We did a survey of almost 400 chicken owners and gathered together an eclectic, sometimes bonkers, list of 1895 different names that people have given to their beautiful chickens. We used it to make a beautifully quirky free naming guide.

Here are our top 10 favourite pet chicken names:

Nugget

Food names were one of the most popular categories. I think it must be the British sense of humour, but it’s all done with a sense of comical affection. Out of all the names in our survey, “Nugget” was by far the most popular with twenty-seven owners choosing this delectable morsel.

Princess Layer

People love to give their chickens names associated with their favourite characters from TV and film. Often they are plucky, adventurous stars or warriors. Perhaps it’s a reflection of the behaviours and personalities we see in our pet chickens. The most popular group of these types of names came from the Star Wars saga, and Princess Layer was the top pick.

Mable

The most popular type of name for chickens is familiar human names that we all relate to. People loved to use names that you might associate with little old grannies, although they seem to be coming back into fashion. When you think of your beloved pet chicken you could probably see the association with the warmth, love and slightly eccentric way of an old gran. Out of all the beautiful names here, Mable was one of my favourites… although of course, Betsy was the top!

Ginger

Like lots of other pets, people often call their pet chickens names that describe their colour or plumage. My most cherished hen was called Speckledy. The common modern hybrid hen is a kind of brown or ginger colour, and given that “Ginger” can also be used as a human name you can see why this was so popular in our survey with 12 mentions!

Barbara

Growing up my lovely Aunt Barbara had a flock of chickens at the bottom of her garden (I talk about her in my Founders story). So for me, I always associate that name with chickens, but then so does a friend of mine who insists on calling every chicken he meets “Barbara” regardless of their actual name! So I just had to pick this as one of our Betsy top 10 and in fact in our survey it was the 8th most common name for a chicken.

Martha Clucker

For adult ears only, some of the names people came up with were a bit rude! (But they’re a lot of fun too!) Just be careful to choose something that you wouldn’t mind shouting in your garden as you wouldn’t want to get an ASBO while putting your chickens to bed at night. (Incidentally, ASBO was another chicken name that someone chose!)

Cactus

If you want a crazy, unique, weird name… ask a child. Our list had some hilarious entries that were named by children. There were far too many to mention here but they all made us smile. Probably best not to ask why they chose ‘Cactus’, but I’m sure asking children for their ideas is the most endearing way to name a hen.

Blossom bottom

Sweet and adorably delicate names are often given because we love our chickens so much! You could probably imagine just how much a “Blossom bottom” gets a cuddle or a special treat.

Victoria Peckham

The Brits love a good pun! There are so many famous celeb names that you can play with by putting the word “hen” or “cluck” in their name. Some great examples include Dolly Parthen, Kelly Cluckson and the formidable Eggweena Curry.

Out of all of these Victoria Peckham was our fave, and being part of a girl band you instantly have some great names for your other ladies!

Flutternutter

Chicken owners are clearly as bonkers as their chickens. People love to name their chickens after how they behave and I’m sure we’ve all experienced a “Flutternutter” or two in our flocks.

Godzilla

We love our hens, that’s why we take such good care of them and send them on chicken boarding holiday of their own to be cared for when we go away. So when we have a chicken who develops, let’s just say, “bold” characteristics, we can’t help but love that too.

Atilla-the-hen, Ghengis, Thanos and Monster were just a few of these, but Godzilla was my favourite. My old “Phantom Rooster” would have given him a good battle I’m sure, he was a beast!

Chicken Maths

I’m sure you will have heard about chicken maths. You go out to pick up two hens and then somehow end up coming home with six and you have to buy another coop—we like Omlet’s for Chicken Hotels. Well, that’s my excuse for there being eleven names in my top ten, I got carried away, it happens to the best of us. You can never have too many chickens, that’s what I always say!

Chicken holiday boarding

If you are the type of person that names your chicken then you might be surprised to know that some people don’t bother! Chicken naming, chicken loving and chicken crazy people always want to make sure that their chickens are safe, healthy and well cared for. This is why we created Betsy a website that is full of experienced, chicken loving families who will look after your chickens when you go on holiday. They will give them as much care and attention as their own hens because they love them as much as you do. Find a local chicken hotel on Betsy and book online for your next holiday.

More, from the Betsy blog:

Chicken boarding near me!? Here’s what to look for in a Chicken Hotel – Read more.

Things to consider when choosing your chicken coop – Read more.

Training your pet chicken to recognise its name – Read more.