Anyone who thinks chickens are dumb birds should watch this video and see Jokgu’s musical genius in action, as she pecks out “America The Beautiful” on a piano keyboard. In fact, you could call it “fowl” play. How perfect is this for Super Bowl weekend?
The 19-month-old Buff Brahma Bantam isn’t just a pretty face. This feathered beauty’s home is in Germantown, Maryland, and – rather unusual for fowls – her chicken coop is packed with toy musical instruments she and her fellow chicken musos play around with on a regular basis.
Owner Shannon Myers told HuffPost the feathered friends usually just randomly peck at the instruments, but she decided to see if Jokgu could produce something rather more musical and play a very real song.
Reportedly it took around two weeks to achieve this, using what is known as “clicker training.” Reportedly it took around 10 minutes to get the feathered maestro to peck at the keys. Have a look and listen in the video from the Two Creative Chicks YouTube channel included here.
Clicker training for musical chickens
According to the Clicker Training official website, the chickens were taught what was “desirable behavior” by using a mechanical device with a distinct, short “click” sound, as positive reinforcement to show the birds they were doing things right.
Myers explained that they clicked when the behavior was done right, saying that you can click much faster than you can offer the bird a treat and the chickens eventually associated the sound with a later reward for their good behavior.
#This Chicken Playing 'America The Beautiful' On Piano Is Just What America Needs - https://t.co/mWZzjVODbe ... pic.twitter.com/aoVNTP9dJQ
— Buzz AffCart (@buzzaffcart) February 4, 2017
‘America The Beautiful’ chosen for a reason
While the song is beautiful and relatively simple, Myers said there was another reason she chose to teach Jokgu the tune.
She explained that her partner in the chicken coop is of Asian heritage and immigrated to the U.S., going on to say they wanted Jokgu (Korean for a football/soccer game), to play a tune that is true - that America is indeed beautiful. She then asked what better ambassador could you have than a Chinese breed chicken, with a Korean name, playing an anthem at the heart of America?
In a pun-peppered report, Cnet points out that Jokgu is not alone in her musical talent and often plays with other coop members in an act dubbed “flockstars.” You can enjoy their egg-celent talents as they jam in the video included below.
