To analyze the microbial composition and the distribution of tetracycline resistant bacteria in the feces of chickens from small farmhouse and big feedlot, eight chickens from a small farmhouse and ten chickens from a big feedlot were enrolled. Fecal microbiota was analyzed through 454 pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA V3 region. Fourteen reported tetracycline resistance genes were tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The mean Shannon diversity indexes of microbiota in chickens from a small farmhouse and a big feedlot were 5.321±0.590 and 4.398 ±0.440, respectively, with significant difference (Mann-Whitney U test, P＝0.008). Moreover, 69 and 65 tetracycline resistant isolates were randomly selected from chicken feces in small farmhouse and big feedlot, respectively. The species of tetracycline resistant bacteria isolated from chicken feces in the big feedlot were more diverse than those in the small farmhouse. The data concluded the wider dissemination of tetracycline resistant bacteria in the chickens from big feedlot, suggesting that more attentions should be paid to the changes in the microbiota and tetracycline resistant bacteria in the chickens from big feedlot and their influences on human health.