The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: r+lchick on October 05, 2009, 12:46:32 pm
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Anyone know where I can get some very cross bred chickens. I don't want pedigrees as I have no intention of showing them or breeding them. Just want them for eggs. Most cross bred chickens I have seen start at £10. Is this the going rate? Before anyone suggests the Battery Hen Rehoming Centre, sorry they don't like me or I am too honest. They want to give birds for pets. I, on the other hand, want to keep birds for eggs. When their productivity dwindles, they will be curry. I am talking totally off laying. In the meantime, they will have a great life. That is why the rehoming centre will not let me have any. Fair play to them. They do a great job but it leaves me without a cheap source of hens. Any suggestions for the West Midlands area? Or am I expecting chickens for too cheap a price? :cat: :chook:
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you should get the bog standard red hen for about £6-8. anymore and you have been had. there should be loads of chickens about after the craze for chickens calms down
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I've never even been asked by the BHWT what my intentions are. I have had three lots of 6. Mind you even when they are very erratic layers I don't kill them off, so i suppose I might have said that in the passing to Jim. But he's never actually asked me, nor have I signed anything. Has anyone else been asked?
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that would limit the number of people wanting them. it would be unrealistic to expect the new keeps to hold onto them until they die of old age. this has never been the fate of the hen. eat it when it finshes laying and replace. the old red hen is not the greatest at having a good old age. this as harry said is down to them being mutant egg machines.
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As a co ordinator for Hen Rehomers UK, we do stress before people take on the hens, that if they are wanting them for lots of eggs, then do not take on ex battery hens. Most of the people just want a couple for their garden, which is fair enough, pet hens who may lay eggs, which will suit these people.
Having said that, I have a lot of ex battery hens in my flock, who have laid very well. We do try to discourage people who want them for a business, or to sell the eggs. This is for fear they will get them, find they are not laying well enough, and then either sell them on, or eat them.
I have noticed that hens in general do seem to be very expensive. POL near us start at around £8, but have seen some for £10-15 as well.
I suppose the breeders have kept them for all those weeks, and fed them, so that is what it cost to rear them.
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I don't want them for a business just for some eggs for the home. But I also don't want to keep feeding them for 5 - 6 years if they are not laying eggs as I only have adequate room for 6 at the most. I could keep more, but don't think it would be fair on the poor chooks. I could lie to them but that is not in my nature. They will have a lovely life but I have to be realistic. I could end up with 6 chickens, feeding them and all and not one egg. I know you have cats and dogs for pets and feed them without anything in return but I had my cat as a pet, not as a mouse hunter. It seems that I will have to pay £10 for a couple of birds to get my young ones thinking about what they should be doing. Thanks guys for your help again. Ros :cat: :chook:
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i can get pol hylines for 6 quid. i even got 6 black rocks for 2 quid each but they were a mistake. i had to cull one straight away and a number of others scaly leg. they have turned out nice just one left with manky scales. so to raise and ship up here for that price they are either making a loss or your being overcharged. i know i could not produce them at that cost.
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Where did you get them from? Ros
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we get them from an egg producer that over buys to sell the spare to pay for there hens. we gain they gain and so do the hens.
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I thought i could give a good home to 100 x batts, i would give them free range on 1-2 acre of grass with trees stream etc, i told the rescuers that i have this good home but i would raise them untill fully feathered again and sell some of the 100 for a small fee to cover feed , rehab, etc, but they thought DEATH WAS A BETTER OPTION....
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bet the future nuggets did not agree.
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Come on Roxy convince me about this policy, death is better than what i offered.
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r+lchick, If you are planning to eat them I would go for a heavier dual purpose breed that is actually going to have some meat on them. A Black Rock is going to be a much better investment for you than a skinny egg laying machine. Have you tried the admag?
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you stated, NO INTENTION OF BREEDING, how many of us have said that when we started, get a med heavy breed, a trio and hatch them forever.... hens for laying or selling,cocks for eating, dont ask what breed to get you will get 50 different replies, mine would maybe be a rir x l/s ime currently xing l/s x ixworths.
