Looks like Second Hen'd was able to save another 200 ex battery Leghorns this December.

Im unsure if they have enough adoptors but if you in or around Missouri you can contact them if your interested in giving an ex battery Leghorn the gift of a forever home this December here is what they have on their page. They also accept donations which help with getting these girls forever homes and medical care.

"To re-home some ladies, submit a contact form via our website (https://second-hend.wixsite.com/second-hend/contact) -OR- send an e-mail to [email protected] with the information below (no private messages/texts/post replies). NOTE: We are unable to ship or transport birds, so adopters are responsible for making pick-up arrangements in ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

1.) Full name

2.) Location

3.) How many hens you’d like to adopt*

4.) A good contact number where you can be reached

*If you specifically wish to take on special-needs birds or are OK with the idea, also note that in your e-mail/contact form. We have no foresight into how extreme potential issues could be since it varies each time, just know we never set anyone up for failure."

I do not agree with all of their views but we share the same love of Leghorns and Second Hen'd is one of the only organizations saving battery hens in the US. They really love their hens and that is what matters to me. If you are interested in a potential house chicken they can help pair you with a hen who would be forever greatful for it.

A Very Angery Nyx who did not sign up for being manhandled by the vet and the vet student or implants on giant needles. Doubt she's going to like her week of antibiotics and painkillers much either.

But she got a lot of praise for being a very muscular ex-commercial hen who still weighs over 2kg and has made it to 4 years old before her ovaries started trying to kill her. She is apparently in very good condition!

(Update: she's slightly less mad now because I'm sharing my strawberry smoothie.)

before i even started watching good omens i came up with a really scuffed vaguely-bartimaeus au where aziraphale summons a demon to help with the bookshop because that's easier than interacting with people. and he gets a feral traumatized crowley who is like. wtf. this canNot be it. where's the trap

but there is no trap aziraphale is just a deeply kind person who also can't leave well enough alone

I haven't had any quality sleep so I drank a pink monster energy drink.

And yeah I'm good.

How are you doing, both of you

Quality sleep is so hard to come by these days... qwq

N - "Thun has been trying to limit themselves to one can of Red Bull a day...and has not been very successful."

I did it for a week...and then fell back into my old ways, because I can't stay awake if I don't drink them. I will sleep for at least fourteen hours at a time if I don't ;3; (They’re sugar free though, so they don’t affect my blood sugar XD)

E - "Apart from that, we're alright...surviving, heh."

It's been good, I've been getting the three new ex-battery/barn hens used to me the last couple days. (They've retired and are free-ranging now :3)

A lot of info under the cut (I couldn't help myself, my sincerest apologies);

Friend (one of the older chickens we have) seems to have something wrong with her depth perception, and can't really tell how far away food is, so I've been feeding her out of a bowl, instead of the feeder :) She's definitely gotten a lot more friendly after that, and relies on me a lot more XD

All the chickens have names;

Friend (Top of the pecking order, best girl, very cute, follows me everywhere around the garden, tackling the eyesight issue like a champ <3)

Bully (Second in command (She has spurs like a rooster) and bullies everyone, apart from Friend, who puts her in her place).

Sunshine (One of the lowest, got her from a family who couldn't keep her anymore because their dog kept eating her remains and getting sick). Those are the three older ones we have. We got new ones a few weeks ago.

Dusting (Highest in the pecking order out of the three new ones, named Dusting because she is white, (unlike the others, who are a mix of red and gold(?)), it's another name for when it's snowing and she loves dust baths. Very shy, hasn't gotten too close as of yet).

Iris (the inbetween, first to approach me and eat out of my hands, loves to try and rip my fingers off).

Icarus (a.k.a The Dark One, lowest, probably the most confident though, also tries to take my fingers off).

Slowly but surely, they're growing their feathers back, and I can't wait to see them with them all.

As for Friend, I'll be keeping an eye on her and feeding her for a while longer. She's still very willing to eat and drink, which is a good sign, especially when it comes to chickens :) Somehow, she's still kept her role as the leader, even though, typically, they can sense when something's wrong with each other.

They mainly keep to their own groups, the younger ones stick together, and the older ones do the same. Sunshine tends to mingle with Dusting, Iris and Icarus a fair bit, because she's also one of the lowest.

