Battery Hen Rescue-Free Range

[ChickenLegs13]

Rescued was the term used by my Neighbour.
And indeed "rescue" is a highly emotive word.
I believe they were going to be terminated and possibly become part of the compost heap or maybe crocodile food.
I think the term" Rescue" appeals to people and possible elevates their ego to the level of Captain America of the battery hen world.

Roger that.
I LOL when I hear the term "rescued."
My friend was bragging about how he "rescued" a horse from craiglist. All he did was go load up a skinny horse that somebody gave him for free and put it in his own pasture. He fed it a round bale then sold it to somebody else for $200 the next month.
Another guy I know "rescues" (hoards) free dogs. People give him unwanted mutts for free then he tries to sell them for $50. I tried to get him to rescue some extra barn cats I was going to cull but he said there wasn't any money in cats.
I'm only poking at the term used. I think it's cool that people get unwanted chickens for free or low dollar then put them to work or make them pets.

 

[CluckerCottage]

Rescued was the term used by my Neighbour.
And indeed "rescue" is a highly emotive word.
I believe they were going to be terminated and possibly become part of the compost heap or maybe crocodile food.
I think the term" Rescue" appeals to people and possible elevates their ego to the level of Captain America of the battery hen world.

The term "rescue" did NOT appeal to me, Piton.
It scared the heck out of me knowing that those girls could be ill, have lice, intestinal parasites, etc.
We were committed to giving at least some of those poor girls a chance at life.
If you could have seen the filthy corral he had for them in full summer sun, you would have been horrified.
It was a joint decision by my husband and me and trust me when I tell you this---- the situation most certainly did NOT "elevate our egos to the level of Captain America of the battery hen world".
I find that statement quite offensive because rather than getting inflated egos, we were HUMBLED.
As to what I treated the hens with-- Wazine and Ivermectin, wood ash/DE. Thankfully the combination of medication, good food, lots of love and the great outdoors worked.
Yes, I believe ex-batt hens do die sooner than "regular" hens. The 3 other girls lived for 2 years then just started passing away. From what I read, that this is pretty much expected.

 

[Sutremaine]

Chickens from a commercial operation are very unlikely to have parasites and diseases, because they're kept away from anything infectious. If something does get into the building, it's going to burn through the chicken population very quickly. The rescued chickens are also vetted by the charities that take them, or should be. Try to find comments by people who've had hens from a particular group.

I was considering getting ex-batts and spent quite a while on a dedicated forum. The impression I got was that they're friendly to humans, rough with other chickens, and die in about two years. They might be filthy and threadbare when they come out of the cages, but they clean up quickly with some fresh air, sunshine, and dry dirt. In the end I decided to support a rare breed and leave the health issues to those who can cope with such ongoing problems.

 

[Ljc01]

The local egg farm was selling 18month old leghorns. I bought 3 and they were healthy birds. The laid great for the first year and now I get 4-5 eggs a week from them.
It took them a long time to leave the run and feel confident enough to free range with the other birds.