Thinking about starting a 'chicken rescue'.....

[JacinLarkwell]

I’m sorry, but this is a bad idea.
You don’t have the space not proper equipment to quarantine all these different birds you’re bringing in.
And I know you don’t mean battery hens.
It doesn't matter.
Even the glossiest, prettiest hens can bring disease. You'd have to quarantine every individual or group that came in, and your setup won't work for them.
Also, what would you do with them? Sell/rehome them once they're healthy again? Who would buy them? You'd be stuck with them - you'd have given away your happy flock for a group of strange, separated hens who probably won't be laying.

I almost wonder if battery hens would be safer than random CL birds in the long run. At least they're usually vaccinated and kept away from outside birds

 

[TheOddOneOut]

I almost wonder if battery hens would be safer than random CL birds in the long run. At least they're usually vaccinated and kept away from outside birds

I agree. Plus, it would be saving birds that are in a much more dire situation than random CL birds.

 

[RGB RIP]

My husband and I had a similar idea. He works with people who have mental illness, and we've talked about starting a "therapy farm"... where people come to stay for a period of time and take care of rescued animals as part of their therapy. I love the idea of taking in animals that people no longer want - roosters, hens that are past their prime egg-laying days, geriatric shelter dogs, horses that can no longer be ridden, etc. But like a lot of other people have mentioned here, once you start really looking into it, you start to realize it takes a lot more land, facilities, and money than you may have initially estimated. But that doesn't mean it's a bad idea! Just keep doing your research so you can come up with a practical plan for doing it responsibly and raising enough money to keep it well-financed.

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

Following...

 

[WIchickMama]

You could always try to partner with/become a donor/be on the board/volunteer at a local animal sanctuary

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

You could try to find pullets from one source to reduce the quarantine and biosecurity issues. If you're only getting rid of the older hens you could have the pullets in a separate run and coop. I have done this and just fed the old flock first so I'm not bringing anything from the new flock to the old but that being said Marek's is so contagious that even having it on your property it will eventually make it everywhere. But if you find a source you trust it might be a good idea. I agree with previous posters though that people aren't always honest. I got some very sick birds from someone who claimed to have no idea there was anything wrong with them. It was a huge pain and they are healthy now but I wouldn't do it again.

 

[cluckmecoop7]

Please note: I wouldn't have my original hens anymore so please don't talk about quarantining and "not worth risking your quality flock". Thank youuuu

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Quarantining is an ongoing process, every time a new bird comes onto the property.

If you intend to do this as a one time deal, now that your own birds are gone, rather than an ongoing/rolling effort of retirement and replacement, then clearly there is a misunderstanding shared by many commenting on this thread.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

Please note: I wouldn't have my original hens anymore so please don't talk about quarantining and "not worth risking your quality flock". Thank youuuu

That is NOT what I'm talking about.
You'd have to quarantine ANY new birds. Any new birds brought in when there are other chickens on the property need to be quarantined.
Imagine you buy 5 4-year old hens off of Craigslist. They're happy in your coop, la la la. But then someone calls you. They've found 2 young hens wandering on the road and can't care for them, so you take them. You NEED to quarantine them.
And it works for a while. You're 19 days into quarantine when you see a desperate CL ad with three hens who need a home NOW. You take them! But Uh oh, you don't have room to quarantine. So you put the 2 hens who were in quarantine before in with the older five. Suddenly hens are coming down with Marek's or some other thing.


This is a hypothetical scenario but it is realistic. This can and will happen if you bring in a bunch of different hens.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

ANY new birds MUST be quarantined. You don't have the facilities to do such a thing if you actually want to have an up-and-running rescue.