Chickens perceive humans as social buffers and may follow human-given cues: A pilot study

Positive perception of humans, extensively documented in domestic mammals, remains comparatively underexplored in domestic birds like chickens, with existing studies largely focusing on fear reduction. This research evaluated whether chickens perceive humans positively, accounting for interaction types and breed differences. Two breeds (Lohmann LSL Classic, Brown Classic) experienced physical contact (PC), visual-only contact (VC), or minimal human contact (MC) over 13 days (Days 35-51; PC and VC: 1-2 min/day). Birds were assessed using three behavioral tests. During the separation-reunion test (Days 52-53), individuals underwent two 3-min separations (experimenter absent) and reunions (experimenter present) in an open-field setting. Subsequently, the experimenter attempted up to six standardized capture attempts to catch the birds (the capture test). Lastly, the local enhancement test (Days 120-137) assessed birds' ability to use human presence/gestures to locate food. In the separation-reunion test, PC birds exhibited calmer/positive behaviors, such as reduced vigilance and increased foraging, in the presence of the experimenter compared to being alone. Conversely, MC birds displayed fewer calm behaviors and greater withdrawal when the experimenter was present. Brown birds showed more calm behaviors, reduced movement, and spent more time near the experimenter than white birds. The capture test supported these results, with PC and brown birds being easier to capture. In the local enhancement test, two PC individuals and the brown PC group as a whole successfully used human-given cues to locate food rewards. These results indicate that, as observed in other species, chickens-especially those with positive human experiences-can associate humans with rewarding outcomes. Positive interactions may also lead chickens to perceive humans as social buffers-that is, as factors that help mitigate stress in challenging situations. Although fundamental, this study highlights the potential of breed-sensitive approaches to improve poultry welfare and opens the discussion on adapting human-animal interactions to breed-specific characteristics. These insights can inform welfare-enhancing practices and provide practical tools for on-farm management that benefit both animals and farmers.