This Minecraft tutorial explains the NBT tags (formerly called data tags) that you can use for a chicken in Minecraft Java Edition (PC/Mac) 1.16, 1.17, 1.18, 1.19 and 1.20.

TIP: If you are not running Minecraft Java Edition (PC/Mac) 1.16/1.17/1.18/1.19/1.20, find NBT tags for chicken in another version of Minecraft:

  • Java Edition (PC/Mac) 1.14/1.15
  • Java Edition (PC/Mac) 1.11/1.12
  • Java Edition (PC/Mac) 1.10

Background

In Minecraft Java Edition 1.16, 1.17, 1.18, 1.19 and 1.20, the entity value for a chicken is chicken. The chicken entity has a unique set of data tags that can be used in Minecraft commands such as: /summon and /data.

What are NBT tags (formerly called Data Tags)?

NBT tags allow you to set certain properties of an entity (such as chicken). The NBT tag is always surrounded in {} such as {CustomName:”\”Feathers\””}. If there is more than one NBT tag used in a game command, the NBT tags are separated by a comma such as {CustomName:”\”Feathers\””, Age:-25000}.

List of NBT Tags

Here is a list of the NBT tags that you can use for chicken in Minecraft Java Edition (PC/Mac) 1.16, 1.17, 1.18, 1.19 and 1.20:

NBT Tag Value (Description)
IsChickenJockey 0b (The chicken is not a chicken jockey)
1b (The chicken is a chicken jockey)

Example
{IsChickenJockey:1b}
EggLayTime  

ticks (The number of game ticks until the chicken lays an egg. When 0 is reached, the chicken will lay an egg. Once the chicken lays an egg, the EggLayTime tag will reset to a value between 6000 and 12000.)

Example
{EggLayTime:4755}
InLove  

ticks (The number of game ticks that the chicken is in love mode and will try to breed with another chicken)

Example
{InLove:400}
Age  

ticks (The age of the chicken in game ticks. Use 0 or higher for an adult. Use a negative number such as -25000 for a baby.)

Example
{Age:0} example for adult
{Age:-25000} example for baby
ForcedAge  

ticks (When a baby chicken matures, the Age data tag will be set to ForcedAged. However, there have been bugs with this data tag so it may not work properly.)

Example
{ForcedAge:0}
Leash  

Indicates the coordinates of the fence that the chicken is leashed to.

Example
{Leash:{X:92,Y:72,Z:-206}}
CustomName  

name (The name to assign to the chicken)

Example
{CustomName:”\”Feathers\””}
Health  

number (The number of health points the chicken has)

Example
{Health:4.0f}
AbsorptionAmount  

number (The number of absorption health points the chicken has)

Example
{AbsorptionAmount:2.0f}
Invulnerable  

0 (The chicken will take damage like normal)
1 (The chicken will not take any damage from attacks or physical surroundings)

Example
{Invulnerable:1}
PersistenceRequired  

0 (The chicken will despawn naturally)
1 (The chicken won’t despawn)

Example
{PersistenceRequired:1}
NoAI  

0 (The chicken will have artificial intelligence and will move/behave like normal)
1 (The chicken will have no artificial intelligence and will appear motionless)

Example
{NoAI:1}
Silent  

0 (The chicken will make its usual noises in the game)
1 (The chicken will not make any noise in the game)

Example
{Silent:1}
Fire  

ticks (The number of game ticks until the chicken is no longer on fire – there are 20 ticks in a second)

Example
{Fire:60}
PortalCooldown  

ticks (The number of game ticks until the chicken can go through a portal again – there are 20 ticks in a second)

Example
{PortalCooldown:120}
Air  

ticks (The number of game ticks the chicken has air left for)

Example
{Air:120}
id  

chicken (The entity value used to represent a chicken in the EntityTag or Passengers tag)

Example
{id:chicken}
Passengers  

The mob that is riding on the chicken. Use the entity value for the passenger mob

Example of skeleton as passenger
Passengers:[{id:skeleton}]

NBT Tag Examples

To summon a chicken that is named Feathers:

/summon chicken ~ ~ ~ {CustomName:"\"Feathers\""}

To summon a baby chicken that is named Cutie:

/summon chicken ~ ~ ~ {CustomName:"\"Cutie\"", Age:-25000}

Target Selectors

Before we finish discussing data tags, let’s quickly explore how to use the @e target selector. The @e target selector allows you to target entities in your commands. If you use the type=chicken value, you can target chickens:

@e[type=chicken]

Target Selector Examples

To change the nearest chicken to a baby chicken:

/data merge entity @e[type=chicken,limit=1,sort=nearest] {Age:-25000}

To kill all chickens:

/kill @e[type=chicken]

Next, learn how to use the game commands in Minecraft.

Command Examples

Here are some game command examples for a chicken in Minecraft:

 How to Summon a Chicken

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