Urban pet owners are laying big bucks for designer chicken coops

Kate Richards lined her chicken coop with vinyl botanical blockprint wallpaper by Sarah Treu for Spoonflower.

Mid-century modern architecture. Japanese shou sugi ban wood exteriors. Wall-to-wall block-print wallpaper. Shabby chic crystal chandeliers. These aren’t features in a Los Angeles home, but the kind of amenities in some of the US city’s more elaborate chicken coops.

In a town obsessed with design and indoor-outdoor living, it makes sense that pet owners want to keep their chickens in high-style comfort. In addition to giving them a chance to personalise their living spaces, urban homesteading offers a taste of pastoral life that’s elusive in a city of over four million.