[Lindeggs]

There have been a few posts recently about chickens getting bored.  This prompted me to go searching for behavioural enrichment ideas for chickens.

It's actually quite interesting looking on zoo websites and caged bird forums to see how they keep birds and other animals busy and interested in their surroundings.  I recommend it if you have a few spare minutes (or are just procrastinating like me). 

Anyway one of the ideas I came across that might work for chickens, is a pinecone.  If it's a nice open one, you can stuff treats into the gaps between the pinecone 'scales' and encourage the chickens to work to get them out.  Some of the parrot sites suggest using peanut butter to stick grains into the gaps. 

I haven't tried this yet myself so will be interested to see how it goes if anyone tries it.

Some studies said that if birds have got used to being confined, they might not begin to interact with new toys straight away, so you might need to be patient when trying out new toys.

[bantam novice]

What an interesting idea 
I may try it with my girls when I can find a pine cone.  If you try it do let us know how you get on.