Chickens Walking and Curling Their Toes - Why Do They Do It?

Posted by Rosemary Drisdelle Oct 6, 2008

A visitor to the birds page emailed me wondering about something she’d observed in her domestic birds (a duck and three chickens): when they walk, the foot that is lifted off the ground tends to curl up and then straighten out again as its replaced on the ground. Why does this happen? Neither my internet research nor my reference books provided a straightforward answer, but from other information I found, I came up with several possible explanations:

Chicks hatch with their toes curled up and straightening the toes is a problem for some young birds. Perhaps the toes naturally revert to the curled position whenever the claw is relaxed, (like human fingers when we’re relaxing or sleeping).

Chickens, and some ducks, roost in trees in the wild, and their claws are designed to grip the branch and keep them safely in the tree even while they’re asleep. Perhaps the closed claw is a reflexive response whenever the toes aren’t spread to walk on a flat surface.

Another thought is that curling up the foot would help conserve heat in cold weather, but this would only be important in cold climates and seasons.

Does anyone else have an explanation? Comment below.

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