I see that now, as I read, thanks. The leaves reminded me so much of a crown of thorns house plant I used to have, but I know that house plant does not get berries.

It looks like Winterberry Holly, Ilex verticillata. That's not backed up by any evidence except that's what it looks like to me and I would expect it to be fairly common in NY state. They are largish, forest understory shrubs. WW Here is a link that might be useful: Winterberry holly

I think chickens know what not to eat but nightshade is very toxic to people. When this weed pops up in my yard, I send it and all it's berries right to the garbage. Min

ooops...wrong forum...I missed the "starting from seed" tag.