舌尖上的乌鸡，居然成了国外网红萌宠！小乌鸡太可爱了
This Fluffy Chicken Is a New Pet Obsession

When Aaron Chong and his sister Angelique take their offbeat pet out for walks around their neighborhood in Singapore, they receive friendly comments from strangers who mistake it for a small dog. Then, intrigued stares ensue when people realize that it isn’t a furry dog but an ultra fluffy chicken. For the siblings though, they’re almost the same thing.身在新加坡的亚伦和妹妹安吉丽带着他们的宠物在他们居住的社区附近散步时，路人经常把把乌鸡误认为小狗，然后送上赞美。当人们发现这不是一只毛茸茸的狗狗，而是一只毛茸茸的鸡时，好奇的目光随之而来。不过，对于这对兄妹来说，两者没什么差别。

Aaron, 24, and Angelique, 13, first got their Silkie chickens in November last year, after watching tons of farm videos on YouTube featuring the fluffy pets. They are now the proud owners of four Silkies.去年11月，24岁的亚伦和13岁的安吉丽在油管上观看了大量在农场拍摄的关于乌鸡的视频后，第一次拥有了自己的乌鸡。他们现在已经养了四只乌鸡，并为此感到骄傲。

Silkie chickens are instantly recognizable by their fluffy feathers and black or bluish skin. Also known as “black bone chicken” in Chinese cuisine, Silkies have long been used in herbal soup due to their nourishing properties.

Noel Tan, a 23-year-old student at the Singapore University of Technology and Design, was a Silkie chicken owner early on. When he first started raising chickens about four years ago, the Facebook community group for local chicken owners, Backyard Chickens Singapore, only had 500 to 600 members, he recalled. The group has since grown to comprise over 3,000 members, many of them Silkie owners.23岁的谭诺尔（音译）是新加坡科技设计大学学生，他早就开始养宠物乌鸡了。谭说，大约四年前，他初次开始养鸡时，当地的宠物鸡主人脸书社群“Backyard Chickens Singapore”只有五六百人。此后，这个社群已经发展到3000多名成员，其中许多人是养乌鸡的。

He co-founded a chicken supplies company as well as Chicken Adoption Rescue SG, a local chicken shelter; since the shelter was set up last year, during Singapore’s COVID lockdown, Tan said his team has rescued nearly 200 chickens around Singapore.谭诺尔和人合伙开办了一家宠物鸡用品公司以及一家本地的小鸡收容所“Chicken Adoption Rescue SG”；这个收容所是去年新加坡因新冠疫情封城时成立的，自那以来，他们已经在新加坡各地救助了近200只鸡。

With more people working from home and having their social lives stripped down to a fraction of what it used to be, pets appeared to be attractive home companions to combat COVID loneliness.随着越来越多的人在家办公，社交生活大幅缩减，宠物似乎成为了受欢迎的家庭伴侣，帮助人们抵御新冠疫情带来的孤独感。

From how to handle roosters’ crowing to common ailments like bumblefoot, Silkie owners often discuss and share tips for raising Silkies in online community groups. Experienced chicken owners are also generous in guiding newbies who are dealing with chicken-related issues. 从如何处理公鸡的啼叫到常见的疾病，比如鸡趾瘤症，乌鸡的主人经常在网络论坛上讨论和分享饲养乌鸡的技巧。经验丰富的养鸡人也慷慨地指导新手处理与鸡有关的问题。

Having long been domesticated as ornamental pets, Silkies are prone to sickness if not taken care of properly. If abandoned recklessly, they’re basically defenseless against natural elements and predators like cats, snakes, and monkeys.由于长期被当作观赏性宠物驯养，如果不加以妥善照顾，乌鸡很容易生病。如果随意遗弃，它们基本上无法抵御自然因素和天敌，如猫、蛇和猴子。