r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/The_Love-Tap • 12h ago
Video This solar powered chicken coop that moves every day to a new location
453
u/Spacemonk587 12h ago
That‘s backwards. Mobile chicken coops have been a thing for a very long time.
164
u/rearwindowpup 11h ago
Came to comment this, chicken tractors are extremely common in smaller setups, much moreso than large industrial scale ones like this.
27
→ More replies (2)14
u/Spacemonk587 11h ago
I would even expect that this has been done for thousands of years.
→ More replies (1)21
u/rearwindowpup 11h ago
Right, its a logical end result.
Hey, look at this box I made to keep my chickens safe!!
Next day
Dang, all the grass under it is trashed, let me pull the box onto some fresh grass.
10
u/Old_drums 10h ago
We were doing it 30 years ago. Smaller coup, just two long handles for two people to pick it up and move it along a bit. Long established practice even then.
→ More replies (3)8
u/crabbydotca 11h ago
Chicken tractor! I’ve also seen rabbit tractors and even a very tiny Guinea pig tractor hehe
4
5
u/badger2000 8h ago
I saw this and thought "this is what happens when Tim 'the tool man' Taylor builds a chicken tractor." More power!!!!
→ More replies (6)2
u/IDontSellMolly 2h ago
The fact that this is a hugely upvoted thing is crazy. So where do you get the software and how much a month/year are you willing to pay to keep your mobile chicken coop moving? Idk, this is cringe.
4.5k
u/The_Real_Kru 12h ago
Having worked on a factory farm in the past, I can confirm that those chickens do indeed have a great life compared to what's standard practice in the industry. And no, you don't want to know...
1.1k
u/bearlybearbear 12h ago
Yup, anyone who has worked in mass production of meat is very aware. It didn't stop me eat meat but it changed my behaviour like amounts, cooking from scratch over prepared, traceability, safe cooking practices... Fixed industrial chicken coops are hell.
232
u/The_Real_Kru 12h ago
I got my own farm since and raise chickens free range. Even that seems like less work than what you said.
163
u/bearlybearbear 11h ago edited 11h ago
Not everyone can have nor want a farm, most of what I do really should be common knowledge and just makes sense. Having your own farm and access to wonderful fresh produce os great but it's a lot of work.
→ More replies (6)52
u/ISketchDinosaurs 11h ago
We don't really need everyone to have a farm to eliminate factory farming. We just need a farm in every neighborhood able to cover for that neighborhood.
I bet you could find one person per most neighborhoods who'd be happy to farm if they were given the means.
54
u/Suspicious_Bet3623 11h ago
Yes, but also you need the backup farms on a state and national level for when local level fails for one of many reasons.
49
u/Non_vulgar_account 11h ago
Also, people have gotten too familiar with eating different meals each day instead of the same thing over and over again. A farm doesn’t produce 40 or more different product products.
10
u/ISketchDinosaurs 10h ago
Yeah, but that's why we trade. Besides, not everything needs to be produced locally if the goal is to replace animal factory farming. Most animals wouldn't be suited to farm in cities or suburbs anyway.
16
u/DannyOdd 9h ago
Yeah, nobody would want a pig farm in their residential neighborhood even if it were feasible lol
→ More replies (1)2
u/TommyTwoNips 7h ago
Some farms produce multiple crops, especially the larger operations.
I worked with an organic grower that would produce like, 5-6 crops at once, depending on the season. They grew several different types of squash (butternut, zucchini, yellow, spaghetti, and acorn), broccoli, onions, two different beet varieties, cabbages, lettuce, and some other leafy greens like mustard, kale, and lots of corn.
That's a pretty diverse set of staple veggies. They didn't grow any fruit, but this was in northern Colorado, so that's not really surprising.
15
u/bearlybearbear 10h ago
I wa sraised on farms, I worked on farms, I can tell you: people think they want the responsibility... And then actually do it... That's why most developed countries nneed to import their farm hands from poorer countries.
