battery hens/ commercial layers-- rescue time!!

sumatra

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I live 30 miles from an egg farm that is offering 1 year old hens for sale at 50 cents each. Pick up will be next Saturday. I can get as many as anybody wants.
I got 70 yesterday. They are molting, but seem ok otherwise. They aren't too skinny, but they are depleted from egg-laying--white legs and light pink combs. NO runny noses. A few had had their beaks trimmed, but none were debeaked. All are very alert and active. These are all white leghorns, but they had brown hens too.
I live 60 miles SE from Erie, Pa. I am 2 hours away from Cleveland or Buffalo, State College, Pa, or Pittsburgh. You could pick them up here or I could meet you if you would be so kind as to cover my gas expenses.
P.s. They are quiet--not a peep on the ride home. Right now they are just standing around confused. They have never seen the sun, the sky, or grass dogs or turkeys ducks and geese. Rabbits are fascinating! They are still thinking about how the ground feels, I think. They are very timid about walking.
PM me if you are interested!
 
Are you sure they aren't older than 1 year and have been laying for a year? The neighbor's egg farm I used to work at as a teen-ager swapped out hens every 18 months or so.....hardly seems cost effective to swap them out if they've only been laying for less than a year.
 
They just listed them as one year old hens. They are still laying well--I have WAY too many eggs now. They are really enjoying themselves today-- they are taking dust baths and basking in the sun.
 
sumatra wrote:
I live 30 miles from an egg farm that is offering 1 year old hens for sale at 50 cents each. Pick up will be next Saturday. I can get as many as anybody wants.
I got 70 yesterday. They are molting, but seem ok otherwise. They aren't too skinny, but they are depleted from egg-laying--white legs and light pink combs. NO runny noses. A few had had their beaks trimmed, but none were debeaked. All are very alert and active. These are all white leghorns, but they had brown hens too.
I live 60 miles SE from Erie, Pa. I am 2 hours away from Cleveland or Buffalo, State College, Pa, or Pittsburgh. You could pick them up here or I could meet you if you would be so kind as to cover my gas expenses.
P.s. They are quiet--not a peep on the ride home. Right now they are just standing around confused. They have never seen the sun, the sky, or grass dogs or turkeys ducks and geese. Rabbits are fascinating! They are still thinking about how the ground feels, I think. They are very timid about walking.
PM me if you are interested!

I wish you lived closer!

I agree, I would take a few if you lived closer!​
 
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Bless your heart. I sure wish I lived closer.
 
aww that is so sweet you are rescuing them, I would take some too if I didnt live on the other side of the country
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I hope you find good homes for them, it breaks my heart to hear about chickens that are just seeing the world for the first time at 1 year old!
 
i recently took on 45 ex-battery hens (they are swapped 'out' at 1 year old here)
watching a confused ex battery hen learn how to be a chicken has been one of the highlights of this year...! when we first got them home they were petrified of everything apart from metal cages(!)
it took a few weeks for them to venture out of the coop, it took even long for them to figure out if you scrath about you find tasty treats, and the yellow round things are good to eat (corn)
will try and find 'then and now' pics..you'd be amazed at the difference a bit of tlc does to an ex battery hen
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sumatra, I'm down in TN but I just wanted to say YOU TOTALLY ROCK.

I wish you all the best with the birds you rescued!

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