Ex battery chickens ?

mummy2threeboys

HI all..not an advert but thought some of you may be able to help ive put my name down for 3 ex batterys from this site http://freshstartforhens.co.uk/oldsite/ still 2 days left if people want to reserve.? Ive never kept chickens before although used to look after them at school for my gcse in agricultural science..(a very long time ago!) Is there something i can do to make them feel more secure, i know they will be frightened and in poor condtion, many thanks for any help x

Gigervamp

Your best bet is probably to have a read of the website you've posted and ask questions on the forum there.

I have chickens, but have never taken on ex-bats. I know that they often need extra care until they've settled in and their feathers have grown back.

meg72

mummy2threeboys wrote: »

HI all..not an advert but thought some of you may be able to help ive put my name down for 3 ex batterys from this site and it would have http://freshstartforhens.co.uk/oldsite/ still 2 days left if people want to reserve.? Ive never kept chickens before although used to look after them at school for my gcse in agricultural science..(a very long time ago!) Is there something i can do to make them feel more secure, i know they will be frightened and in poor condtion, many thanks for any help x

I looked into this some time ago but was put off by the fact that these are usually very poorly chicks that do not survive without a lot of care, and on my income I knew I couldn't afford vets bills
and it would have devastated me to end up with dead chicks.

Eager_Elephant

When we got some ex-batts (we already had other chickens) we gave them their own hutch and run within the bigger run as we knew they would get picked on.

As these will be your first I think a hutch plus a very small area to have a sratch in - they are unlikely to have been outside (one batch of ex-batts we got were actually ex-commercial free range so still under a lot of stress etc with forced lighting etc) before and will be petrified of the space.

As the week goes on gradually increase the space they can scratch in until it is up to the size you were going to give them originally.

They may not also know how to put themselves to bed at night or when the weather is bad so you will have to do this for them and possibly have a sheltered area in case it rains/is windy and you are out.

Make sure the hutch has lots of straw/wood shavings in.

Also we were told not to eat the eggs for 7 days due to the anti-biotics they are given but if you eat battery farmed eggs anyway I can't see what difference it makes.

Eager_Elephant

meg72 wrote: »

I looked into this some time ago but was put off by the fact that these are usually very poorly chicks that do not survive without a lot of care, and on my income I knew I couldn't afford vets bills
and it would have devastated me to end up with dead chicks.

We never had a battery hen die on us (well until a few years later of old age).

When we collected ours from a collection farm the staff kept the illest in a stable and the volunteers from the charity had them to look after but the general public who were rehoming were given the 'best'.

If you have other chickens they would need to be kept seperate due to the risk of infection.

I think resucing battery hens is worthwhile but it has become more commercial now - almost like a business.
Many years ago you paid 50p per bird, now it is £3-£4 per bird. I appreciate that costs have gone up but it is mainly volunteers. Of course it could be to stop the unscrupulous buying them up and doing whatever with them.

meg72

Eager_Elephant wrote: »

We never had a battery hen die on us (well until a few years later of old age).

When we collected ours from a collection farm the staff kept the illest in a stable and the volunteers from the charity had them to look after but the general public who were rehoming were given the 'best'.

If you have other chickens they would need to be kept seperate due to the risk of infection.

I think resucing battery hens is worthwhile but it has become more commercial now - almost like a business.
Many years ago you paid 50p per bird, now it is £3-£4 per bird. I appreciate that costs have gone up but it is mainly volunteers. Of course it could be to stop the unscrupulous buying them up and doing whatever with them.

Thank you I don't have any other chickens and have never kept chickens but I did fancy some rescues, have you really never had to pay vets bills or had one die until old age.

gayleygoo

I'm looking into this myself, just hoping I have space for a few! I think there is a "Let's keep chickens" thread on here somewhere, which should be full of advice. What have you got/planned for them to live in? I hadn't thought of using a rabbit hutch, wasn't sure if that was suitable.

They will probably be a bit nervous settling in, but if you keep them safe and warm they'll probably sort themselves out the rescue place I'm planning to get mine doesn't rehome any that are too sick, and it is a £4 donation per bird but they say it goes towards the rescuing, food and vet treatment etc. I'd imagine it also stops people from buying cheap chickens for dinner!

sunnysurrey_2

Hi I've kept ex batts before. They went straight into an enclosed house with run (homemade as the bought runs are tiny). Got my first egg the next day- they settled in & feathered really quickly (I had 4) they were freeranging in the garden after a few days. If I'm allowed there is an excellent website allotmentdashgardendotorg that has a chicken section. I really recommend you become a member it's been invaluable to me. Have fun!

Gottodothis

meg72 wrote: »

Thank you I don't have any other chickens and have never kept chickens but I did fancy some rescues, have you really never had to pay vets bills or had one die until old age.

I am one of the people who take on the poorly ex bats. The last batch had one with a broken leg, one with a broken wing and one with both a leg and a wing broken. They are all still very much alive unlike my lawn.


The hens are usually checked over after collection and the poorly ones either rehomes by the volunteers or people like me who have experience of sick hens.


Every battery hen I have had has lived to a ripe old age and all but one never had cause to see a vet.

Better_Days

I rehomed some exbatts a few summers ago and they settled in really well. They weren't unhealthy at all and we loved having them.

Then in January we got 4 more. They all had bald undercarriages and some had other bald patches on top too. We started them off in an outside run, but it was clear in a couple of hours that they were too cold. So we have put some shavings down in the shed and they are in there while they feather up and the weather is so dreadful. At night they go into an old rabbit hutch which is also in the shed and they now go in without being put in and snuggle up together. Intially we put one of those microwave pet heat pads in at night as they were adjusting from a much warmer enviroment.

I love having chickens again, they aren't a lot of work and are very entertaining. Main thing is good husbandry - keep food and water clean (I use apple cider vinegar in the water and garlic powder in the food) I supply a dust bath with some lice powder in and DE so they treat themselves for parasites. While they are only partially feathered it is very important that they don't get wet and cold. They will already be using a lot of energy growing new feathers so no point in letting them get cold too. Most days we have the shed door open to let in some fresh air, but they are out of the wind and rain.

It is important to keep on top of the red mites. They really are horrible if they get out of hand (not so bad in the winter but once the weather warms up they are a menace) and will seriously affect the health of your chickens. We clean the coop (currently the shed) with poultry shield and then dust with DE. The red mites love living under roofing felt - so it is really important to keep as much as the enviroment cleaned and dusted with DE as possible.

I wouldn't say they need a lot of care - they just need a set up that meets their needs. Once you have that in place it doesn't take much time on a daily basis to ensure they are fed watered and droppings removed. Good husbandry will help keep them healthy.

And once you have given your chickens a little spaghetti and some slices of grapes and sweetcorn - and see them rushing around and clucking with excitement - you will be hooked - well I certainly find it very entertaining :D:D