All in all, very good chickens, very satisfying to sit outside with them for hours and have them slowly feel more comfortable to be around me. We're currently getting three/four eggs a day, Friend and Bully don't lay anymore, but they seem to be enjoying life :)

They probably won't live as long as they're supposed to, because of the first year being so stressful at the battery farms, but I love them a lot <333 qwq

(Cuffer would be completely smitten with them and never leave the garden ;3;)

(Sorry for the ramble XD I just love talking about how far they've gotten, they honestly deserve the freedom uwu)

(First ask, I'm trying my best TwT)

Buuuuut, heyyyyyy Shane. Looks like the new farmer (me), got some chickens. Fifty. Fifty chickens. All healing, ex-battery hens from the city. Don't worry about the noise, they'll be quiet, hopefully. I wonder how you'd feel about having fifty chickens, less than half a mile away from the Ranch, on a nice, big farm. And hey, you can always come visit, and get bombarded by fifty hens who only want to be loved. How does that sound?

sounds like heaven, if i’ve ever heard of it. you’ve done a good thing by giving ‘em all that space to roam and live their lives to the fullest.

can’t think of a time i wouldn’t want to be bombarded by the love of fifty chicken. count me in.

Recap of what I’ve read lately!

I’m long overdue for one of these, so I went back to the WAYR thread on reddit to see what I posted about. I still said I’d do a massive rec of underrated authors and their stories - I’ll pull that together too, but let me just get this out here first because it’s less work.

The Fluffy Gore Fest - I put this fest together with Jana and @lilithshadefanfic. The prompts range from violent and gory to fluffy and romantic. The challenge of the authors was to incorporate both elements into their stories, or to make a twist on the prompt they chose. The results of this fest were fantastic. Genre mashups, unique premises, really cool artwork, hilarious situations, and the best tag I have ever seen in fandom: non-con pseudo cannibalism. I highly recommend trawling through the submissions, there are 26 of varying lengths, genres, and levels of gore. Super fun! But mind the tags. ;)

Seven Minutes in Hell by echoesofmyfootsteps (4.6K, M)

Summary: Hogwarts has inaugurated a fully integrated 8th year class, regardless of previous house or Death Eater status. On the surface, it appears like a bold experiment in harmony. In practice, they’re still just young adults doing young adult things.“ Seven Minutes in Heaven, the Muggles call it. But heaven isn’t my thing.” Pansy paused dramatically and popped her hip. “We’re playing Seven Minutes in Hell—a chance for you to have a real, no-holds-barred, honest-albeit-forced conversation with your greatest enemy in eighth year.” The room went silent.

My thoughts: It's exactly what you want it to be. Funny, snarky, good characterizations of the side characters playing off each other and the mains, and delicious angry making out.The sequel:

Seven Minutes in Hell(ishly Frigid Water)- 3.2K, E.

Summary: That was it. They were going to have to amputate his cock. Farewell, future family of little Malfoys. Adieu, dreams of Eiffel Tower sex. Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger have been dating for a month since their escapades in the broom cupboard, and much to his chagrin, they haven’t yet experienced anything as steamy as that night. So when she casually mentions never having gone skinny dipping, he jumps at the opportunity. If only reality didn’t have the irritating tendency to crush every fantasy. A totally indulgent sexy Dramione skinny-dipping oneshot, happening after the events of “Seven Minutes in Hell.”

My thoughts: Draco's snarky, drama queen-esque POV for this smutty skinny dipping one shot is hilarious.

Granny Smiths by ChaosAndCrumpets (4K, rated T)

Summary: The worst thing, Draco Malfoy thinks, about being the fallen scion of an ancient and noble house banished to the Muggle world for his various misdeeds, is undoubtedly the grocery shopping. At least it helps him to discover an unexpected talent.

My thoughts: This was the most delightful thing I've ever read, with one of the best OCs ever. Meet Edith: an extremely devious, ever-so-naughty geriatric. Did you need to read about snarky, grumpy-ass, tattooed Draco reluctantly helping elderly ladies with their grocery shopping? I'm telling you right now that you absolutely do.

Draco Malfoy's Halfway House for Wayward Hens by Chaos and Crumpets (10K, rated T)

Summary: A story about Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger and 562 ex-battery hens. This is a bit of silliness, inspired by an article I read years ago about a man who felt that rescuing ex-battery hens had saved his life. Sometimes, I like to read it when I've had a few glasses of wine, to remember how nice the world can be.

