The popularity of backyard chickens is said to be on the rise, and if the proliferation of books, specialized magazines, online poultry resources and newspaper stories is any measure, that would seem to be true.
Yet one thing I’ve learned in six years of keeping chickens is that it’s difficult to find veterinarians who are willing to care for these birds, even in a state like Maine, where my wife Liz and I live with our tiny flock of two Rhode Island Reds.
I was reminded of this recently when Nellie and Hope, our hens, required care that was beyond our homegrown expertise. Fortunately, we have access to a diverse rural veterinary practice that treats both large and small animals, including chickens.
We’re very grateful for this facility, but there is a downside. It’s 18 miles from home. That’s nowhere near as convenient as the much shorter trips we make when our cats and dogs need professional help. Yet there are no vets closer to home who work with chickens.
So what accounts for this dearth of poultry-friendly vets?
For one thing, chickens are nowhere near as popular among pet lovers as other animals are. Precise figures are hard to come by, but the Los Angeles Times reported last year that fewer than 2 percent of American households raise chickens. That number is expected to rise, but chickens won’t jump to the top of the pecking order anytime soon. About 44% of all American households have a dog, and 35% have a cat, according to the American Pet Products Association.
And although I can’t prove it, I suspect that a significant number of chicken owners never seek veterinary care for their birds. (This is what I think of as "hey, they're only chickens" syndrome.) So if the demand for such care is not all that high, simple economics would dictate that the supply will be limited. As a veterinary technician told us during our recent visit, the chicken is one critter that would-be vet techs don’t have to bone up on during their training.
“This is a learning experience for me,” the tech said as we waited for the veterinarian. On average, she said, this particular animal hospital sees only one chicken per week. So as much as it may ruffle the feathers of some poultry fans, when it comes to veterinary priorities, the furry set still has the upper paw. And no amount of clucking is going to change that.
Yet one thing I’ve learned in six years of keeping chickens is that it’s difficult to find veterinarians who are willing to care for these birds, even in a state like Maine, where my wife Liz and I live with our tiny flock of two Rhode Island Reds.
I was reminded of this recently when Nellie and Hope, our hens, required care that was beyond our homegrown expertise. Fortunately, we have access to a diverse rural veterinary practice that treats both large and small animals, including chickens.
We’re very grateful for this facility, but there is a downside. It’s 18 miles from home. That’s nowhere near as convenient as the much shorter trips we make when our cats and dogs need professional help. Yet there are no vets closer to home who work with chickens.
So what accounts for this dearth of poultry-friendly vets?
For one thing, chickens are nowhere near as popular among pet lovers as other animals are. Precise figures are hard to come by, but the Los Angeles Times reported last year that fewer than 2 percent of American households raise chickens. That number is expected to rise, but chickens won’t jump to the top of the pecking order anytime soon. About 44% of all American households have a dog, and 35% have a cat, according to the American Pet Products Association.
And although I can’t prove it, I suspect that a significant number of chicken owners never seek veterinary care for their birds. (This is what I think of as "hey, they're only chickens" syndrome.) So if the demand for such care is not all that high, simple economics would dictate that the supply will be limited. As a veterinary technician told us during our recent visit, the chicken is one critter that would-be vet techs don’t have to bone up on during their training.
“This is a learning experience for me,” the tech said as we waited for the veterinarian. On average, she said, this particular animal hospital sees only one chicken per week. So as much as it may ruffle the feathers of some poultry fans, when it comes to veterinary priorities, the furry set still has the upper paw. And no amount of clucking is going to change that.
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