Fresh eggs from their own chickens every day – a dream that even city dwellers like to fulfill. Chicken keeping is currently very popular in Hamburg and Berlin. But the task is overwhelming for some – this leads to an emergency in the animal shelters.
For many city dwellers, chickens are the new urban gardening. During the Corona period, even more people discovered self-sufficiency in themselves. But many a keeper is overwhelmed with the poultry – and it ends up in the animal shelter.
Hamburg animal shelter: chicken keeping is all the rage
Colleagues from the Hamburg Animal Welfare Association from 1841 reported that keeping chickens was “in” right now and were feeling the consequences, according to Lea Schmitz from the German Animal Welfare Association.
The animals were confiscated because they were not kept appropriately or found because they were abandoned.
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In Hamburg several abandoned roosters as well as seized chickens and roosters from poor husbandry were taken in this year. “It is to be hoped that the chickens do not develop into a” problem “nationwide and that the keepers acted responsibly when purchasing them,” says Schmitz.
Chicken keeping: The situation is serious in Hamburg and Berlin
The situation is serious in Berlin too: The director of the Berlin animal shelter, Annette Rost, has already sounded the alarm: “We have significantly more chickens than usual this year, unfortunately they are often brought by the veterinary office,” said Rost. The development looks more positive for other animal species. “In view of the critical situation that many people find themselves in, it is great that many people still opt for an animal from a home,” she said.
Chickens stand in an enclosure at the Berlin animal shelter and eat from the hand of a keeper.
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Veterinary office informed: Chickens kept in a box in Berlin
When it comes to chickens, it happens again and again that the experts from the veterinary office have to confiscate animals due to improper keeping. “We recently received chickens that were kept in a box on the balcony in Prenzlauer Berg. Fortunately, attentive neighbors have informed the veterinary office, ”says Rost.
The employees of the Berlin animal shelter suspect that the chickens were bought due to a lack of leisure activities for children or for self-sufficiency.
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In the summer, the shelter had to take in five chickens that were kept in cardboard boxes on a high-rise balcony and injured each other from stress.
The shelter normally houses around ten chickens and roosters, even if there are around 30 at a time this year. “Since we have to form groups and set up enclosures, we have a problem with accommodation,” says Rost. Two roosters were currently living in the exotic house due to the lack of space. “Taps are very difficult to find. They don’t lay eggs and make noise, ”says Rost.
