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Zoey Zhang

In several first-tier Chinese cities, chickens, which were once confined to the dinner table, are finding a new role: cherished household companions.
On social media, posts and videos about “pet chickens” have racked up over 3.1 billion views, underscoring how they are reshaping perceptions of pet culture in urban China.
In southeastern China’s Guangdong province, a local saying goes: “No chicken leaves here alive”, a testament to the region’s love of eating poultry.
Yet one woman, Aguai, inadvertently hatched chicks after receiving three fresh eggs from relatives.

Enchanted by their fluff and charm, she decided to spare the tiny birds and give them a chance to live.
Aguai’s three pets are Taihe black-boned silky fowl, a rare and distinctive breed in China valued for both culinary and medicinal purposes.
People also nicknamed them “Phoenix Fairies” because of their snowy feathers and graceful poise.
Aguai told the mainland media outlet 36Kr that the chickens are gentle, compact and easy to accommodate, with monthly feed costs under 30 yuan (US$4).
Known for their strong digestion and self-healing abilities, the chickens quickly became a delight. After 10 months, Aguai described them as “the perfect pets.”

She also said that vets reassured her there was little risk of disease from keeping pet chickens.
While rural chicken coops can experience outbreaks such as bird flu, keeping just one or two as pets is believed to be entirely safe.
Many owners, like Aguai, sleep alongside their pet chickens and even customise leashes and nappies.
Outdoors, the birds are carefully placed in prams, dressed in clothes, shoes, scarves and hats.
Chickens, they say, have neither a strong odour nor do they shed like cats and dogs.

A netizen from Jiangsu in eastern China keeps a rooster nicknamed “Slanted Bangs” because of its unique comb.
He said chickens are intelligent and can understand human words.
“After raising it for a long time, it can communicate with humans, showing eye contact, temperament and emotion,” he said.
Another owner, Alin, who has raised parrots, three cats, a dog, and a chicken, says chickens are the most emotionally attached.

Cats and dogs, she says, often come with pressure: expensive food, vet bills and sleepless nights.
Chickens, by contrast, sleep quietly and wake promptly at dawn.
“Raising chickens has taught me that life is not that complicated. It is as relaxed and simple as a day in the life of a chick,” she said.
According to reports, most of these pet chickens come from farms, either as broilers destined for slaughter or as roosters that would have been discarded for not able to lay eggs.
Some supermarkets even give away chicks with purchases of eggs or yogurt to promote their products.
Also, some farmers sell chicks in city parks for 1 to 3 yuan (15 to 44 US cents), attracting children and parents who may also buy other farm produce.
For many urban chicken owners, keeping chickens carries a clear moral dimension, even if they are not strict vegetarians.
They say that interacting with sentient chickens has reshaped their perception of farm animals.
One owner once wrote on social media: “I never imagined I could form such a deep bond with a chicken. To me, she is no longer food but family.”

“I still eat meat, but that does not stop me from caring for my pet. It has made me think more about improving farm animal welfare and making kinder consumption choices.”
The trend is part of a wider boom in unconventional pets in China. Reptiles, insects, rodents and other unusual animals are increasingly finding homes in urban areas.
According to China National Radio, around 17 million people now keep such pets, supporting a market approaching 10 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion).


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Trending in China

China city dwellers adopt chickens as pets, treating them like babies, walking them in prams

Keeping pet chickens is a growing trend in urban China, leading to a re-examination of animal ethics and the bond between people and pets. Photo: SCMP composite/RedNote

Furry friend: It would be hard not to like this fluffy feathered fowl. Photo: QQ.com

A broody hen sits comfortably in its specially-made, blanketed bed. Photo: QQ.com

Ruling the roost: These two birds are right at home in their owner’s house. Photo: QQ.com

The above owner takes her chicken for a ride in the passenger seat of a car. Photo: QQ.com

This girl holding a newborn puppy and kitten has adopted a more traditional attitude to keeping pets. Photo: Shutterstock

