Chickens - Tumblr Posts
Phew. This one took, uh… a bit longer than expected due to other projects both irl and art-wise, but it’s finally here. The long-awaited domestic animal infographic! Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough space to cover every single domestic animal (I’m so sorry, reindeer and koi, my beloveds) but I tried to include as many of the “major ones” as possible.
I made this chart in response to a lot of the misunderstandings I hear concerning domestic animals, so I hope it’s helpful!
Further information I didn’t have any room to add or expand on:
🐈 “Breed” and “species” are not synonyms! Breeds are specific to domesticated animals. A Bengal Tiger is a species of tiger. A Siamese is a breed of domestic cat.
🐀 Different colors are also not what makes a breed. A breed is determined by having genetics that are unique to that breed. So a “bluenose pitbull” is not a different breed from a “rednose pitbull”, but an American Pitbull Terrier is a different breed from an American Bully! Animals that have been domesticated for longer tend to have more seperate breeds as these differing genetics have had time to develop.
🐕 It takes hundreds of generations for an animal to become domesticated. While the “domesticated fox experiment” had interesting results, there were not enough generations involved for the foxes to become truly domesticated and their differences from wild foxes were more due to epigenetics (heritable traits that do not change the DNA sequence but rather activate or deactivate parts of it; owed to the specific circumstances of its parents’ behavior and environment.)
🐎 Wild animals that are raised in human care are not domesticated, but they can be considered “tamed.” This means that they still have all their wild instincts, but are less inclined to attack or be frightened of humans. A wild animal that lives in the wild but near human settlements and is less afraid of humans is considered “habituated.” Tamed and habituated animals are not any less dangerous than wild animals, and should still be treated with the same respect. Foxes, otters, raccoons, servals, caracals, bush babies, opossums, owls, monkeys, alligators, and other wild animals can be tamed or habituated, but they have not undergone hundreds of generations of domestication, so they are not domesticated animals.
🐄 Also, as seen above, these animals have all been domesticated for a reason, be it food, transport, pest control, or otherwise, at a time when less practical options existed. There is no benefit to domesticating other species in the modern day, so if you’ve got a hankering for keeping a wild animal as a pet, instead try to find the domestic equivalent of that wild animal! There are several dog breeds that look and behave like wolves or foxes, pigeons and chickens can make great pet birds and have hundreds of colorful fancy breeds, rats can be just as intelligent and social as a small monkey (and less expensive and dangerous to boot,) and ferrets are pretty darn close to minks and otters! There’s no need to keep a wolf in a house when our ancestors have already spent 20,000+ years to make them house-compatible.
🐖 This was stated in the infographic, but I feel like I must again reiterate that domestic animals do not belong in the wild, and often become invasive when feral. Their genetics have been specifically altered in such a way that they depend on humans for optimal health. We are their habitat. This is why you only really see feral pigeons in cities, and feral cats around settlements. They are specifically adapted to live with humans, so they stay even when unwanted. However, this does not mean they should live in a way that doesn’t put their health and comfort as a top priority! If we are their world, it is our duty to make it as good as possible. Please research any pet you get before bringing them home!
Sources: Charlotte Seaton & chicken_lovers_world
Bitches be like “oh nooo, I couldn’t possibly kill this poor defenseless animal, my hand just stops on its own when I try:(:(:(“ And then turn into fuckin Michael Myers as soon as they manage to do it once. It’s me, I’m bitches.
2. Orchard
Back of notebook carton
3. Apple Press
Red delicious on mixed media paper
4. Canning.
Style of Victorian portrait of an unknown, unassuming can.
6. Chrysanthemum (and Goldenrod)
Old T-shirt, cardboard tube, Dish rag
Makes fluffy flowers and fluffy chickens
don’t over feed any!
More recent photos I've taken!
Hoping to go clubbing again soon, I've missed it recently
I went to close the coop earlier but the hens didn’t feel like going home just yet, so I told them they could forage for ten more minutes before bedtime. When I returned (expecting to find them huddled inside, say good night, and close the door) they were standing by the door, looking like they didn’t dare to go in. There was a bird in their coop. A non-chicken bird. It was flying chaotically the way trapped birds do, crashing into every wall, somehow unable to stumble through the wide open door. The hens were staring at it with total stupefaction. The three of us stood there watching the bird and feeling awkward before it occurred to me to open the trap door over the nesting boxes, and it finally managed to fly out through this larger opening. The hens immediately entered their coop, climbed the little ladder to get inside and started the delicate process of choosing which perch to settle on tonight—while clucking to each other nonstop. I bet they’re still talking about it. They saw a fellow bird choose to leave the safety of the coop and fly away into the forest right as the sun was setting. Just about the craziest thing a bird could do. I started walking home and I could still hear their clucks of disbelief inside the coop the whole time.
whats the best way to trim the crest+beard of a silkie? this lady can barely see with all that floof!
My father at least bought the meat chickens and can testify that after a certain point they couldn't move and we had to watch them and tell one of my brothers if we saw one flipped over and we would always lose a few before they could be taken to be butchered.
congrats to the ARAs who got facebook to ban animal sales. shortly before then, many rare heritage chicken breeds were getting much needed attention to save the breeds thanks to various agricultural facebook pages highligting them. but now, with the ban of animal sales on facebook, those heritage breeds have become damn near impossible to find again. guess what that means? the breeds will begin dying out again. people will go back to hatcheries who mass produce unhealthy chicken breeds in horrible conditions. folks will always buy chickens, but now instead of buying them from ethical breeders on facebook they’ll be supporting a terrible industry, woohoo.
hope y’all are proud.