10 Chickens Welcomed at the White House

The residents of White House Care Home in Letchworth Garden City recently had the great pleasure of watching ten baby chickens hatch in our home, followed by ten days of watching them grow.

During the chics time with us, our residents spent each day loving and petting them before they were returned to a local farm. Our residents thoroughly enjoyed interacting with them and watching them grow each day.

We welcomed this as an opportunity for pet therapy for our residents, which has been a great success here in the past. We often invite dogs, cats, and other animals to our home, but this was a different experience in the sense that our residents were able to be a part of the chickens' journey from birth as well as the ten days that followed.

A chicken incubator was initially placed in our main lounge, which allowed for easy access by all of our residents and visitors. Our residents patiently checked in on the incubator each day and eventually witnessed the ten chicks hatch.

This had such a positive impact on our residents that many spent that afternoon's arts and crafts session drawing pictures of the chickens hatching. The residents experienced such excitement watching them hatch and then spending the subsequent days feeding and holding them.

The chickens not only brought such joy to our residents, but it also was a great form of reminiscence for those who were previously pet owners. The chicks gave the residents a great sense of purpose and responsibility and we look forward to presenting our residents with this initiative again in the future.