Many animals have lived at La Lucciola over the years: horses, donkeys, rabbits, sheep, dogs, cats. The most interesting are surely sheep and hens (see also From sheep to felt).

Chickens and hens are not decorative elements that make La Lucciola a country house, but one of the important aspects of animal breeding that contributes to the educational and therapeutic efficacy of the Centre. Some kids like to chase and frighten the chickens to watch them flutter, others, afraid, keep away.

Feeding and grooming them is an easy, attractive activity for children; collecting eggs is a discovery that is renewed every day.

The fear of contact can be addressed with the help of the group, and in groups, one can equally come to terms with life events when hens die for illness or are killed to make broth.

The breeding cycle, as well as the contact and examination of the body of hens, provide priceless opportunities for knowledge (which is also a product of anatomical observation) and for the awareness and acceptance of life and death processes, which are extremely important in psychic development.