PAUL i dont think the chickens were asked. :'(
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I thought i could give a good home to 100 x batts, i would give them free range on 1/2 acre of grass with trees stream etc,
I have the same land as that - exactly! I wouldn't put anything like 100 chickens on it. My 15 birds have plenty of room on there and I could have a good few more I'm sure, but they would soon decimate it if they were out there 24/7
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100 chickens nearly 2 acres? tons of room after being in a cage for a year.,,,, are you saying death is a better option. also i did say i would sell some to cover costs after rehab etc. dam site less room in the cat food tin.
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I have 40 hens on 2 acres and they barely make a mark in the field - pigs however are another story! ;D
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:)i took 3 pol rir x black rock to our local auction a few weeks ago and they sold for foury pounds i must say i was surprised to say the least. on the same day the regular brown hens were selling around two to four pounds each.
i usually sell for ten pounds a pol i think this is a fair price when you take the cost of incubation, heat lamps, chick crumbs, growers, wormers etc. you will end up with great looking healthy bird that will lay a lot of eggs and when they stop laying they are a chunky bird for that curry :chook: :chook: :chook:
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me too, currently got 25 ixworths 4 geese 15 ducks 12 sussex and a few odds and ends, no pigs, land is in great condition medium grass lenght. By the way mirimaron my butts started to leak ;) ;)
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:o :o :o OMG CALL THE PARAMEDICS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :o :o :o
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we have about 85 at the moment Ive been giving away a batch of crossed hylines and Shetland and they spread out over the fields quite happily and the neighbours fields to we have to chase the geese back home we had to take them out of the field one of our colts suffered a bad goose peck somewhere painful. egg birds are a waste of time for roasting. we did two cockerals a couple of weeks ago and they ended up pigeon size. the meat went down well though. gutting can be a problem if you have big hands.
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100 chickens nearly 2 acres? tons of room after being in a cage for a year.,,,, are you saying death is a better option. also i did say i would sell some to cover costs after rehab etc. dam site less room in the cat food tin.
It read as half an acre not 2 acres. I don't know why they refused.
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THEY said there policy was anyone cannot sell them, cant eat them, its their game and their rules but i was hoping for a reply from anyone conected to the organsation to tell me why they judge that what i offered was worse than slaughter, this was the norfolk area. IT WAS THE BIRDS LOSS, as ime now fully stocked and the birds that would have been scratching in the grass and sunshine are now tinned.
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From my experience Harry, most of the rescue organisations do not have a problem with finding homes for the hens. I know our rehomers have to fill an online questionnaire in - and are asked about their intentions, regarding their hens. After what they have been through, I think they want the hens to go to a pet home where they will be for life. When the hens are taken on, the new keeper signs to say they will not sell them, or pass them on without letting the organisation know, and every effort will be made to rehome them if they are unable to keep the hens at some time. If you asked for 100, I think they would be suspicious about why you wanted so many, and would assume you were either a business, or going to sell the hens on for a profit.
The rehomers have to be aware as well, they may be subject to a home visit, to check on the welfare of the hens - and yours may well be all sold by the time this visit occured :D
I am not saying what you want to do is wrong, but if I am honest, with being involved in the rescues, I would prefer they went to homes for life. Thats not to say you would not look after the hens well while they were with you .....I am sure you would .....but if everyone wanted the hens for the purpose you do, there would not be much point (in my mind) of us rescuing them.
Ok, I am probably too sentimental - wanting a happy ending for the hens!!!
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i would say that was a little bit sentimental. maybe some do want them for pets but they are a farm animal and they have to serve a purpose. sorry for being mean but spent chickens have always gone to the pot. they can have a happy life while they lay but then its bread crumbs for them.
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I can see what you are saying Shetlandpaul - but I am pretty sure I speak for all the people who go to the farms and get the hens out - we are all volunteeres, no pay involved - if we thought for one moment that the hens were not going to what we consider the right homes, then we would not be helping at further rescues. We go into the farms and bring them out for one reason - we care about the well being of these chickens.
I have a lot of ex batteries, many being the ones we brought back and thought would not survive - but they have, and I have never regretted bringing them home. I am not a sentimental old fool when it comes to animals being eaten, eg. lamb, beef, pork, etc. but these hens are different. I get immense pleasure from helping them get a better life, and my reward is seeing them in a nice new home, enjoying life.
