melly264 Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 I heard today that free-range hens also get rehomes after there initial egg laying frenzy! Whilst this makes sense I had never thought about it before. The lady said that there are some cornish-legbars being rehomes soonish, but she didn;t know any contact details. Anyone heard of this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gamebird Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 The fate of the free-range hen is the same as for batteries at 18 months. We have a free-range enterprise near us with hundreds of chickens but every 18 months it all goes quiet and then a new lot arrive. They have about 2 to 3 acres to roam around in and look well cared for but their lives are short. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jules. Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 yep, I was aware of this, one of the reasons I always want to have my own chickens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quickcluck Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 I am shocked I must be naive, but i had no idea..... thank god I have my own lovely laydees...... It makes me very sad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ali-s Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 I adopted 4 ex free range Hens in March. I was truly shocked at the pitiful state they were in They were starved as the farmer had stopped feeding them I have never seen such thin chickens before. They were all missing feathers from their backs, throats, stomachs, bottoms and wings. All were missing tail feathers, Snowdrop had a stump were her tail feathers should have been . Their faces were a pale grey and the combs and wattles were pale and shrunken For the first 3 weeks the Hens were eating over a kilo of feed every day plus a four generous handfulls of mixed corn. When they were not eating they just stood in the run looking dazed. Snowdrop was very weak and often flopped into a heap on the ground It took Tulip 4 weeks to pluck up the courage to venture through the run door into the garden. One thing I noticed about the Hens when I first got them was that their legs were very clean I have my doubts that they ever free ranged outdoors. Seven weeks on and my girls are completely transformed they are all fully feathered and very fat and very fluffy They are completely trashing the garden even agrophobic Tulip Three of the girls are laying big brown eggs I would never buy caged or barn eggs and now I will never buy free range eggs unless they are from a farm shop where I can see the hens who laid them happily scratching about outside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barkisland Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 I, too, was totally naive about this issue until your recent post ali-s. (for which I thank you). It honestly never occurred to me that free range hens would be culled at the same age as battery hens, but I suppose it should have been obvious. No commercial egg producers are going to keep chickens for sentimental reasons, are they? Only home laid eggs are good enough for me now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancing cloud Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Like everyone else, I guess I had a good-life view of the whole free range market and was very disappointed to discover not only are their lives as short as battery hens, but they may not be well-kept either . I'm looking out on my sunny garden with 9 sets of ex-batt feet happily spreading my mulch around my flower bed, thanks to BHWT, and I'm just glad that at least some of them get the life that they should all have Think I'll go out and give them a hug now ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ali-s Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 We often went without eggs in the winter when some of my girls were killed by stoats and my local farm shop had sold out of free range eggs. Commercial laying ducks have the same fate at the Hens. There are two animal sancturies in Aberdeenshire who rescue and re home Ducks. A couple of rescue ducks are on my wish list for this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
