Man Accidentally Buys 1,000 Chickens Online For $0.96

Brianna Santellan / Unsplash

An online shopping experience turned into a field full of chickens after one New Zealand man had a bit of an accident whilst browsing a local auction website.

Steve Morrow, who went online to Trademe.co.nz looking to purchase just one chicken found himself with more fowls than he could handle when he won an auction with a bid of just $0.96.

Morrow, who is the manager of a local bed and breakfast was just thinking about buying “a couple” extra birds for his property – as they supply eggs for breakfast and are a great livestock choice.

The auction Morrow bid on was listed as “urgent sale” and said the seller was needing to offload 1,000 birds – “mixed-age flock,” it read.

Admittedly, Morrow says he misread the ad and thought he’d be able to buy just a couple of birds to add to his flock of 10. But, he was very much mistaken.

Placing his maximum bid at $6.70 (US), he discovered on Sunday morning he had actually won the auction for just $0.96 (US). The seller then contacted Morrow and asked what he planned to do with the 1,000 hens.

Realizing the error, Morrow quickly set out to find homes for the other birds and posted to social media seeking anyone willing to re-home the excess hens he’d acquired.

“I had to turn my phone off at 1 a.m.,” Morrow told Insider.com, adding that people from all across the country had been reaching out offering to help. “It was so overwhelming, and I was blown away.”

With help and a lot of luck, Morrow was able to re-home all 1,000 birds before the end of day on Monday.

“The whole experience has shown me people in New Zealand are like one big family when it comes to helping those in need. Now everyone calls me ‘the chicken man.'”

What a funny mistake – and how fortunate for all those accidentally-purchased chickens!