Rescue, Rehab & Re-homing of Domesticated Chickens

As the Year of the Rooster, 2017 more than lived up to its name.  

The past year saw our mission expand from being primarily a safe haven for rescued egg-industry hens into a rescue, rehab and rehoming mission for roosters as well.

Roadblocks ahead

As arguably the most neglected and abandoned pet, unwanted roosters have the odds stacked against them, including: 

• A bad (undeserved!) rap 
• Local ordinances that prohibit roosters 
• Misunderstandings about rooster-compatibility
• A socially-ingrained bias against roosters as companion animals 
  
  

The power of networking

It's been said that "many hands make light work," and it seems nowhere is this more applicable than in the world of animal rescue.  By expanding our sanctuary partner network (thanks in large part to help from Adopt A Bird Network), we're able to find adoptive homes that are a fantastic fit for everyone involved.       

In the final quarter of 2017, we found perfect placement for more than 50 birds -- half of whom were roosters. In all, 25 sweet & loving rescued egg-factory hens and 27 once-unwanted, discarded roosters have found sanctuary, not slaughter.  

These are numbers we'd previously never thought possible, working on a such a small budget.  

Bachelors unite! 

The task of finding someone to adopt our most rambunctious (i.e., youngest) roosters, seemed hopeless at first. Their rooster-hormones drove them to harass the hens relentlessly. Fortunately, salvation awaited them at Heartwood Haven animal sanctuary, whose set-up of spacious rooster-only zones suit them perfectly.

"Our sanctuary has several bachelor flocks to accommodate different personalities and sizes of roosters," says co-founder Katya Cherimoya. "They live in the forest and love perching together. We even see them grooming each other. They form strong bonds and friendships." 

At the opposite end of the spectrum was Prince, a tiny li'l rooster with a gentle soul. He was so intimidated by other birds that sometimes he didnt' want to come down off his perch in the barn to eat and drink. Even the otherwise peaceable hens would sometimes peck and chase him. Poor Prince needed a place of solitude and one-on-one attention. He got his lucky break when he found a spot at Rooster Haus sanctuary, where he's a companion to a little disabled house hen named Emily. 

“He is so kind and cute. I can't stop thinking about him," says sanctuary founder Jenny Rae. "I think Emily and him will be good buds."

As for the scrawny red hens rescued at the last minute from death at an egg factory last fall, the doting care-givers at Sky’s the Limit Sanctuary carved out a perfect little space for them. 

"They are sooo sweet in spite of all they’ve been through. I can’t believe it," says co-founder Shannon Hill upon meeting them. "I love them so much!" 

Shannon paid for each hen to receive a hormone implant upon arrival -- something that rescuers often do to counteract the damage that excessive laying does to the bodies of domesticated laying hens. By shutting down their reproductive tracts, the implant gives the beleagured birds a break, thus improving their immediate quality of life and ultimately their longevity.  

Never-ending need

But a rescuer’s work is never done, and no sooner had we dropped off the last group of adoptees, than we spotted the next bunch of animals-in-need -- huddled next to a freeway onramp!

The bright white ball of fluff that gleamed in the twilight turned out to be a little silike rooster. Wet and hypothermic from standing in the rain, Cotton still summoned up enough energy to run from us... right into a mountain of trash! There, much to our surprise, popped up a second rooster -- a bold, multi-colored rooster barely scraping out an existence in the trash heap.  

After several trying hours, we had both little guys in the car headed back to the sanctuary.  

Thankfully, we had space to accommodate these two newcomers easily, but such is rarely the case. With spring approaching, a flood of intake requests -- for both unexpected roosters and non-laying hens -- looms ahead. 

Still on the mend

Meanwhile, Elmer -- a sweet, companionable rooster rescued in mid-December -- is still healing from a yet-undiagnosed ailment that makes him weak and off-kilter.  

Elmer's spirits got a boost when he was reunited with Red, one of his former flockmates whom we tracked down at the animal shelter. Their reunion was marked by much crowing from Elmer and soft cooing from Red. He's such a devoted partner!  

But Elmer's motility issues remain, and a detailed neurological exam with a specialist is in order to get to the root of what ails him. We hope the donor support that has gotten Elmer this far will carry him through until he is back to functioning at 100 percent capacity.  

Companions, not commodities

As rescuers, we are beset by a constant sense of urgency, coupled with a bewilderment that so few others seem to feel the same way. 

The next time the Year of the Rooster rolls around in 12 years, we hope to be asking ourselves a different question: Instead of wondering why so few people care, perhaps the question will be What took so long? 

With your continued support, we look forward to the day when people know these precious birds as companions, not commodities. 

