“They’re incredibly surprising creatures!”

Dr. Catherine Oliver is a geographer and lecturer at Lancaster University

“Anecdotally, it’s clear – chickens enhance our wellbeing,” says Catherine Oliver, a lecturer and researcher at Lancaster University. She should know – she’s spent years studying our relationship with hens. “All the way back to ancient times, there’s evidence they’ve been valued as more than food.” Again and again, Catherine has heard people describe the same unexpected effect. “If people are going through a hard time – and even if they’re not – they almost always feel better after spending time with hens. They’re incredibly surprising creatures that way.” Catherine is now seeking funding for a new study designed to build a proper, rigorous evidence base for something hen keepers have long suspected – that these small, sociable, characterful birds can genuinely enhance human wellbeing. While academia plugs away at finding hard evidence, BHWT hens are already out there in the real world doing their thing. In prisons, clinics, schools, universities and community projects across the country, here’s how they’ve been doing their bit for the mental health of humanity.

catherinecmoliver.com