, but also extremely dumb. I always think of Herzog's rant about chickens and their stupidity. As they are literal dinosaurs, the terrifying aspect of gigantic carnivore sauropods with the "intelligence" of a chicken has never been properly depicted in movies.