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Hen Party

Second blog from Rose Farm

22nd April 2023


written by Yvonne Morley-Chisholm


We’ve been waiting to write this next blog until we could share the news that our chicken population is expanding here at Rose Farm HQ. Yes, we are rehousing hens again.


If you are following us on Instagram and Twitter you will have regular updates and see for yourself how the “girls” are settling in.


Prior to this new intake we already have two flocks: one we hatched ourselves back in October 2021 which are a hybrid mix that includes old English Leghorn; the other are the popular brown and white Warrens (sometimes called Golden Lines) that are a Rhode Island cross; these were rehoused over a year ago and, like these new arrivals, have come from a farm that has finished with its flock.


So here they are. Will they adapt? Will they settle in and rediscover what a chicken’s life can be like? Will they die? Its all a waiting game.


The early days are encouraging with natural behaviours emerging: scratching, foraging, and perching without much intervention from us. The trickiest part is watching each coop establish its pecking order. It can be rather unpleasant and even vicious until things are worked through and “the girls” (farming terminology) figure out who is top and who is bottom of the pecking order. At least our white flock don’t have that issue - purely because they have a rooster; he keeps his girls in order.


Is it hard to rehouse hens?

No. They are stoical creatures who generally adapt well. A shed, a dog kennel or some such structure will give them a place to be warm and dry. The additional runs give them the option to run around outside. They need to be protected, as much as it is possible, from fox attacks. At the time of writing this we are dealing with Avian Flu in the UK and so their runs have to be protected from wild birds being able to get in and/or “deposit” anything from above. Ours have close-gauge wire as well as waterproof coverings.


Cleaning

We clean the coops every 7 to 10 days. This involves removing the used straw then using a disinfectant spray. The soiled straw goes to compost as part of our permaculture practice. It is classified as “brown” as opposed to “green” and mixes well with other materials we compost. Months later the resulting soil is a fabulously rich quality with no bad odours. (see our first blog in February 2023 about soil).


Feeding

We choose to feed ours flocks with organic layers pellets and mash. This is their breakfast. Later in the day we take vegetable and/or fruit scraps to them. Along side these scraps of mostly broccoli and lettuce, apples and the odd grape, we give a small amount of corn sometimes. They have access to shell and grit too (for helping them to grind up their food as well as providing substance for shell formation).

Water is changed daily and, at times, a small “dash” of raw, organic cider vinegar is added to promote their gut and overall health (its good for horses and humans too!)


A story for you

Going back to 2007 /2008 when Battery hens were around here in the UK, my partner and I decided to venture into keeping hens for the first time. Our first 4 hens were an inspiration to us. Ruby and Betty settled in pretty smoothly, Shirley was nervous and frequently on the receiving end of disapproving pecks from the other three if she paced up and down too much. That said, if a juicy worm was found, the others would try to grab it for themselves. Only Shirley thought to take it up the ramp into the coop where she would be left alone to enjoy it. Dolly became the matron of the flock; always checking on the others. She was well-rounded, fine feathered and she was committed to caring for the others. On one occasion we had to lift a hen over one side of the fenced area to examine her. Much to everyone’s surprise Dolly launched into the air and actually cleared the 3 foot high fence to alight beside her “sister” hen! None looked more stunned than Dolly (“how did I end up here?” kind of expression). If you’ve ever seen the film Chicken Run you will appreciate that this breed of hen doesn’t know that it can fly. So there must have been a strong sense of concern and care to inspire such a dramatic move. We were all surprised - as was Dolly - who stayed with the other hen until the examination was concluded and we could gently lift both hens back into run.


Dolly outlived them all, partly because she didn’t lay many eggs and avoided the dreaded egg-peritonitis*. She was a brave matron for that flock, surviving two fox attacks - one from the literal jaws of a fox who stripped the feathers off her back before she pulled hard enough and managed to get away. Dolly was roughly 12 years old when she contracted an illness (probably cancer) that merited her being put to sleep finally. It was a sad day for us all. The vet who administered that final intervention for her said that she was the oldest ex-battery hen he had ever seen.

Happy days, Dolly, and all of you it has been a pleasure to rehome.


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If you are thinking of rehousing hens and are in the United Kingdom you might like to consider contacting the British Hen Welfare Trust (formerly the Battery Hen Welfare Trust) who have loads of helpful information and can point you in the right direction for how to look after them.

Their website: https://www.bhwt.org.uk



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* Egg-peritonitis: this is where the hen can no longer lay the egg. It goes off inside her, making her very ill with the ensuing complications. She may well survive the first occurrence but not a subsequent one. We learned to administer antibiotics and even tube-feed any hens that were poorly thanks to a wonderful local Avian vet who was a 10 minute drive away. At one point we even asked the vet to administer an avian contraceptive to give them a break from being something of an egg-laying machine that their breed has become.



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