Chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese are all poultry.
On a chicken farm, hens lay eggs.
The eggs are sent to shops so we can buy them.
Some farms have ducks or turkeys.
Some farms have geese or chickens.
A group of poultry is a flock ©Getty Images
Farm birds
Chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese are farm birds. Together they are called poultry (say pole-tree). Farmers sell poultry and eggs to shops for us to buy so we can eat them. People buy eggs that come from farms. People eat chicken, duck, turkey and goose. They all come from poultry farms.
Poultry are birds. The females lay eggs. If there is no male, then the eggs do not have babies inside. If the female mates with a male, then a baby will grow inside each egg and will hatch in a few weeks.
Poultry eat greens and bugs and snails. On farms they are fed dry food and grains.
A free range rooster and hen ©Getty Images
Chickens
A male chicken is a rooster, a female chicken is a hen, and the young ones are chicks.
Hens lay eggs. Most of the time they are not fertile, which means there is no baby chick inside.
The eggs are washed and packed into boxes.
Trucks take boxes of eggs to the shops so we can buy them.
A free range hen with the eggs laid in a nest of straw ©Getty Images
On some chicken farms, the hens can run around outside and scratch in the ground or hay. They go inside at night for safety and shelter. They lay their eggs on straw in nests. They can peck at the ground to find worms and can eat plants they find. This is called a free range farm. These chickens lead a more natural life than caged hens do.
Watch a video about chicken farming and how to make chicken nuggets
https://youtu.be/v5-wWZwT1UI
Ducks
Ducklings following the mother duck. ©Getty Images
Ducks paddle on the water and walk on the ground. They have webbed feet to help them swim. They make a quacking sound. They eat greens, grains, bugs and snails they find in the grass. A male duck is a drake, a female is a duck and the young ones are ducklings. There are wild ducks and farm ducks.
Geese ©Getty Images
Geese
Some geese are wild birds, and some are on farms. A male goose is a gander, a female is a goose, and a young goose is a gosling.
Geese are big birds. They can be fierce. They have webbed feet to help them swim.
They are good watchdogs!
Turkey ©Getty Images
Turkeys
A male turkey is a tom, a female is a hen and young ones are poults.
Turkeys are big birds. They have a big fan tail. They have red skin on their heads. The red skin that hangs down over the beak is called a snood.
Turkeys make a gobble gobble sound. Some turkeys are wild.
Read about farming and keeping turkeys
https://poultrykeeper.com/keeping-turkeys/
Factory Farming
Most eggs, chicken, and pork products come from factory farms.
Caged or battery hens ©iStock
A battery hen on an egg farm is confined in a space about the size of an A4 piece of paper. She remains in this cage for her egg-laying life, never running around in the fresh air. The hens are often de-beaked (beaks are trimmed) and crammed together in rows of cages in vast sheds. The eggs roll down onto a shelf for easy collection. Hens stretch their necks through the cage bars to feed. It has been found that battery hens that are rescued and taken to live a natural life of scratching for food such as worms, bugs and greens are unable to roost on a branch or pole because they have not had the opportunity to perch as they would naturally.
A vet is checking a huge barn or shed containing hundreds of chickens. ©iStock
Factory farmed chickens bred for meat don't fare any better. Thousands are crammed into large sheds, unable to run or even walk about. The sheds have strong lights that are like sunlight because the birds stay inside all the time. They are bred to grow faster than they would naturally.
Free Range Farming
Many people think that it is cruel to keep animals in pens and sheds for all of their lives. They say that free range farming is less cruel and that the animals will be healthier.
Free range is a method of farming animals where the animals, are free to roam outside for at least a part of everyday. This gives the animals a chance to exercise in the fresh air and sunshine. Free range can be for meat, eggs or dairy farming.
What method do you think would be best?
Free range chickens run in the field during the day and go into sheds at night for safety and to lay eggs in nests. ©iStock
It is always a good idea to use more than one source of information, so here are some others for you to investigate
Read more about chickens and ducks:
Read about how to keep geese and other poultry (click on the tabs on top of the page to read about different poultry birds):
https://poultrykeeper.com/general-waterfowl/beginners-guide-keeping-geese/
Read kidcyber pages about other kinds of farms:
Read a kidcyber story about Ben and Petra who keep pets
Pets for Ben and Petra
