Hens looking to bathe in the autumn sun

Thousands of hens will be emerging from their cages into the autumn sunshine and looking for new homes this month.

With forecasters predicting warm weather to make up for the UK’s wet summer, it’s a great time to adopt some ex-bats so they can make the most of the sun.

The British Hen Welfare Trust is holding several re-homings over the coming weeks and would love to hear from anyone willing to save some lives.

The charity re-homes 50,000 ex-commercial laying hens a year, and has re-homed more than 590,000 hens to date. At 18 months old they are sent to slaughter by farmers, but the BHWT works to find homes for as many as possible so they can enjoy the rest of their lives as much-loved family pets. Better yet, these pets will even lay you eggs for breakfast!

Re-homings are taking place in the following locations:

Saturday, 16 September

Lincolnshire (Stamford): 200 hens available, 167 still needing homes

Derby (Ashbourne): 300 hens available, 142 still needing homes

Nottinghamshire (Newark): 400 hens available, 240 still needing homes

Saturday, 23 September

Devon (South Zeal): 350 hens available, 214 still needing homes

Sunday, 24 September

Oxford (Didcot): 200 hens available, 100 still needing homes

Coventry (Allesley): 300 hens available, 142 still needing homes

Milton Keynes (North Crawley): 200 hens available, 154 still needing homes

Saturday, 30 September

Cambridge (Godmanchester): 300 hens available, 106 still needing homes

Essex (Great Totham): 400 hens available, 233 still needing homes

Hertfordshire (Bishops Stortford): 300 hens available, 186 still needing homes

Sunday, 1 October

Cornwall (Redruth and Liskeard): 425 hens available, 178 still needing homes

Surrey (Cranleigh): 300 hens available, 170 still needing homes

Sussex (Arundel): 240 hens available, 120 still needing homes

Suffolk (Baylham): 480 hens available, 198 still needing homes