A recent conversation with my son (the chicken-loving one):

Him: Why are there cows and sheep in the manger scene, but no chickens? Did they just not have chickens back then?

Me: No, probably chickens were just so common that no one thinks to include them. Remember, they definitely had chickens because Jesus told Peter he would deny him three times before the rooster crowed.

Him: Oh, that’s right!

We decided that every manger scene needs a few chickens, actually. The presence of the rooster would foreshadow Christ’s suffering and death. They are Easter birds, but they are Christmas birds, too. Christmas chickens!