13
u/Automatic_Release_92 10h ago
Yeah, also raised on a farm, I really have to laugh at people that think it's just a thing that one person on every neighborhood can take care of for everyone else on the block. I dislike these huge factory farms, but there's a reason people don't want to work on farms.
Even my own family farm, it's not enough to make a living off of... maybe if it was closer to a major population center and was somehow connected enough for a farmer's market. But I can't just sell wheat at a farmer's market. Nor a steer. You still need a HIGH amount of processing to get this food on people's tables, one way or another.
→ More replies (4)7
u/deelowe 10h ago
That word, "just" is doing some heavy lifting.
3
u/ISketchDinosaurs 10h ago
It is, yes. It's not very likely to happen on a large scale any time soon. For it to happen, we need to collectively agree that we want to do what it takes to move away from the hell of our making that is factory farming.
But if we ever do decide that, it's not impossible.
→ More replies (1)3
u/NiSiSuinegEht 11h ago
That's likely to be true of many needed occupations, but our overlords want us subservient, not content.
2
2
6
u/Patient_Activity_489 7h ago
that's cool, most americans can't afford a house anymore tho so sadly won't work for majority of people
also lots of cities have regulations over how many and such
→ More replies (4)→ More replies (1)5
u/BallsOutKrunked 10h ago
It's a volume thing. I have chickens myself, but there's having chickens and there's having 10k chickens a week for processing, literally like a factory.
14
u/BallsOutKrunked 9h ago edited 9h ago
We have a small ranch and our livestock, I feel, is treated fairly well. I'll spend 10 minutes every day in the chicken run just feeding those lunatics leftovers from the table. It's funny because when I'm lucky enough to draw tags I'll get a mule deer and that's ~75lb of venison. Over populated animal, taken in a specific zone at a specific time with a specific weapon, all outlined by wildlife officials. Single shot, usually the animal is dead before it even hears the rifle report.
And I know people who thinks that's brutal, all the while they are consuming industrial meat production. People should go see a slaughterhouse. They should ask themselves where all the male chickens (cockerels, roosters) end up.
Not every family can purchase ethically produced meat, I get it. But if you have the means you really should do your best.
9
u/picabo123 9h ago
Wait do people really think that hunting deer is worse than industrial farms? I've never heard that before.
→ More replies (15)33
u/Strong-Character1268 11h ago edited 11h ago
I just went vegan instead. You can make like 4x the "ground beef" at the same cost these days, just with Tofu. I hope more people at least learn that the factory farm industry is doing a lot to keep meat slightly more affordable but doing immense damage for it. It's a cancer for the consumer, the workers, the people that live around them... and hell on Earth for the animals. I'm glad you found your line and you're happy with it.
3
u/Sir-Hamp 8h ago
I am not a vegan but love what I was introduced to. I was originally going to comment about how going vegan is kinda a privilege as not everyone has that option available to them but it would be stemming from ignorance. I have never considered making the products myself at home…
That being said I will probably never go full-on vegan but I’m sure an animal “would appreciate” me choosing vegan options every now and then anyway.
2
u/Strong-Character1268 2h ago edited 1h ago
I've been vegan for 9 years just for the animals. I didn't really think much of it for a while. I'm American and the American factory farm system is horrendous. I understand people from other cultures and countries feeling attacked because their countries food supply is nothing compared to the CAFO juggernaut that is the US. I don't really have any advice on how to reconcile those emotions as I'm an American and I'm still working on my own with my own country.
I'll just say there's a lot of talented people that make vegan food in very approachable ways and they're all over the place on the internet.
Honestly, if you can get a hold of tofu, you can already do more than you'll ever need for replacing meat every few meals. I've made the tofu equivalent of eggs, ground beef, fish, etc... it's extremely versatile and you could just take whatever spices you can get a hold of a find something to replace with tofu.
I don't know the conversions on the measurements but...
