Ex-Battery Hens
Hullo!
I know a few people here keep chickens, so I was wondering if anyone here has ex-battery hens?
They're kept in awful, cramped conditions where every day they can hardly move as they fight for food and comfort, and they are basically egg-laying machines. At a mere 72 weeks old they are seen as useless and sent off to be killed. (Often put in cat and dog food, or pies and the like.)
So rescue places like Little Hen Rescue and Free At Last now rescue thousands upon thousands of ex-battery hens. They have to buy them from the farmers and then find homes for them, a bloody difficult and very admirable task.
My parents have wanted chickens for ages, so this seemed the best route to take. The majority of ex-bats continue to lay eggs and simply require space and a good home to grow and heal up.
Often they look very tatty with large amounts of feathers missing, sometimes with difficulties moving and keeping balance, but after love and care they end up looking like your average, healthy chicken!
My Dad has bought a lovely coop and built a run to attach to it and today we are going to pick up four ex-battery hen chickens. :'D
I'll be taking photos of their improvement, week by week, and am very excited! I love chooks.
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