Canadian chicken sets World record for identifying letters, numbers, and colors

A remarkable chicken from Gabriola Island in British Columbia has recently made headlines by achieving a Guinness World Record. This exceptional hen, named Lacy, has astounded her owner, veterinarian Emily Carrington, by showcasing an extraordinary ability to identify various numbers, colors, and letters.

Carrington, who initially purchased a group of five hyline chickens to bolster egg production, soon began training them in an unexpected way. She embarked on a unique experiment of teaching her hens to recognize magnetic letters and numbers through a simple yet captivating training process. The objective was to train the birds to selectively peck only the specific letter or number that they had memorized and ignore all others, regardless of distractions. Carrington explained, "Even if I add a whole bunch of other letters that aren't the letter they are supposed to peck, they will just peck the letter that I trained them to peck."

Inspired by the progress and surprising intelligence displayed by her chickens, Carrington decided to put them to the ultimate test. She wanted to attempt a Guinness World Records title for the most tricks performed by a chicken in one minute. As the competition unfolded, it became clear that Lacy's extraordinary focus and exceptional skills set her apart from the rest of the flock. In just 60 seconds, Lacy successfully identified six different letters, numbers, and colors.

Impressed by Lacy's undeniable talent, Guinness World Records was prompted to create a new category specifically for her achievement — the most identifications by a chicken in one minute. Carrington, who documents the progress of her clever chickens on her YouTube channel, The Thinking Chicken, expressed her delight with this new recognition. She hopes that by shining a spotlight on Lacy's intellect, more people will come to appreciate the intelligence displayed by chickens and the potential smarts of various other animals as well. Carrington stated, "The chicken is a very underestimated animal, and I think if you could stop to think the chicken is a smart animal ... you could maybe look at other animals and think 'Maybe they're smarter than I thought.'"

Lacy's incredible feat showcases the remarkable capabilities animals possess. This awe-inspiring record not only celebrates the potential intelligence of chickens but also invites us to reassess our beliefs about the abilities of animals around us. They may possess incredible talents and mental acuity that often go unnoticed or underestimated. Lacy's achievement serves as a testament to the stunning diversity and intelligence found in the animal kingdom.