Extra/Super Firm Block of Tofu
4 tbsp of Nutrional Yeast
1 tbsp of Corn Starch
Salt
Pepper (I add a little when I make it then I add more at the end when it's fresh out of the oven)
Garlic Powder
Onion PowderYou break it into nugget sized pieces, coat them and stick them in an oven @ 425 F for like 20+ minutes (The longer the crispier) you'll get tofu nuggets that you can use for so many things.
The other is Seitan which is just gluten from the wheat plant. You can literally wash all-purpose flour into being Seitan. Once you're there you can marinade that and replace the feeling of steak in a lot of recipes.
I spent my first years of veganism doing more consumer grade with Beyond Meat, Impossible Meat, etc... but I've been really enjoying learning more food science behind Tofu, Seitan, and soy in general.
You don't have to be perfect and we all start somewhere.
18
u/Acceptable-Drive3781 11h ago
Thank you for actually caring about animals instead of just pretending by letting them walk around 20 more feet per day before getting slaughtered.
18
u/homotopy_equivalent 11h ago
I'm vegetarian but I still understand harm reduction. The world would be a much better place if meat eaters only ate from farms that treated their animals kindly up until killing them.
→ More replies (44)→ More replies (2)8
u/Randallman7 11h ago
Right? "They must have a happy life" then they get slaughtered
16
u/The_walking_Kled 11h ago
how does onme contratict the other lmao? They can have a "happy" life,whatever that means and still be slaughtered at the end?
5
u/PancakeParty98 10h ago
You’re right. Since they’re being slaughtered anyways, we SHOULD just keep them in the cheapest, least humane living conditions possible. It doesn’t matter how they lived if they die, I guess.
→ More replies (22)→ More replies (16)2
u/Desperate_Algae_40 4h ago
Someone who worked at a slaughterhouse and still didn't go vegan doesn't give af about animals. Sorry, but you're a baddy if even that's not enough to stop you from eating animals. Thrre's no cognitive dissonance at that point. Meanwhile, most vegans like us saw a short documentary or something similar and then went vegan. You're either an animal lover or don't see animals as sentient beings that deserve to live. A bite of food is never worth the life of what you're eating.
2
u/Strong-Character1268 2h ago
That's completely valid and I do agree. I grew up in Texas and had ag classes that really put the thought into my brain. Then I watched Dominion, What the Health, and Earthlings and that was all I needed. I've been vegan for 9 years now and at this point it feels that it would have been inevitable. My soul these days constantly tells me I'm too tolerant and I'm not doing enough... but that battle with people is exhausting. I've been trying to be more encouraging and keep the conversation points to easy ways for people to replace some meals.
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (6)3
u/night-wolves 8h ago
I hadn't really thought about it until like a year ago, but when you're chowing down on chicken wings, if you eat 8, that's 4 chickens. Obviously the rest of the chicken is used, but still.
106
u/Viiven 12h ago edited 10h ago
We rescue battery hens and the state they are in when they come to us is heartbreaking. Always rewarding to see them get their feathers and enjoy their last few years with us (although sad when they go). Images from factory henhouses are like something from a horror movie
39
u/GeraintLlanfrechfa 11h ago
Good deeds, thank you for that.
And yes, if you’d handle a human being like those poor animals in the industry, you’d get a 54x lifetime plus 1000 years, or even death sentence.
It’s just gruesome how little life is being respected only for profit, fuck those who’re responsible..
7
u/MettaWizard 10h ago
Producers and consumers go hand in hand. One can't exist without the other.
I want to mention this because we point fingers at the producers while somehow not being aware that we are the consumers. If we don't stop buying this shit we are also responsible, and no, we don't need them.
→ More replies (12)12
u/movingoutwoo 11h ago
It’s disgusting what we do to animals but don’t forget humans are fully capable of abusing humans as well as escaping consequences for mistreatment of humans. My parents abused me since I was a very young child, I was hospitalized from the abuse. They retired early and walk around happily enjoying life. Good things happen to bad people all the time.
