Chicken Accessories For Chickens

A screenshot of a product on the marketplace ‘Temu’, the product is described as “Portable Pet Chicken Carrier Bag - Durable Polyester, Ideal for Ducks & Roosters Travel and Catching Duck Coop Accessories Chicken Accessories For Chickens”, the product image shows a Rooster in the bag, the bag has carrying handles.

I was browsing an online marketplace the other day because I was a bit bored, and because I have a unique need to seek out dark patterns. Something caught my eye as I scrolled. Amongst all the other suspiciously cheap items, was a bag for a chicken. Not a bag with a chicken pattern, not a bag shaped like a chicken, no — a bag to carry a chicken. A living chicken. A bag for carrying a chicken.

It made me smile as I took a screenshot. After 30 seconds, I went back to scrolling with a blank expression. It wasn’t over. I kept thinking about this thing for days afterward. All I had were questions:

  • Why does this product exist?
  • Why does a chicken need to be carried in a chicken-carrying bag?
  • Where is the chicken going in the chicken-carrying bag?
  • Who is this chicken-carrying bag for?
  • How many chickens does this chicken toting person own?
  • In the absence of the chicken-carrying bag, how do they carry their chicken(s)?
  • How many chicken-carrying bags have been sold so far?
  • How many chicken-carrying bags need to be sold to break even on the initial investment?
  • Who came up with the idea for the chicken-carrying bag?
  • Do they have any first-hand experience with chicken carrying?
  • How do you get the chicken into the chicken-carrying bag?
  • Did the chicken-carrying bag manufacturer test the usability of the chicken-carrying bag?
  • How else did they test the chicken-carrying bag?
  • When did the chicken-carrying bag manufacturer consider the chicken-carrying bag good enough to sell?
  • How did they decide on the fabric to use for the chicken-carrying bag?
  • What does the next version of the chicken-carrying bag look like?
  • How will the chicken-carrying bag manufacturer find out the highest-priority feature to add next?
  • How do I get to a place in my life where my singular focus is improving my chicken-carrying experience?

The list is endless…

What does this have to do with design?

Next time you’re struggling to come up with a question to find out more about something — be it a design problem, a new product pitched by a budding founder, or even another bizarre (to you) product you’ve found online — think of this chicken-carrying bag. You will have plenty.


Alternative titles for this post:

  • Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road in a Bag?
  • This £5.17 Item Revolutionised My EDC
  • For Sale: Chicken Bag, Never Worn (OK, one more question, is the chicken wearing the bag?)
  • 5 Chicken Accessory Trends for 2025

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