My thoughts: Draco is accused of illegally raising fire-breathing cockatrice's by his neighbor. Hermione is assigned to investigate. Turns out they're actually chickens. With hilarious names. I really enjoyed the unique premise of this story. I loved the banter, the tentative feeling each other out, the confrontation and resolution. It was all well done, none of it was contrived, none of it cliched. And the kiss at the end was a heck of a kiss. Like everything I've read from CeeCee thus far, it's silly and delightful (I haven't yet read her war fic, it's on my TBR), but this story has a lot of heart to go with it. Also? I'm convinced she needs to write an epistolary fic (please help me enable her in the comments) given the snarky jabs going back and forth by owl in the beginning of the story. Read it when you want to laugh and smile and feel like hugging everyone.

Epilimnion by witchsoup (8K, rated M)

Summary: The tournament was supposed to be safe. Dumbledore was a personal friend of the chieftain, spoke Mermish, commanded the waters of the Black Lake and the movements of the Giant Squid. There was nothing to be afraid of, until the others (the Delacour girl, the Ravenclaw chaser, fucking Weasley) surfaced at the end of the hour. And Granger did not. 

My thoughts: Oh my gosh this was fantastic. It was written for the monsterfucking fest and I'm fairly certain the writer wanted to subvert the entirety of the monsterfucking trope by making it as unsexy as possible. Definitely a ballsy move in a fest dedicated to sexy monsters, and she's got all my respect for doing it. DON'T LET THAT SCARE YOU AWAY THIS WAS SO GOOD. The writing was some of the best I've ever seen in a fic. If not the absolute best. It was gross and brutal, and some of the best body horror you'll ever read. The world building that was crammed into this super short Voldemort wins AU, was phenomenal. The head nods and the parallels to what could have been were expertly done. Highly highly recommend this one (Bek has been raving about it for a long time, I'm slow to catch on). I don't want to say anything else. I'm probably going to go binge the rest of her stuff. She's that good.

Pegged by MisDemeanor1331 (6K, rated E)Summary: They have been planning for months. Their research is complete, the necessary supplies purchased, and the scene’s negotiations finalised. So why does Draco still feel woefully unprepared for the pegging he’s about to receive from his beloved Domme, the Professor? 

My thoughts: MisD is now a proud, card carrying member of The Pegging Agenda. It's the latest installment of her Yes, Professor series, in which Hermione and Draco are both switches, but all entries thus far have been with a Dom!Hermione/Sub!Draco dynamic. It looks like she may switch it up for the next story. As with all her smut, she does a bang up job in relating it to the characters, their state of mind, their growth and their future. Trusting each other is a big theme in her series, but for Draco, trusting himself is even more important.

Time and Tide (M), 30K. from MisDemeanor, this was also discussed in the book club. I'm a big fan, I think she's one of the better writers in fandom, consistently putting out unique, high quality, thought provoking pieces that say more in 30K than other writers manage in 300K, (yours truly included). She's just not as well known because she unabashedly writes horror, MCD, G,T-rated and short stories, which don't get the attention that long behemoth smut fests do. I'm notorious for skimming bits of stories (or entire chapters) in fanfiction, and yet I've never skimmed a sentence she's written. Ever.

Summary: While ferrying a message for the Order of the Phoenix, Hermione Granger is caught by jaded Death Eater, Draco Malfoy. Unlikely and unwilling allies, the pair begin a cross-country journey where their survival depends on learning when to stand strong against the elements’ fury, and when it’s acceptable to erode.