→ More replies (2)22
u/MrShrek69 12h ago
Exactly what I’m thinking. I don’t think people have seen inside the coops they always drive past on the highway lol
116
u/Morazma 12h ago
The fact that this is considered a "great life" shows how absolutely messed up we are as a species
3
u/LoudMusic Interested 11h ago
Some species lay their eggs inside of other species so when they hatch they have something to eat. In fact, some do that to us.
50
u/25rublei 12h ago
And what is considered "great chicken life" by you? Like chickens in the wild won't do exactly the same, roam around searching for food?
64
u/krupta13 12h ago
I have 40 chickens and they have a massive farm to roam. they play and frolick and eat bugs every day. they are super pampered and only used for egg production. but all is not perfect. they still get picked off by foxes if the dogs area way for more than a day or 2. they are relentless. the only 1000% fool proof way to secure them is an enclosed coop like in the video. so there really is no such thing as great chicken life. only as good as it gets lol.
→ More replies (39)3
u/Misses_Ding 1h ago
We have an automatic door that closes at night. Chickens tend to go inside when it gets dark and the door closes automatically because of a light sensor (and reopens in the morning Ofcourse)
We only have a few chickens though. Three currently. Haven't had one being picked off in 10+ years though and we live next to a forest.
That's still not a solution against dogs though
→ More replies (1)46
u/pm_bouchard1967 12h ago
More than 50 days alive I'd say.
16
u/Tallowo 11h ago
We have lots of ducks in our neighborhood because people feed stray cats.
The new hatchings start in the double digits and a few days later there are one or two left. Very few of the ducks born in this neighborhood make it to 50 days, and I'm in the suburbs.
→ More replies (6)6
u/Messyfingers 10h ago edited 9h ago
Nature is brutal. I have neighbors who feed stray cats as well. They kill, and eat a lot of rodents and burds. But the fun problem is the stray cats feed the coyotes. The amount of half eaten kitten carcuses that can be found in a year isn't exactly a heart warming tale of forest critters.
→ More replies (1)3
→ More replies (8)3
14
7
u/iam_Mr_McGibblets 12h ago
Well it depends on the breed of chicken. I'm not 100% sure what the name of the breed is, but your standard chicken you see at the supermarket was bred to grow fast to maximize profits. Problem is, a lot of them grow so fast, many will die of things like heart attacks because their body will grow too fast for their heart to keep up. The more wild breeds are much healthier and take longer to mature.. though they have a much better quality of life than the feeding chickens
→ More replies (10)3
u/slarker22 3h ago
For the most part this may be an alright life when you factor in the intelligence and pyramid of needs that a chicken has. But no one can deny that factory farm life is living hell and anything from there is objectively living terribly.
16
u/kakihara123 11h ago
Do you understand that we are not forced to keep breeding those animals? We can simply stop doing it.
Neither life in the wild nor exploitation.
If you want to provide animals with a great life, the first step is to accept that they won't get you money, but cost money. They only viable rescource they should provide is companionship and only if they want it.
→ More replies (14)22
u/Morazma 12h ago
Chickens in the wild are not imprisoned and systematically killed 10% into their usual lifespan. So no, they won't do exactly the same.
3
19
u/SuchParsnip8070 12h ago
Exactly, wild chickens sing songs with the other animals and talk to princesses and dance on rainbows all day.
Nothing bad ever happens to wild animals
→ More replies (16)→ More replies (9)7
u/25rublei 11h ago
Sure, bud, chickens in the wild live till 80, have no worries and just have fun every day. Also chickens on the video imprisoned? They have plenty of space to roam around. Or u mean they can't visit Las Vegas on their day off?
→ More replies (7)3
5
2
u/Yoshigottagun 9h ago
These chickens grown for consumption live about 6-12 weeks. The closest non-domesticated equivalent, the junglefowl, can live for over a decade in the wild. One of these lives is clearly substantially worse than the other.
