I was delivering leaflets today and called on a well known household in the village (well know for all the wrong reasons). The front of their house looks over the canal so the back garden is where you deliver. They had the back gate well and truly shut but when I got to the back door there were four of the scrawniest chickens you have ever seen, leggy as anything, barely any feathers and just hanging round the door. The back 'garden' was strewn with bread, some flattened into the mud. I remember thinking that if the fox came round (and they go in packs round here) they would be doing them a favour.

I felt so sorry for them. Would they be alright on just bread (bit rich really as the owner works in the pet food trade)?

Hiya, how nice that you have shown concern. This is a tough situation that needs to be handled with care. There could be 2 possible explanations for the condition of the hens. 1. they could be molting (but they shouldn't be bare) 2. they could be ex-battery girls that they have re homed, which look in a terrible state and take ages to feather up (some never do properly!).
If you are really worried the best people to contact are trading standards, they deal with livestock animals, call your local council and ask to speak with animal health trading standards, they will look into it for you.
bread is ok for chickens, but not as a staple diet, perhaps he gives them pellets and corn that you couldn't see?
Keep me posted and good luck, nice to see you are looking out for them!
zo
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Don't think they are ex battery, no meat on them at all. I've got pheasants in my garden and field in better nick than they are (courtesy of a lot of corn from by DH, and we don't shoot them).

They look far too leggy for being older hens. Knowing who they are they could well have been stolen as they don't seem the type to have livestock or pets. They'd be waiting a hell of a long time for eggs from these poor souls.

I think I'll have a word with the local PCSO, who has had the family in her sights for a long time.

ex batterery hens dont tend to have any meat on them, they are egg machines

for example, my ex batts when i first got them

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Unfortunately they looked nothing like this. They were almost certainly young hens/chickens.

Fortunately the matter has been passed on for someone with a more experience to have a look and decide, which makes me feel a lot better.

It would be great to know the outcome of this, can you let us know?
zo
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