I rescued some battery hens from a charity in Norfolk (UK) last year.
http://littlehenrescue.co.uk/default.aspx (their website) As far as I can gather it is more of a British thing, I always thought they were called battery hens because of the size and arrangment of the cages (like batter cells). The little hen rescue contacts local battery farmers and buys the birds for the same amount as the abbatoir would have paid for them and saves them from being turned into dog food. The hens are only a year or so old at the time of selling, but they are no use to the egg farmers anymore as their best laying time is over. I expect my rescued hens will not live as long as pure bred hens, as they've have an intensive and stressful life so far but they still have a few years left in them yet!
The British hen welfare trust has some good information. I read in an interview that the British laws on caged hens will be changing very soon so that hens must be kept in larger cages. In reality this just means that it will cost more money for British farmers to produce eggs, leading to an increase in price. Meanwhile European egg farmers do not have the same laws and are buying up all the old cages from Britain and can undercut us on price. So of course the average shopper will just buy what's cheapest. Its really cynicle but surely tis doesn't really help the plight of the battery hen, just moves the problem overseas....?
http://www.bhwt.org.uk/ This is their website.
I got four girls in august last year and this is what they looked like when I got them
We have since lost one to a heart problem but the other three have really thrived and look really healthy now. (can't find and pics to upload... will have a look.)
I agree with people who say its a drop in the ocean compared to the actual numbers of hens involved, but it is rewarding to watch them adapt and become healthy, normal birds. They will never be properly tame or lay hugs amounts of eggs but if you want chickens just as a pet, they are worthwile rescuing.