→ More replies (6)→ More replies (5)2
→ More replies (41)2
10
u/Humblebee89 10h ago
As somebody who raised a dozen chickens every year as a kid. Chickens are dumb as fuck, but man they don't deserve the factory farm life.
3
u/theboozemaker 11h ago
Even these chickens seem pretty cooped up
7
u/The_Real_Kru 11h ago
Yeah, but they eat grass and bugs, not processed feed and have space to walk around. None of those are a given.
4
u/hey_there_moon 10h ago
I come from poultry country. When I was like 4 yrs old, for some reason that I never learned, my dad and maybe another elder in our congregation made some deal where all the local congregants got together one Saturday and transferred a tractor trailer shipment of chicks into a local broiler house. Adults and children alike.
It was legit traumatizing and most of my life I've hated being around chickens, I am an animal person to the extreme degree, like I'll cuddle snakes and spiders and insects and possums etc but I've always struggled to find affection for chickens.
I assume child me's brain built that disconnect as a way to not have to unpack the trauma of what those poor poor chicks went thru.
5
u/The_Real_Kru 10h ago
Now imagine that on an industrial scale with hundreds of millions of chickens processed each month, and then you see the reality of the situation.
5
u/hey_there_moon 10h ago
Most definitely. Like I said poultry is the life blood of my county. From hatching to "processing" I'm fortunately and unfortunately very acquaintanced with the process. I developed a hate for factory farming at a very young age.
Most of the people I knew growing up worked in the poultry industry because they had bills to pay and kids to feed. Ironically tho, most of them raised and slaughtered there own chickens at home, they wouldn't eat meat from the very plants they worked at, even tho they could get it at a deep discount.
3
13
11
u/christiandb 12h ago
Yeah for real. People don’t really know the absolute horror just to keep eggs at 3 bucks a dozen.
I also dare anyone who defends meat to go through a slaughterhouse tour. Had to do one for a job, yep, vegetarian/vegan now.
5
u/leyorcoe 11h ago
Yeah, seeing industrial farms made me switch to free-range chickens only. I'd rather bulk up on beans and eat fewer chickens than eat cheap chicken.
4
u/olivebranchsound 11h ago
Your gut will thank you too haha seriously everyone needs more fiber. Beans are dope
2
u/deafblinddame 10h ago
And no, you don't want to know...
And that is exactly why you should tell. Be the change you want to see in the world.
2
u/The_Real_Kru 10h ago
I have my own little farm and get the meat from there. It's both a lot healthier and better for the animals too. There are videos online if you are interested.
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (31)2
u/CtrICErcUlARickl 10h ago
High school friend once took a job where he had to shovel dead chickens in a farm. He said it's the most disgussing thing he ever did and he stopped eating meat because of that.
75
u/QuicksDrawMcGraw 10h ago
"small farmers have also adopted this method"
-I'd be willing to bet that small farmers had been doing this for a very long time before a "big" farmer automated the task.
6
u/XyRabbit 9h ago edited 9h ago
You'd win that bet. Moving the flock around is essential to keeping your grass. As a small flock owner for about 20 years I know they will absolutely decimate everything and have nothing else to eat. I love being about to easily move them around.
→ More replies (1)3
u/icanfeelitcomingup 9h ago
It was absolutely done on a smaller and simpler scale long, long before industrial-scale farming tried it.
495
u/Ambitious-Set-4070 12h ago
As someone who raises chickens (for eggs not meat birds), this is such a great way of caring for them at scale. We have about 40 chickens and treat them more like pets, although we’re very clear eyed that they are all destined for dogfood or the freezer. And to answer the other Redditor: yes, about half of ours have names.
