Animals as Easter gifts: Cute commitment or savvy investment?

JACKSON, Tenn. — A local store is seeing a change behind the trend of why people are giving animals as gifts for Easter.

“We got in about 1,000 this week and have about 50 left,” Ginger Kemp with R&J Feed Supply said about how many chickens they ordered the week leading up to Easter.

Kemp said ducks and rabbits have also been a popular sale. “Bunnies have been bigger this year than ever.”

Sure, the animals could make for cute and cuddly gifts over the spring holiday, but Kemp said there’s a shift in why many are choosing to purchase the animals.

“It used to be they would get a rooster and keep it for a few weeks and then give it away to a friend or a neighbor, and now they want to get hens to keep them,” she said.

More people are looking at the chickens as a way to keep farm-fresh eggs on hand, according to Kemp. She said many parents are also using them as a tool to teach responsibility to children.

Kemp said raising rabbits has also gained popularity.

Rickey Olridge moved to West Tennessee from Chicago. He said he’s been raising rabbits for the past decade. “They’re great,” he said. “One thing about them is they don’t bark and you ain’t gotta walk them.”

Olridge said whether they’re gifts or not, all animals need care, attention and will require work.

“You have to clean them and you definitely have to feed them,” he said.

Animal advocates generally warn against spontaneous purchases of the animals for the sake of filling a gift basket. Experts will also note it’s important to realize domesticated animals cannot be randomly released into the wild.

Kemp said the store tries to make sure each buyer is educated on how to care for the animal when they leave.

The store also offers a monthly seminar specifically for raising chickens and maintaining them during the spring months.