Yes, I know that is sentiment again - but there it is. :D
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and of course thats your right. but these animals are meant to be farmed i don't think for a moment that your hens are not happy but how many can you rescue that are going to live a happy full life.
if your rescues depend on the pet community your placing weakened animals with people with little skill yes some do but if your re homing 10000 then each of those homes needs checking. what happens when the fad for chickens fades away. your looking at needing to re home 1000 of birds or they are going to suffer. maybe it would be better for the hens to be culled and anyone that wants to keep hens to at least to have read defras guides.
i have not heard of re homing spent cows or cast ewes. would love to see a semi in London with a flock of gummy sheep.
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Yes, I do get your point re the spent cows and ewes in a garden - some of my goats were in a little back garden when I rescued those. Lady just gave them goat mix - no hay, no fibre, no grass. No idea, basically.
I DO have concerns about where the hens end up, and speaking with some of the rehomers, eager as they are, its obvious they have not got a clue about keeping any livestock. But,they take the hens all the same, and if they cannot cope (which sometimes happen) there are people like me to take the hens back. On the other hand, we have people who took a couple a few months back, and have now decided they want some more. I like to think that most of the rehomers fall into this second category, and I think they do. One thing I do know, is that these hens steal their new owners hearts!!!
As to reading DEFRA's guide, I do think the rehomers are aware of this, and the responsibility of taking the hens on in the first place. I do my best to explain about them making the garden muddy, but until they get the hens I suppose the reality of it does not hit home.
Hopefully, battery farms will be a thing of the past, and we will not have a job to do - now that would be good!!!//
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ROXY no they werent suspicious of me because i firstly booked them then they gave me a date then there was a form to fill in and i told them i would be honset and told them i would sell some for a small fee to cover food and rehab, so i told them it would be no good me filling the form in on that basis, they said there were 1000s and any not rehomed would be killed. That was not them being suspicious of me it was me being honest. Wanting a happy end for hens, thats a laugh, the surplus were all tinned. Pity we cant ask the hens.
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agreed on that. theres a lady up here that keeps two hens in her house. now that may just seem odd but in reality its cruel. i do worry about the hens that end up in runs no matter were they are from this can be worse than factory farming. unless they can wander like your typical farm yard hen then keep something else. i just picture the animal shelters being drowned with hens in a few years. they are not suited to small gardens.
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ROXY no they werent suspicious of me because i firstly booked them then they gave me a date then there was a form to fill in and i told them i would be honset and told them i would sell some for a small fee to cover food and rehab, so i told them it would be no good me filling the form in on that basis, they said there were 1000s and any not rehomed would be killed. That was not them being suspicious of me it was me being honest.
harry that sounds like they were telling you to take them.
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I agree shetlandpaul about keeping hens in small runs in gardens. I think the tv programmes influenced a lot of people into keeping backyard hens, but does not say what to do when the lawn is waterlogged in wet weather, and mud everywhere. No, for me, hens need to be free range, but not everyone has the luxury of a field to allow this. I think the average garden is better than a cage though?
Harry, perhaps you were TOO honest (for which you have to be commended!) about your intentions for the hens ......otherwise you may have got them!!
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I have Rhode Island Red x Blue Marans for sale that were hatched in May and I would not sell for less than £10. Cost of feed is not cheap and I could make more selling their eggs if I keep them. Bigger than their mum they are lovely colours, we have eaten the cockerals and they were lovely. Ours get to roam the fields and in bad weather they choose to stay in the barn, we changed one of the indoor stables into housing for them so they have the best of both worlds. :chook:
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if i had got them and later had a visit, and half were missing what then.. Whats the point of having that non selling rule if as you indiciate they would ignore the rule. As for selling for profit i wonder if thats possible, what would a 2nd year brown hen fetch, and what would it cost to rehab it. Possibly a break even situation at best, if under my conditions they came to see my site, a grass meadow with stream to drink from, bushes sheds to roost in, all surrounded by electric fences then they could make a decision on what was remaining ie unwanted birds.
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Your set up sounds very good, Harry - a hens paradise. The minimum donation is £1.50 per hen. What would you sell the hens on for - taking into account your feed etc. while they were with you. Do you think you would make any money on them?
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i really doubt there would make a return. if they could then the farmer would have done it. a good crossed rr/light sussex would be better for laying and meat. we can't supply the trees but there are plenty of bushes and 7 acres plus for them to wander. were lucky that we dont have foxs but they have to be secure before dark as the polecats visit. they get to choose between two rough coops in the front field an old store 15x15 and the byre. we tend to chase a dozen or so back were they belong a coop for our old six should not have 20+ hens in.