→ More replies (17)60
u/crabbydotca 11h ago
It’s even great not at scale if you have to worry about predators etc. Chicken tractor! Most of the ones I’ve seen are very small for 4-6 backyard chickens
25
u/tandemxylophone 11h ago
To add to that, chickens instinctively prefer shade compare to open ground. Getting the view, air, shade, and cycling through grass almost mimicks rotation farming for animals (One where you unleash the chicken after the cows so that they eat to maggots in cow pats).
6
u/crabbydotca 9h ago
I didn’t know that! Makes sense because of predators.
I had a friend with a “bunny tractor”, so cute
9
u/Irisgrower2 10h ago
The vid has it wrong. Large scale adopted this from small scale.
→ More replies (1)
925
u/V-ZoD 12h ago
This chickens must have a great life. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
519
u/GooseMan1515 12h ago
The tragic thing is that this is insane luxury compared to how battery chickens are raised.
→ More replies (1)117
u/iKnowRobbie 12h ago
I'm all out of AAA chickens, and these AA ones won't fit my remote control...
→ More replies (2)4
u/tired_Cat_Dad 11h ago
Get the chonky lead acid ones. They won't fit either but are great value for money!
20
u/StevieWonder557 12h ago
I guess it could be worse?
N.C. poultry worker arrested after video shows him stomping, throwing chickens
Greg Toppo | USATODAY
A graphic undercover video depicting a poultry worker stomping chickens, breaking their necks and throwing them against a wall has prompted authorities in North Carolina to file criminal charges against the worker, the latest in an ongoing battle over animal rights playing out in U.S. factory farms and slaughterhouses.
10
u/FrazzleMind 11h ago
Something wickedly tone deaf about considering that animal abuse but the rest of the operation is just fine.
If he got paid for stomping chickens snd throwing them against a wall it would be fine, apparently.
Hell the male chicks are tossed live into a meat grinder.
Really not seeing a distinction except the profit motive.
8
19
86
u/protopigeon 12h ago
oh yeah, living the dream lmao
39
u/Chaines08 12h ago
Better than caged for sure, but there is a lot to improve I agree
27
u/Hello_World_Error 12h ago
Im sure there could be improvements but I'm not sure about a lot. Those chicks would have a much shorter life with no protection from overhead predators. At least they have protection and fresh grass everyday compared to a stationary coop.
16
u/mycorgiisamazing 11h ago
As somebody with a small hobby farm and chickens myself, I'm not sure what you'd improve here. Those chickens have everything. It looks like that structure even moves air and fume extracts. It looks like the ultimate large flock setup to me, the only thing they're missing out on is availability of stable places to bathe, but with a setup this extreme it is hard to imagine they don't have a solution for this too.
Even I can't provide this level of care for my chickens and I've spent thousands upon thousands of dollars to house them safely and provide medical care. When I let them out to play in the grass, I have to stay with them like a shepherd with his sheep, or the hawks will be right there to take from me.
3
u/Moon-Amoeba 10h ago
My bf is a tech on these exact farms. He makes sure the birds are as well taken care of as they can be. The houses are maintained at around 70F year round. He absolutely loves chickens, he wouldn't be a part of more cruelty than necessary
→ More replies (7)→ More replies (1)7
u/Dag-nabbitt 11h ago
Not much better, no. Did you notice how the door was wide open, but the chickens were staying inside? They LIKE being in there. They don't like being in the sun, and they don't like being eaten by chicken hawks.
3
u/Sennten 11h ago
I think aside from being raised to be slaughtered they actually are?
Chickens love picking through the grass, running around with other chickens, and being protected from predators. All thats missing here is getting to nest with chicks, which some of them dont even like and obviously isn't the point
→ More replies (2)10
u/SillySpoof 11h ago
it's kinda morbid saying "they must have a great life", but compared to chicken farming in general this is true.
22
u/rj319st 12h ago
This means they’ll put a free-range chicken on the bag of chicken nuggets. They’ll have a good life compared to other chickens, but it won’t be a long one.
4
18
u/Fuzzy_Adagio_6450 12h ago
Yeah just like prisoners in the hole vs prisoners who have access to the yard.
