In a fascinating interview, animal behaviorist, Johnathon Balcombe, dispels the myth that chickens are mere "bird brains" unable to think. Balcombe explains that chickens have a complex communication system, consisting of at least 25 – 30 different calls, each with its own meaning. additionally, he cites studies that strongly suggest long-term memory in chickens, as well as demonstrate their capacity to recognize other individual chickens.

Balcombe also cites studies that find that despite hundreds of generations in captive, unnatural environments, chickens and other animal species retain the behaviors and needs of their wild ancestors. for example, a factory-farmed hen, if removed to an area with trees available, will immediately fly up and perch, just as her ancestor, the red Jungle fowl, does in the trees of Southeast asia. This is just one of many striking comparisons Balcombe draws between captive-bred chickens and their ancestors.