Chinese New Year bamboo greeting cards date back over 2,000 years to Han dynasty

Chinese New Year greeting cards date back over 2,000 years to the Han dynasty. They were initially made of bamboo and later paper. Photo: SCMP composite/Sohu/Weibo

A Chinese New Year greeting card made of bamboo from ancient times, above. Photo: QQ.com

As methods of sending developed over time, paper greetings, like the one above, became popular.   Photo: QQ.com

The above painting depicts a servant delivering a red-coloured so-called flying letter.  Photo: QQ.com

A man holds a modern-day 3D gift card with a horse on a red background. Photo: Shutterstock

China worker gains envy after winning 7-day ‘rain leave’; boss also offers cash subsidies

An employee in China has been envied online after she won paid leave for seven days when it rains in a company raffle. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock

The lucky woman on the right was all smiles when she won her rain leave raffle prize. Photo: Sohu

People wade through a flooded street following heavy rains in Changsha, southern China. Photo: AFP

The above employee drew a raffle ticket that bagged her a hair drier as a prize. Photo: Sohu

Another lucky employee of the company won a US$30 cash subsidy prize. Photo: Sohu

China influencer tricked into Cambodia cyber scam recounts ordeal but live-stream was cut short

Chinese influencer Umi who was tricked into telecom fraud while in Cambodia, recounted her ordeal in a recent live-stream that was cut short.  Photo: SCMP composite/Douyin/RedNote

Umi, above, was found near a Cambodian hotel, looking gaunt and dirty, holding a CAT scan and suffering from a leg injury. Photo: RedNote

Gradually, Umi resumed her social media and live-streaming activities. She revealed she was forced into “keyboard work,” a term linked to telecom fraud, shortly after being lured to Cambodia. Photo: RedNote

Cyber scam operations in Southeast Asia have surged, with a UN report estimating about 300,000 people from 66 countries, including China, trafficked into fraud rings in the region. Photo: Reuters/Soveit Yarn

China influencer builds house for girl who claims to be raising sisters alone amid family drama

A philanthropic Chinese influencer splashed out to build a house for a girl who falsely claimed she was raising her younger sisters alone while facing family issues like gambling debts. Photo: SCMP composite/Douyin

Chen Jiajun, right, chats with Aji and her sisters as they sit around a rudimentary fire. Photo: Weibo

Chen was shown the shabby bedroom, above, and decided to help the sisters. Photo: Weibo

Workers hired by Chen working on the construction of the new house. Photo: Weibo

The four sisters look excited as they are shown into the house that Chen built. Photo: Weibo

One of the smart looking rooms in the new home Chen paid for. Photo: Weibo

Plight of parentless China boy cared by grandpa attracts 46 million views, prompts government aid

A nine-year-old boy in China relies on his 73-year-old grandfather after his father died and his mother remarried. His teacher was so moved by his story that she offered to care for him if his grandfather dies. Photo: SCMP composite/Douyin

The boy’s grandfather said Zichen, above, often cries when he dreams about his late father. Photo: Weibo

Zichen being comforted by his grandfather, the only family member left to look after him. Photo: Weibo

Zichen gives his grandfather some food. The youngster worries that if his grandpa does not eat well he might die. Photo: Weibo

Zichen with the teacher who has pledged to look after him should anything happen to his grandfather. Photo: Weibo

News

People & Culture

Urban people embrace poultry pals that are cheap to keep; some say the birds understand words and dress the chooks in hats and shoes


Urban people embrace poultry pals that are cheap to keep; some say the birds understand words and dress the chooks in hats and shoes.


Pets

China city dwellers adopt chickens as pets, treating them like babies, walking them in prams

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Urban people embrace poultry pals that are cheap to keep; some say the birds understand words and dress the chooks in hats and shoes

Urban people embrace poultry pals that are cheap to keep; some say the birds understand words and dress the chooks in hats and shoes