My thoughts: Where to begin? I love war fics, and this one is realistic, makes sense, and is strategic and gritty. So the story itself already ticks my boxes. Hermione as a selkie is already several trope subversions because she's the creature, not Draco, it's a creature that isn't inherently sexy, there's no mate bond, and I've never heard of it before. lol (yes, I did google it)The story reads like a fable where the choice of Selkie really adds to that feeling, starting off by contrasting Hermione's lonely life in her role for the Order - always on the move - with a quiet fishing village where she would like to lay down and rest quietly, but doesn't know if/when that will ever happen. She can't think past her role in the war. The interactions with Draco are efficient and emotionally loaded. He's similarly changed from years at war, but on a different side, unwillingly. There's a lot of trauma experienced by the two in a short time, and they lean on each other, with no pretense, baring it all. The action scenes come out of nowhere (in a good way) and are unrelenting in how brutal they can be. Much like MisD's other stories, I can visualize the scenes in this story so vividly, and they'll stay with me a long time. The fishing village, Hermione baring it all in front of Draco - with no shame - before undergoing her Selkie transformation and diving into the water to get more information, Draco's ancestors literally crying out to him as he rejects his past and runs away towards something new (brilliant, this scene was brilliant), Hermione discovering murdered Order members at a safe house, and some other scenes that I wont' mention because they spoil the plot. The story itself deals with freedom and waning idealism, being worn down by time and life experiences (hence the name and the theme), living life on your own terms, compromising, rejecting one form of freedom for a different kind of happiness. This story has two endings, and if you've read it before, you probably haven't read the alternate ending because it was just published. I don't want to spoil it, but there is a trigger warning on that last chapter. Even though I enjoyed the original ending, I personally, think the alternate ending works better because the story comes full circle and continues with the fable-like feel of Hermione's identify as a Selkie.

Where Is Thy Sting? by Anne Ammons 6K, T, 

Summary: Hermione has a terminal illness, Draco is Death, personified.

My thoughts: This one shot came out of nowhere. It's MCD and HEA. So chew on that. lol Super interesting premise, I adored this story. She had me crying - of course, dealing with death - but it's also a sweet ending. The one shot deals with parental anguish, loneliness, assigned roles and what they mean, detachment from others, inevitability. It had Neil Gaiman vibes, was very romantic and slightly surreal. I loved it, one of those one shots that will stay with me for a long time.

WIPs I'm enjoying:

Sweet Disarray by Pia_Bartolini

Summary: Grief stricken after the trauma of war and failure to return her parent's memories, Hermione Granger immersed herself in a dizzying swirl of distractions. No regrets, no thinking, no pain of loss.Fate had a rather twisted sense of humor.Now she must fight a system of opaque rules and archaic prejudice while surviving NEWTS, impending motherhood, and the weight of her own grief. If only Draco Malfoy didn't keep hovering with biscuits and damnably confusing legal contracts.My thoughts so far: I've called this the unplanned pregnancy fic for those of us that don't like the unplanned pregnancy trope. This story is very personal to Pia and it shows, and that's probably why I enjoy this take on the trope - because it's not a cliche. It's based on some of the struggles and prejudice that she faced as a young mother. Aside from some of the plot twists and surprises that she's got, what I'm enjoying in particular is how she's portraying all the post-war teens in their eighth year. Some are angry, some are resentful, some are taking out their issues at the wrong places, they're all struggling for different reasons, but no one is really bad or evil. Except the people at St. Mungos. My rage knows no bounds.

The To-Do List by emilyinwonderland

Summary: Is that what frustrated her the most? That all of her other peers seemed to be in the know of something big and not-very-secret. All of them had that knowledge. For once, Hermione Granger did not have the correct answer. Hermione capped her quill, laying everything down to peer at the social experiment that would take up the next few months of her time. The parchment read: The To-Do List

Snogging

Breast fondling

Dry Humping

Fingering

Handjob

Blowjob

Receive Oral Sex

Intercourse

My thoughts so far: Kris is really coming into her own as a writer. She excels at this whole 'awkward teenage exploratory sex' thing and I shrieked at the last chapter I read, I kid you not. Looks like I'm reading mostly teen-focused stuff right now with what the rest of my post looks like lol. But while this very much has the feel of a teen movie, (there's a fun truth or dare game) it's got an awful lot of heart. Honest, sincere moments between the characters, which really elevate the story over something that could easily be cliched and tropey. Also, the hand job scene with Draco was hot and a huge cliff hanger. I'm so nervous about the blow job chapter, which I haven't gotten to yet...

Lapsarian by hellvwng

Summary: Two enemies strike a deal to turn the tide of a war and save what they each value most. The temptation of salvation draws Hermione Granger deeper and deeper into damnation, her own fall from grace, at a heavy price.