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ive previously stated that there would be no profit, but the rules seem to be to prevent a keeper raising them and selling them on for a profit, ive already said, i doubt thats possible, maybe break even at best. my idea was i had room for a 100 +, i would maybe keep 40 and give a good chance for the rest, ie sparred the chop. Anyway not interested anymore as fully stocked with other birds.
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Good luck with your stock Harry, I think you have made the right decision - Ex-batts won't be worth eating anyway.
If I was running an Ex-batt re-homing charity I wouldn't have a problem with the hens eventually being eaten but I would limit the numbers that people could re-home so that unscrupulous people wouldn't sell the hens on to make a profit. I know that was never you intention Harry, but I bet there are other people out there who will be trying to take advantage of the new fad for hens. I would also keep a log of how many people return for more hens and how many they re-home each time.
Going back to an earlier bit in this thread - we re-homed approx 30 hens and already had experience with chickens. I was surprised at how little info there was on basic chicken husbandry. There was a leaflet relating directly to Ex-batts, but not enough on general care. The re-homer we dealt with was brilliant (can't remember her name), but people who were new to chickens would not have got nearly enough info. I know leaflets cost money, but maybe some suitable web addresses or book recommendations at the bottom of the leaflet they hand out would help newbies.
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I spoke to a re-homing friend today and they said that they don’t normally allow on-selling because they have no control over housing and how people might care for the hens.
What most of these people are missing is that the main charity aim is to change battery farming. Re-homing is a sideline which raises the charity profile, but will never have any effect on battery farming overall. But it is a nice thing to do and helps people feel good about keeping hens.
If someone wants 100 hens, they should go to the farmer and get them themselves. When my friend collects 600 hens, the farmer is maybe emptying 6000 cages or so. So it is a drop in the ocean.
My friend limits people to 20 hens, because above that people are tending to try to get hens cheap to sell the eggs commercially.
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and whats the problem with that. allowing them there freedom and they are earning there keep.
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Don't shoot me, I'm only the messenger. I actually agree with you. Even if an ex-batt only lives a few weeks after release it is still worthwhile in my opinion. If I had room I'd go to the farrmer and take all 6000! But I suppose that's emotive and there are bound to be logistic problems. But I can see my friend's point too - anyone wanting a lot of hens could go direct to the farmer, couldn't they?
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Yes, they could do that, Doganjo I suppose the farmers would want them all going though, not just what you wanted. And we usually bring out around 3000 at a time, and its hard work even with a number of helpers......and a lot of hen crates needed too of course!! We have a small sized battery farm not far from us, and I know one man who goes in and gets hens. He has not got a very big plot, so I am sure he is not bringing that many out!!
Its just finding these places willing to let you do it though. Battery farms are not well publicised for obvious reasons.
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I have a vague suspicion there is one just outside Clackmannan - anyone know?
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maybe best not to post them. ALF may visit and so ends rescues.
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I contacted by local egg production farm and they only give their birds to the Ex-battery Hens society (apologies, don't know their correct title). So, I couldn't even go the the local farm and get any. Just had a thought, could contact my local game keeper. He may know of someone. Thanks for all the posts. Ros :cat: :chook:
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(so that unscrupulous people wouldn't sell the hens on to make a profit.) Taken from a previous post, assuming there was a profit to be made, but i doubt that, whats wrong with giving hours of time, a safe place to live, feed etc etc, then selling for a small profit, why do you say a profit is for the unscrupulous, i would say if you could sell them for a profit you would probably have to sell for about £5 each, if someone would pay that i think they would look after them as opposed to getting them free and not bothering as they could always get some more next time,.If i pay £10-£25 for a hen ime going to do my best for it as its a loss if it dies.
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they are animal rescuers they don't think like us evil animal slavers.
but that's there choice they can sell to whoever they want. try a smaller free range egg producer. the hens will be a lot healthier and should be ok outside.
all rescue groups want an undertaking of future wealth fare. but a tadge heavy for chickens. you could try the rspca/sspca they are bound to have some and if not they could keep you on record.
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Dont want them now, i applied months ago, dont want them in future either. Got a good breeding stock of L/Sussex and ixworths, going to x some for the table.