→   Your hens will be approximately one year old. This is the time they would ordinarily go for slaughter. At this age, they will have laid around 300 eggs. They will still readily lay and, as a general rule, you will get an egg every other day per chicken, although some lay regularly each day. You will see that egg quality hugely improves over time.

→   The minimum requirements for accommodation are 1.5 sq ft (0.45 sq mtr) per chicken for night time roosting and 2 sq ft (0.6 sq mtr) per chicken for day time exercise and foraging. The minimum height is preferably 2ft high. Staff at the Centre will be able to advise you on the number of hens most suited to the accommodation you have available, (i.e. a 6ft x 4ft shed could accommodate up to 16 chickens for overnight roosting).

→   The hens will look fairly threadbare for the first few weeks or months however they will have almost complete feather regrowth in time. You will be able to see the resident 're-feathered' hens at the Centre. Caged hens can very occasionally develop fractures of their wings, toes and legs when they get moved around and, despite every effort to ensure they are fit to be rehomed, your hen may require veterinary treatment soon after adoption. We may be dealing with large numbers of birds on rescue days and sometimes a poorly bird can slip through the process although this is rare.

→   Be warned – hens are not for the lawn proud! They are industrious in their hunt for bugs and think nothing of scratching around in one spot for minutes at a time if they suspect something tasty lives there. Ants' nests seem particular favourites! That said, providing they have access to a large enough area, the visible damage will be minimal.

→   Your hens will be slightly disoriented for a few days after adoption. They have spent all their lives in tiny cages and when you take them home it will be the first time they have felt grass beneath their feet and seen the sky. But don't worry – it is amazing how quickly their instincts return and they will be scratching around and sunbathing with their wings stretched out before you know it.

→  There is no guarantee how long an ex-battery hen will live. Some may only live for a few weeks. However, if these weeks are spent in the fresh air being able to stretch their wings we feel they are luckier than a lot of battery hens. On average they will live for a further two to three years.

→   If you feel that you would like to proceed with adopting some of our hens, you will find the ' Caring for Battery Hens' pdf document has more in-depth information. You can also visit the Battery Hen Welfare Trust website at www.bhwt.org.uk