My thoughts: A Manacled AU, she's setting the stage in the beginning chapters, readers that enjoyed the Manacled 'verse will appreciate the point in time where she picks up. And although the setting is familiar, she has her own unique take on the characters, their motivations, and how they interact with others. Looking forward to reading more as the plot picks up!

Ex Battery Hens First Moments of Freedom

Allotment Chickens

Well, they’re sort of allotment chickens. Let me explain. I don’t house my chickens on the allotment, they live in my garden for a couple of reasons. Firstly there really isn’t enough space to keep chickens on my allotment, the site is tiny compared to others with just 33 plots in total which are compact in size compared to standard plot sizes. My garden is plenty big for them to roam around…

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my little piece of heaven.

Little update on Second-Hen'd

Also of the remaining eight pumpkin spice girls there are two special needs hens that need a home. One has suffered a neck break that has healed but her neck is now wonky and the other hen has trouble thermoregulating. Both of these hens are bonded and will need to find a house chicken home this will make it harder for them to be adopted. Leghorns make great house chickens and you would be giving an ex battery hen another chance at life. Some of these other hens can live a long and normal chicken life outside with the right care.

Nyx is doing great on her implant! She's covered in feather spikes!

Fluffy the Terrible is not doing so great on Nyx's implant.

Fluffy is specifically terrible at being a chicken. They don't have a standard dominance hierarchy, because:

a) chicken dominance is established by pecking heads and jumping on each other, and Fluffy is HUGE, so nobody else can reach, but

b) Fluffy doesn't know how to do anything and the few times she's been left without a smarter chicken to copy she's just ended up sitting in the overturned dust bath (see above re: HUGE), beeping sadly to herself.

Nyx is basically her assistance chicken. So Nyx's reduced appetite and activity following her artificial henopause has left Fluffy at a bit of a loose end and needing a lot of gentle encouragement from me.

We recently got a few more rescue chickens 🐓

I had forgotten the state they are when you first get them. Lack of feathers, no natural behaviours, ill etc.

The comparison between our new rescue hens and the ones we’ve had for a year is striking!

Want to rescue battery hens?

Before I go into this, let me premise by saying I absolutely am NOT saying that roosters deserve life more than hens. I’m not saying that people shouldn’t rescue battery hens or focus on their welfare- we absolutely should!

See, the thing about battery hens is, well, the average person isn’t cut out for caring for these chickens. They require someone who is trained in rehabilitation and can handle the emotional turmoil. They require more than free ranging in sunlight with grass and bugs to eat and dirt to bathe in- they often need expansive medical attention and care. You can’t just toss them into freedom. It is a major time, financial, and emotional commitment to prepare them for a normal life and you need to remember that these hens will generally only live another year or two. The extreme amounts of eggs they produce means that no matter how much you give them, the damage has already been done. Even if they’re spayed to prevent more egg laying it has still taken a toll on their body.

The other thing is demand..these birds don’t come into rescues very often; there isn’t some animal welfare group busting battery hens out of prison every week. They’re actually very hard to find! Most actually end up going to farm animal sanctuaries and not pet homes because they usually have the skill to rehabilitate them. So, even if someone DID have all the resources necessary to help battery hens, it would be a while before they actually got any.

Now that I’ve got that out if the way, onto my point:

Why roosters?

And no, I don’t mean cock fighters. Nope, not broilers (meat birds). Just plain, normal, backyard roosters. Like this guy, Phillipe:

Well, okay, his situation was unique and he did require extensive experience with chickens. Known as Chet at the rescue, he was found with many others in tiny cages...not cock fighters. Likely just an animal hoarding situation. He went over a year at the rescue without interacting with any other chickens so it took some time to teach him how to be social that may not be best for the average person. But what about this lovely kid?

I got this cockerel and his brothers (unrelated cochin bantam and silkie who may actually be a pullet) from someone who couldn’t keep roosters where they live. There are LOTS of birds in this situation. Flint is a perfect gentlemen, he and his brothers required no rehabilitation or extra skills, easy peasy. I’m actually friends with his old owners now, they love their chickens but live in the city and can’t keep roosters!

And the most common situation? the fellow above. People end up with “too many” roosters and need to get rid of them! Luckily Razz came from a nice place that actually cares about their birds, the problem with him was primarily limited space (and silkie chickens are kind of dummies).

