Wanted – all-round good eggs to act as mother hen
Fancy a new member of the family – and a supply of freshly-laid eggs?
One woman is on a mission to save thousands of hens that would otherwise be going to the coop in the sky.
Kelly Burgess is looking for new homes in the West Midlands and Staffordshire for hens that are no longer deemed good enough to lay eggs commercially.
She has become a volunteer for the charity Fresh Start for Hens.
A hen can become yours for just £2.50, although of course you have to prove you have the space and resources to look after it properly.
Kelly, 24, a key accounts manager for Buxtons, which sells garden machinery and provides tree surgery, says she has become attached to the birds.
She said: “The hens are still producing eggs and we love them because they have characters and as a bonus you get eggs.”
The charity aims to save 11,500 hens in May alone.
Kelly, from Penkridge, visits farms that donate hens at the end of their useful life. She then matches them up with new homes across the West Midlands.
She said: “I run a collection point in Penkridge and just need people to come forward if they have ever thought of keeping hens in their gardens or backyards.
“We request pictures of the area where they will be kept to ensure they are going to good homes and ask for payment of £2.50 per hen.
“They bring people a lot of joy and the alternative is they are slaughtered.”
Details are on freshstartforhens.co.uk