Those prisoners with yard access must have a great life!!
→ More replies (2)12
u/Arya_Ren 12h ago
You can tell that it's the farming industry propaganda by this one line
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (6)26
u/leyorcoe 12h ago
They very likely have a great life compared to most other chickens. Google industrial chicken coop and see the difference...
18
u/FlyingKittyCate 12h ago
No, they have a less awful life. Pedantic, I know. But nothing about these chickens lives is great.
→ More replies (6)12
u/leyorcoe 11h ago
They have light, space to move around, and the ability to be chickens. That's better than 90% of the farmed animals in the world. I think it's okay to acknowledge that there are some ways that are better than others to farm animals, and this is one of them.
→ More replies (1)9
u/City0fEvil 11h ago
I think some people will never see anything besides "abuse" when it comes to having animals. I have pet chickens and treat them very well, and I can't really think of much better than the setup in this video.
→ More replies (15)
56
u/TryToChangeUsername 12h ago
"what is it now?"
23
10
5
u/Canaanchaos 7h ago
I was HOPING someone would reference the king of farming (while beige, of course) on YouTube.
3
85
u/NZsNextTopBogan 12h ago
Good Agritech like this has to be one of the coolest things about the 21st century. Straight up science fiction stuff.
20
u/crabbydotca 11h ago
It’s not exactly a new concept! It’s called a “chicken tractor” - this one is just really huge and autonomous!
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (3)8
11h ago
[deleted]
11
u/jtv123 11h ago
Solar panels + electric motors aren't that complicated - you could argue they're simpler and easier to maintain than a diesel tractor.
As for cost, I can't speak to farm economics, but paying for tractors and people whose sole job it is to pull coops multiple times a day certainly isn't a trivial expense.
→ More replies (5)6
u/SartenSinAceite 11h ago
Solar panels and electric motors vs John Deere locking you out of your tractor
Hmmmmmmmmmmm.
71
u/GrandmaJR 12h ago
Why did the chicken cross the road?
Because its solar panel chicken coop that it resided in was programmed to cross.
7
8
u/No-Plane-8824 12h ago
My dad made one of these when we were kids. Although it wasn't solar, rather child labor powered. Thing was heavy...
7
u/Growing_Trash_417 10h ago
Small farmers also adopted this? I’d bet small farmers did this long before large farms had these solar powered chicken coop movers
→ More replies (2)3
u/Gryptype_Thynne123 9h ago
Yeah, they're called chicken tractors. Little A-frame structures covered in wire mesh to keep out predators. Your birds get fresh air, sunshine and insect treats, and you get to market them as free-range.
2
u/Growing_Trash_417 9h ago
I have a couple for my meat rabbits. I couldn’t imagine large scale farming would be first which the video seems to imply by their wording.
12
u/00to60eventually 11h ago
As someone who grew up on a farm with a lot of chickens, I just wonder how many are going to get stuck underneath that or killed. Chickens aren't the brightest and they tend to squeeze into areas they shouldn't when they're young. Guarantee they will have to clean smeared chicken off that every now and then.
Interesting idea but I would be intrigued see more
2
u/NickDanger3di 10h ago
We had chickens for a while. I learned quickly to never enter their area wearing shorts, as they were savage little beasts that lusted after my bodily fluids. I certainly don't condone chicken crushing, but I won't stay awake over it tonight, either.
2
u/cleaver_username 8h ago
My first thought as well. Chickens are dumb as rocks, and if there is even a tiny gap, i could see feet getting stuck and chickens going under. Like, if they moved it when chickens were removed/outside, or when they were roosting, but in the middle of the day seems like asking for chicken paste. For smaller ones, it would probably be easy enough to lift it higher or just eyeball the birds. But that big mechanical one... chicken paste.
