Chickens, like all birds, urinate through their skin. They have no external ureters and kidneys like we do. Instead, their kidneys are located in the lower abdomen above the cloaca (which is where they defecate as well). Their urine is filtered by a series of canals before it enters the cloaca.

The cloaca is an opening that serves as both an anus and a vagina for chickens. This is why you’ll often see your hens squatting and pooping in one spot, but then walking away and squatting again elsewhere to urinate.

Chickens do not have external ureters or kidneys like humans do, so they cannot produce urine without having first ingested water or other liquids through their mouths. This means that if your chicken is dehydrated or undernourished, she won’t be able to produce enough urine to excrete through her skin or feathers.

Last modified: October 8, 2022