Could you give a hen like Pumpkin a happy home this Autumn?

Thousands of lucky hens are soon to be given the opportunity to enjoy a free range retirement as loving pets.

Hen welfare charity, the British Hen Welfare Trust, is holding re-homing days across the UK this October and hopes to find loving homes for ex-commercial hens just like Pumpkin, who would otherwise be destined for slaughter.

Jane Howorth, founder of the charity told us, “These endearing hens make amazing pets and soon adapt to family life, they are so full of character, you can’t help but fall in love with their unique personalities – their tasty eggs are an added bonus. If you haven’t adopted hens before, it’s incredibly rewarding and the feel-good factor in saving their lives is simply unbeatable.”

We asked, can anyone keep hens? Jane explains, “Absolutely, if you have a back garden, then you can keep chickens – it’s that simple! We have between 7,000 and 8,000 adoptions each year, unfortunately we don’t have the resources to home visit each time, but we do take adopters through a careful process to ensure they know what they’re taking on and that we are happy with what facilities they can provide. I am so grateful to the many kind people out there who help our lovely hens.”

Take a look at the charities re-homing dates coming up this month:

3 October

Didcot, Oxford

Coventry, West Midlands

Aunby, South Lincolnshire

4 October

Swinderby, North Lincolnshire

10 October

Bristol

Dorset, Sturminster Newton

Farrington Gurney, Somerset

Chulmleigh, Devon

Gwernogle, Wales

Monmouth – FULL *Call to be placed on a waiting list.

24 October

Bishop stopford, Hertfordshire

Great Totham, Essex

Godmanchester, Cambridge

26 October

Great Totham, Essex

The charity urges anyone interested in adopting a hen like Pumpkin, to call their re-homing team at Hen Central on 01884 860084 or visit their website www.bhwt.org.uk.

The British Hen Welfare Trust is a national charity that re-homes commercial laying hens, educates the public about how they can make a difference to hen welfare and encourages support for the British egg industry. Later this year the charity hopes to meet Dee, their soon to be 500,000th lucky hen – ‘D’ is 500,000 in roman numerals. You can follow their Countdown to Dee here www.bhwt.org.uk/countdowntodee.