Roosters are EVERYWHERE. There is a constant demand for homes for cocks (adults) and cockerels (juveniles). And no one wants to give them a home! Why? Well a lot of it is the stigma against roosters, that they’re mean and don’t get along well with other boys. When you have hens this can be true, but a bachelor pad of cocks is just WONDERFUL! They make cuddly, sweet, healthy pets! Yep, no egg problems in these bad boys. Years of (generally) care free hugs and kisses to come when you adopt a rooster!

If you want to help chickens by adopting but don’t have the means to rescue battery hens, then just set up a bachelor pad- a coop only for roosters! Without hens you usually don’t have to worry about fighting or attacking you. And should you have issues, tethers work wonders- I have a cochin boy on a tether and it works out great. He’s very horny and wants to fight everything, so putting him on a tether lets other birds still interact with him freely but get away if he’s naughty. We’ve tethered several boys with excellent results, usually they can free roam after a few weeks- some do have a hormonal imbalance like my cochin boy (he’s happy on his tether, so no worries! it gets taken off in the evening after the others have gone to bed to let him run around).

Many of the roosters available are hand-reared pets that LOVE people and will make great companions. Now, they won’t lay eggs, but you shouldn’t expect that with battery hens anyways. You can often get fun and funky breeds, lots of different shapes, colors, and sizes! They all have a different crow and will amaze you with their dancing and singing skills. Roosters truly are wonderful pets that just don’t get a lot of credit.

If you’re interested, you can start by looking in your local classifieds (aka Craigslist in the US) where, depending on location, you’re bound to find a rooster in need. You can also check local shelters and farm rescues.

The rescue centre where I get all my chickens from - Homes4Hens - are trying to raise funds for a new vehicle to rescue ex battery hens (also known as caged hens) and transport the hens to their new homes, saving them from being slaughtered. I wanted to share this because I love chickens very much, and I think this organisation is wonderful! They write,

Homes4Hens Rescue CIC is an organisation committed to rescuing and rehoming ex-caged hens otherwise destined for slaughter. We have been operating since 2010 and have so far saved the lives of over 20,000 hens!

We have managed to get by using our own family vehicle or on some occasions borrowed a vehicle from volunteers to rescue the hens from farms and distribute them to seven collection points located across Scotland and Northern England. In order for our project to continue we are in desperate need of a designated vehicle, suited to the purpose and for the sole use of the organisation. This vehicle would be fitted with a ventilation system and crates allowing us to transport more hens safely and in comfort.

[Read more]

If you are able to spare a few pounds, please would you consider checking them out? Or maybe reblog / repost this, or share it on other social media? ♡

Their fundraising page is here.

Their website is here.

Their Facebook page is here.

Thank you for taking the time to read this ♡✩♡✩♡✩♡✩♡

Hi everyone! Please read and share this. A few days ago one of my rescued hens had surgery to save her life as she was laying soft shelled eggs and I would appreciate any support anyone can give for her vet bill. Her and her friends who I care for are red star chickens, which is one of the breeds used in commercial egg farming. This breed lays an egg a day until it kills them, usually at around 2-3 years old if they’re lucky to live that long (and in farms they’re killed before then). Their farm burned down and while nearly 300,000 birds died, they and others escaped. They live a safe and happy life now, like they should.

Soft shelled eggs can kill them as egg yolk stays until the body and causes infections, but she got a spay surgery to fix that. She will never lay eggs again and should now live the next 8 years she should be allowed to live, but her surgery was extremely expensive. It was $1665 to spay her and get a biopsy for nodules found on one of her oviducts, and I have 9 other hens who will one day soon need this same surgery. I was able to pay for hers but it severely depleted my bank account and I don’t currently have a job as I do not have a car and am a full time college student. If anyone could donate anything, $5 or even $1 adds up and would help so much if anyone is able to donate to her vet bills so I can continue to care for her and her friends, and maybe afford the future surgeries that will have to happen a tiny bit easier. If you can’t donate, please share. If anyone has questions or wants to see the bill as proof I can share that, I just didn’t want to make this too long.

My Venmo is: Cassie-M-79

I have a PayPal if people prefer that too

Please share, thank you all for any support! I’m at college while my mom cares for her, but please enjoy this picture of her before her surgery. She was worth every penny and I love her so much.