Rehoming and Caring for Ex-Battery Hens

Re homing some Ex Battery Hens is a very rewarding experience. You will find Ex-Bats are easily tamed and gentle birds. This section aims to give you all of the information you need to re home these lovely girls as well as including some other articles of interest. If you are thinking of re homing some hens, a good place to start is our Rehoming Ex Battery Hens FAQ which should answer most of your questions and Common Health Problems of the Ex Battery Hen should help you spot some of the minor health problems you might encounter with your girls.

Remember Ex-Battery hens are ‘spent' commercial hens so are probably not for you if you purely want large quantities of eggs. Most however will provide you with a lot of eggs soon after you get them but expect egg numbers to decrease with age. Some hens can be very poorly feathered when you get them but it is also true to say that the media tends to show the worst cases. Many hens aren't as bad as this so don't let it put you off. Feathers re-grow in a couple of months. Within this time, your ex battery hens will also be scratching around to find worms and expressing their natural behaviours as nature intended them to. Don't worry, they don't need teaching, it's in their genetic makeup to be real chickens given half a chance.

Battery cages do not provide hens with sufficient space to express their natural behaviours. It is not possible for a battery hen to exercise, walk or even flap her wings. She cannot scratch, perch, or make a nest. In 2012 EU laws on battery hens change - This doesn't ban the practice; but requires better conditions, such as larger cages with "furniture". Other countries outside of Europe will not be subject to these regulations, and already they are gearing up to produce eggs for the British market, buying up old cages from farms in the UK. No doubt, if there is the demand, food producers will import cheap eggs for the many products that contain eggs.

• If you like this section and find it useful, please consider giving a couple of pounds to the British Hen Welfare Trust via our Justgiving Fundraising Page..

• Every single one of us can also make a big difference to the number of hens in cages when we purchase products containing eggs: The RSPCA's Guide to Products containing Free Range Eggs will help you to find products that contain Free Range Eggs in the UK.

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