Providing environmental enrichment to broiler and layer chickens is one of the most impactful welfare improvements possible. Understanding what enrichment chickens need clarifies what is missing in most farms.
The cognitive sophistication of chickens has been dramatically underestimated by the agricultural industry that houses billions of them. These animals have demonstrated basic empathy for their chicks, self-control in foraging tasks, and the ability to understand that objects continue to exist when hidden. Denying such animals any environmental complexity - no perches, no dust bathing substrate, no objects to investigate or manipulate - causes chronic boredom and frustration that manifests in injurious behaviors like feather pecking. The enrichment requirements of chickens are modest compared to the welfare benefit: perches, straw bales, and pecking objects cost little and reduce suffering significantly.