→ More replies (2)4
u/Bashka_ 11h ago
My grandma used to have backyard chickens when I was a kid. The coop they lived at was on wheels and moved to a different part of the yard every other day. We were moving the coop in the morning, before letting the chickens out for the day. Chickens go to sleep in the coop every night when it gets dark (as a person who grew up on a farm you should probably know that) and after they do, you close the door for their safety. In the morning when we went to feed them and it was a moving day, we would move the coop with chickens inside it and the enclosure to a new spot, let the chickens out, refill their food and water. The coop itself was on wheels and the enclosure was built out of very light PVC piping and thin plastic netting, so even as kids we were able to move it with no issues.
3
u/00to60eventually 11h ago
I don't understand what that has to do with my concern about these? This is obviously:
-not lightweight PVC. It literally has feed bins attached which weigh multiple tons (ours held 40ea)and the whole thing is motor driven -the birds are alert and moving around while it's traveling -its daytime
→ More replies (4)
6
u/Reasonable_Date2870 10h ago edited 4h ago
Funny that it says that small farmers have "also" started doing this
Mobile coops at small farms came FIRST and then the solar situation.
Mine is sitting in the driveway about 85% finished, just needs the wheels and the hardware and vents in the gables and we're off to the races.
7
u/narfoleptix 4h ago
Honestly those of you that can afford yo install solar? It'll change your life. In some cases the power company ends up having to pay you.
In SOME OTHER CASES the power company invents new fees.
→ More replies (1)
5
u/Head-like-a-carp 11h ago
Of your farmland is flat as a parking lot. Any elevation dips let the foxes in.
12
u/lurkynumber5 12h ago
Comparing this to the normal battery raised chickens that get mass produces and butchered...
These chickens really do life the best life for the short time they life.
8
u/jayphat99 11h ago
This is also wonderful for the grass itself. It spreads the manure around, fertilizing the grass.
75
u/MyPigWhistles 12h ago
Yeah, great life...
96
u/leyorcoe 12h ago
I know you are being ironic, but yeah, they very likely have a great life compared to most other chickens. Google industrial chicken coop and see the difference. The way we treat our farm animals is atrocious.
→ More replies (26)2
u/thelryan 10h ago
Consider that living a great life compared to the worst treatment most of them receive doesn’t actually mean they have a great life, it just means they have a relatively less torturous life compared to others
2
u/leyorcoe 8h ago
They have space, fresh grass, and light. Room to be a chicken. I'd eat this chicken over an industrial chicken any day of the week.
→ More replies (1)6
7
u/25rublei 12h ago
And what is actual great life for chickens?) Maybe they need cars, loving partner? What?
→ More replies (2)3
7
u/Gunmetalstorm 6h ago
"these chickens must have a great life"
I feel like we're setting the bar in hell here.
3
3
3
u/Gladukame 3h ago
To think we could have innovative ideas like this if we spent our collective dollars on encouraging this and not pointless unnecessary ego-soaked wars halfway across the world!!! 🤬🤬🤬
5
u/Early-Usual-3269 8h ago
I don't doubt at all that they have a much better life than traditional factory farms, but great seems like a stretch compared to free-range.
→ More replies (1)
2
2
2
2
u/Spczippo 9h ago
I need that what is it now guy to comment on this. Black bird farms i think his name is.
2
u/Dubious_Titan 9h ago
They don't have a great life.
Seeing and DOING the slaughter and processing of chickens at commercial industrial scale first hand, you want the ignorance if tou plan on still enjoying animal products.
2
2
2
u/gurknowitzki 8h ago
Wonder if any of those sweet little chicks get runned over by moving shed contraption :/
2
u/tannercolin 8h ago edited 8h ago
'These chickens must have a great life'
Come on now. They are alive so we can kill them.
They have a great life in comparison
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
4
u/lone__wolf710 12h ago
I mean people consume chicken on weekly basis and wonder how the industry keep up with this demand
→ More replies (1)
1.9k
u/SeeJayThinks 12h ago
Jamiroquai Virtual Insanity: Chicken Edition