By CELESTE BAUMGARTNER
Ohio Correspondent

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — Ruth Halderman makes chicken diapers because she wants the birds to have a chance at a better life.
She started with chickens because she wanted the eggs. Time passed. Most of her chickens – she has about 70 – are housed outside. But not all.

“Most of my birds are really, really old, so it’s like running a nursing home,” she said. “A lot of them will eventually have health problems and when they do, they move inside the house. Or if somebody is having a bad day they can come inside.”

It began in 2002 – Halderman was tired of the chicken mess in the house and she liked to design things. So, she started “making noises about a chicken diaper,” she said. Her friends began to place orders even before the design was complete.

“Most of us do not have a money tree growing in our backyard, so I decided to make diapers for the chickens and their people as reasonable as possible. So here it is: Chicken Diapers, custom-made in assorted colors and sizes, for less than a wing and a claw,” she writes on her website.

“They’re like chicken pants with suspenders, except they don’t go around the legs and there is a little pouch that covers where the manure comes out,” she said. “The design is so most the weight is not hanging off the chicken’s backside. Some of the stress is carried on the shoulders and on the back.”

The diapers fit hens or roosters. They come with a replaceable liner. A plastic sandwich bag works for smaller sizes, while a larger plastic bag is necessary for larger chickens. Some will work with a plastic cup, which fits into the diaper as a liner.

Correctly worn, the adjustable diaper will keep the bird’s feathers clean and will not interfere with preening, and the bird can access its oil gland. The droppings are channeled away from the bird into a containment pouch. If the diaper is properly put on, it will not get dirty.

“When you first start out with a bird you might have to argue a little bit until they figure out that’s what they have to do; they have to wear clothes,” Halderman said.

She sews the diapers herself. She also has another job, so clients have a long wait. She sews in the evenings and on weekends.
“Sometimes I get overwhelmed during the Christmas season or the spring rush,” she said. “You’d be amazed how many people have chickens as house pets. I have the orders to prove it.”
Chicken diapers are labor-intensive and Halderman keeps her prices low.

“I wanted chickens to have a better life,” she said. “A lot of people don’t have a lot of money, but they want to bring their birds inside the house. So they come to me. I don’t make that much money from the diapers. I could work full-time and still not make a living.”
Halderman has an attractive website. Yet, most of her business comes from word- of-mouth and it comes from all over the world, although most orders are from the United States and Canada, she said.

“If you make a chicken your friend, it is a friend for life,” she explained.

For more information and to see photos, visit www.chickendiapers.com