Tucson Village Farm has figured out how to turn crap into cash.
It’s called Chicken Poop Bingo.
Since this game is far from traditional bingo, the set-up is a bit different.
The floor of a mobile chicken coop is painted with the numbers 1 through 50. Players pick a number and buy a corresponding ticket. If a chicken poops on that number, they win a prize.
The games have been held at Tucson Hop Shop, 3230 N. Dodge Blvd., since 2019. The next one will be from 2-4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 3.
Once one of the four chickens has pooped on a number, Shota Austin, the director of Tank’s Green Stuff, rings a cowbell and shouts the winning number. Austin will then ask, “How does it feel to be a winner?” often getting the response of, “Oh, it feels egg-cellent.”
The lucky winner chooses a prize that is usually fertilizer or Tank’s Green Stuff and Tucson Village Farm merch. During the two hours, they squeeze in around five rounds.
The rate at which chickens poop is not the most predictable. Sometimes it will only take a minute, but it is usually between 10-15 minutes. The impatient players who are willing to spend a little extra will buy popcorn or oats to hopefully speed up the process.
“People can buy chicken treats to enhance the fiber, to enhance the flow,” said Jess Luse, Tucson Village Farm’s community engagement and development coordinator.
Although Chicken Poop Bingo is a game of mostly luck, it is not all luck. Some players have a strategy.
“If you are strategic to how you are feeding them you can try to get their butts closer to your number,” said Luse.
Some players enjoy the wait, such as Jessie Jean Mance, Tucson Hop Shop co-owner.
“Sometimes the anticipation is just a crack up because everyone is just cheering on waiting for a creature to poop,” said Mance.
“When in life do we get to do that?” she added.
Unfortunately, Mance has yet to win the game, but her “mom has won and that definitely got her hooked.”
“So then she became a Chicken Poop Bingo addict because winning really fires her up,” said Mance.
A game centered around chickens would not be complete without a chicken dance-off and a few chicken jokes. Austin will ask for volunteers and spring on them that they will be competitively doing the chicken dance.
“What do you call a chicken that tells a joke?... A comedi-hen!” is among the most popular jokes that kids share on the microphone.
The University of Arizona's Tucson Village Farm raises money to support its children's education programs with its Chicken Poop Bingo. Kids are big fans of the competition.
Each Chicken Poop Bingo event raises between $500 and $800 for Tucson Village Farm, which is a program run by Pima County Cooperative Extension and the University of Arizona that teaches “youth where food comes from, how to prepare food, and gives them skills to live healthy lives,” said Luse.
They are currently raising funds to build an Animal Education Center so that goats and sheep can live at the farm.
“We have hundreds and hundreds of kids coming every single week and what we find is that their favorite thing is often the animals, so that is why we are raising money to get more animals through something that involves animals,” said Luse.
For people planning to come to the next Chicken Poop Bingo, Mance recommends arriving a little early so you are able to find a seat and order a drink before it gets crowded.
“No matter your age or your mood, it is just hilarious, a great concept, and it’s for a good cause,” said Mance.
Although all ages are welcomed, Tucson Hop Shop is a 21-and-up bar, so people under the age of 21 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Admission is free, but it costs to bet. For more information, visit the tucsonvillagefarm.arizona.edu.
