I'm seriously considering getting a few, however i will be a first time owner, so my question is, will i be able to get them? i am willing to put in all the care, i am passionate about animals and welfare and just want to do what i can what would be the best coop/run? for someone on a lowish budget? and obviously fox proof? with plenty of space for three hens? im not over run with pets (one dog, one rabbit and one hamster) so i have the time nedeed to care for them, will they need to be slowly introduced? this may sound silly but are they likely to be agrophobic? with some mental health issues? thank you so much for any advice

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Take a look at my pictures http://www.flickr.com/photos/dslrabi/

My mum has had about 100 ex-battery hens over the years, they are brilliant, very rewarding, and most of them seem to go on for a good few year, producing eggs daily mostly!

If you can find a reasonably priced coop and run then that would be the best idea if you're only getting a few, these ones are good fun if you've got kids!

Omlet UK | Our fantastic chicken house and rabbit hutch the eglu! | Keeping chickens and keeping rabbits


Or this:

Chicken Coop and Run 900

You can get them second hand, look in your local paper and on the freeads online, as well as on bird/poulty forums, they regularly come up for sale for a bargain price!

With our first ones we had about 15. They lived in a spare stable and had the run of the horses field and my mums garden. We put chicken wire around all the post and rail fencing so they couldnt escape - they are VERY good escape artists so you do have to be careful if you are letting them loose in an area. We kept ours in for the first few days. They are generally pretty wary about going outside, but we have found that once one brave one does it the rest will follow.

We havent had any problems with our girls at all, they all fitted in brilliantly and became very tame. Do bear in mind that when you get them they are straight out of the battery farm in most cases, it can be quite shocking the state they are in! You will need to get lice powder and put plenty of that on them. Also layers pellets, and i think my mums have corn as a treat - they love that! They will eat all your leftovers too so no waste!

Here's some photos of mine, first time out. These were some of the better ones condition-wise...







And a couple of months later:





And this is the one that had the completely bald chest:

We got ours from a farm that produced eggs for M&S. They got rid of them as soon as the eggs were not 100% as M&S said their customers wouldn't eat odd shaped eggs?!?

She charged a pound each as the rest were going for meat so she wanted rid of as many as possible to good homes.

We were total amateurs, but the chickens were treated as part of the family. They ate layers pellets, corn, cabbage, sprouts, lettuce (all from my garden:0) and fruit, especially grapes. They lived in the shed but wandered in the house to watch telly sometimes. We did build them an outdoor pen but that was where I kept my plants eventually as they either ate them or used the pot as a mud bath

If you do get some you will have hours of fun watching their personalities develop. Good luck.

I remember going with my Dad to a farm to buy fluffy yellow chicks. In 1945 I think it was. We always had chickens until the 50's. I used to hate the smell of 'mash & grit' that Mother used to prepare for them every day, but boy did I love those eggs.

I think I am too old now to cope with chickens, (maybe when my new knees are fitted?) but nothing would give me greater pleasure than to buy a dozen battery hens, and give them a great life. I would love those eggs still, of course.

See if you can download Countryfile, from BBC-Iplayer btw. Adam featured a rescue of some hens a week or so back.
They seemed to take to their freedom as if they had never been in a cage in their life. That's why I think it would be rewarding to rescue some.

As for neighbours complaining about noise, I'm sure a few eggs would mollify them, as well as being good insurance if they complained to our local 'elected' Gestapo at City Hall.

Cheers folks
John

I hope to get some hens when I have my own garden (at the moment i am living in a flat in London - so not yet obviously).

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This is something I would love to do as a lady in the house across from us has rescued some battery hens. However due to us being in Local Authority housing our tenancy agreement states that we cannot keep poultry or waterfowl as they attarct rats (keeping rabbits outside is allowed though).

I have toyed with the idea of just getting them, but I wouldn't put it past someone reporting us.

So I shall have to live vicariously through my neighbours chickens

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