Links:

• Watch the story of Elmer and Red's rescue

“I saw at least saw 30 kids running around the petting zoo with no parents … Some even started throwing things at the roosters that ended up in the trees ... Even the beautiful peacocks [who] were out, and kids started throwing things at them, went into hiding”

A quick perusal of the online reviews for the San Jose, Ca., "farm park” from where Charlie and his little flock of hens escaped last year gives a telling glimpse into a growing welfare crisis for pet chickens and ducks.

Animal abandonment is usually thought of as an issue that affects primarily dogs and cats. But its impact on pet ducks and chickens is equally, if not more so, profound -- in part because so many people will walk straight past a suffering bird and see nothing wrong. 

And at no time of the year is this more apparent than now. As the novelty of spring ducklings and chicks begins to wane, people look to unload messy ducks and non-laying chickens every fall.

"They say she found Maiz laying behind a trash can in front of the red barn," read one of the first pleas for help. "She was being attacked by another hen. She was visible to people walking past just looking not helping." 

Maiz was incredibly lucky because after untold numbers of people walked past her (and undoubtedly other birds in distress), it was a kind-hearted young girl who finally rescued her from a brutal death. At their home, the family resuscitated her with food and water, and then they reached out to Hen Harbor. 

Continuing Crisis 

Fast forward one year, and another park visitor shows up at the sanctuary cradling a tiny, trembling bird who can barely stand, much less open his eyes. He's so small that he looks more like a scrawny dove than a chicken. But when Snowy starts perking up in the hospital, it's clear that he's a rooster (albeit a very tiny, sick one). 

Snowy [video] was not the first arrival of this fall, nor will he likely be the last. Alongside Snowy in our bird hospital area is a small flock of tiny hens, all suffering scaly leg mites so severe that their feet are either deformed or missing completely. Before them came a spate of injured roosters and two ancient, arthritic hens who would have been torn apart by predators the first night they were abandoned. 

Even now, scores of other discarded backyard chickens wander through the parking lot and along the stretch of sidewalk adjacent to the park in San Jose -- all but doomed to perish slowly from starvation, injury, illness or predation. And no doubt the following week, a new group of birds will have been dumped, replacing the current flock. As one young park visitor observed, "Every time you come here, you never see the same birds." 

Who's Responsible?  

For the origins of the current pet-poultry dumping crisis, look no further than your local feed store, school hatching project, or backyard breeder. For every female chick hatched to be kept as an egg-laying hen, there is an unwanted male chick. In suburban settings, the sound of the young rooster's first early-morning song sets off a panic that usually ends with his being "set free" (perhaps with a group of older, non-laying hens) in a park, road side, or hiking path.

Just last month, we took in seven sickly chicks from a local feed store's "fall chick event" (a new adjunct to the ever-popular "spring chick event") -- which, given the miserable outcome for so many pet poultry, seems like an animal welfare disaster waiting to happen.

It's a potential disaster in terms of not only the grim futures that await most birds bought on impulse, but also for the welfare of the chicks populating the "for sale" display bins currently. After being shipped alive in the mail as day-old babies, the chicks endure levels of stress that tax their immune systems and make them more susceptible to illnesses that can kill fragile baby birds.

Because feed-store employees are woefully unprepared (or unwilling) to administer veterinary care, most of the ailing baby birds languish in a back room waiting to die. (When the motive is profit, spending money on veterinary care for a $2 chick is not an option..) 

It is a rare (and lucky!) bird indeed who finds himself being handed off to a an animal sanctuary or other knowledgeable caregiver to be nursed back to health. At Hen Harbor, six of the seven sickly feed-store chicks have not only survived but thrived under the care of their adoptive mother hens. Running around in a natural setting under the guidance of their mothers, they are looking better than they ever could have as motherless chicks sitting in a box under a heat lamp.

On The Road to Freedom     

Things are also looking up for a dozen-plus recently-rescued egg-industry hens. Instead of being slaughtered alongside tens of thousands of their peers at the age of 18 months, a lucky twist of fate brought them to Hen Harbor. .  

After recuperating at the sanctuary for a few weeks, the still-raggedy looking bunch fell asleep inside a van one September night and woke up 8 hours later at their new, verdant digs in Oregon! 

This adopton to our friends at Sanctuary One in Ore., is part of our larger goal to normalize the concept of chickens as awesome companions, not food sources. Instilling the"adopt, don't shop" message into the public mind is a key part of guiding a caretaking paradigm toward one based more on respect than exploitation. 

We look forward to a continued collaboration with adopters, to create a culture that values these clucky, plucky birds as the amazing individuals they truly are!

Links:

• "Adopt Don't Shop" for chicken companions
• Read about Charlie's rescue!
• Read about Snowy's struggle to survive