​As a chicken keeper, it's important to be aware of common health issues that can affect your hens. One such condition is sour crop, a digestive disorder that can be caused by a variety of factors. In this blog post, we'll take a closer look at sour crop in hens, including its causes, symptoms, and treatment options.
What is Sour Crop? Sour crop, also known as crop stasis, is a condition that occurs when food in the crop ferments, leading to a buildup of gas and toxins. This can cause discomfort and illness in the affected hen, and if left untreated, can be fatal.
Causes of Sour Crop: Sour crop can be caused by a variety of factors, including:

• Overeating or gorging on food
• Eating spoiled or contaminated food
• Bacterial or yeast infections in the crop
• A blocked crop or crop impaction
• Poor digestion or malnutrition

Symptoms of Sour Crop: The symptoms of sour crop can vary, but some of the most common signs to look out for include:

• Foul-smelling breath
• Swollen crop
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Diarrhea
• Decreased activity and energy levels
• General signs of discomfort, such as reluctance to move or stand

Treatment of Sour Crop: If you suspect that your hen has sour crop, it's important to take action quickly. Treatment for sour crop typically involves emptying the crop and providing supportive care to the affected hen. Here are some steps you can take to help treat sour crop:

• Withhold food and water for 24 hours to allow the crop to empty and rest
• Give the hen a probiotic or electrolyte solution to support gut health
• Massage the crop to help move the contents along
• Offer small amounts of easily digestible food, such as cooked rice or oatmeal
• Administer medication prescribed by a veterinarian, if necessary

Prevention of Sour Crop: Prevention is key when it comes to sour crop. Here are some steps you can take to help prevent sour crop in your hens:

• Provide a balanced diet with access to clean water at all times
• Avoid feeding spoiled or contaminated food
• Limit treats and snacks to avoid overeating
• Keep the coop and living areas clean and free of mold and bacteria
• Monitor your hens for signs of illness and seek veterinary care if necessary

In conclusion, sour crop is a common digestive disorder that can affect chickens of all ages. By being aware of the causes, symptoms, and treatment options for sour crop, you can help keep your hens healthy and happy. If you suspect that your hen has sour crop, be sure to consult with a veterinarian or experienced poultry keeper for guidance and support. At Homes4Hens Rescue CIC, we are committed to promoting the health and well-being of all hens, and we encourage you to take proactive steps to keep your flock healthy and thriving.

We would like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to everyone who has supported us throughout the year. With your help we have been able to rescue and rehome thousands of hens and provide sanctuary for hundreds more. It has been another rollercoaster of a year and we couldn't have got through it without your help, so from us and the hens, THANK YOU.

Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy new year.

I just wanted to give you all a quick update on our GoFundMe campaign. We are pleased to say we have managed to hit our target! You have raised £3000 for Homes4Hens Rescue to cover the costs of vehicle maintenance, vet bills and repairs. We are so grateful for the help and its heart-warming to know that other people support our mission and care as much as we do about the lives of farmed hens. If you contributed towards the total, thank you so much. Although our target has been met, the campaign is still live and any donations will help us to cover our winter bills. The cost of both feed and wood-shavings has sky-rocketed lately much to our dismay! The link to the gofundme campaign can be found >HERE< please contribute a little something if you can. 
 
Our last rehoming events just 3 weeks ago were a fantastic success with 300 ex-farmed hens rescued and now living a wonderful life as beloved pets. We are pleased to announce a further three rehoming events taking place this weekend! These sweet hens are coming from the same farm as the previous flock. They are such lovely girls, confident and full of character. We are desperate to rescue as many as we can manage so please help us by offering a loving home to a few hens. The rehoming event locations and dates are below along with the booking form to reserve your hens.
 
Dumfries - Friday 22nd October
Ayr - Saturday 23rd October
Hexham - Sunday 24th October
 
>BOOKING FORM HERE<
 
 As always, the hens will be health checked, wormed, lice and mite treated prior to re-homing and they are fully vaccinated. For more information please visit our website. Thank you to all our supporters and re-homers for helping us to change the world for thousands of hens every year.
 
Kind Regards,
Homes4Hens Team

We have a last-minute chance to rescue some hens before they are taken to slaughter and we are doing our best to work fast and find homes. We have three re-homing events now set and these will take place starting from this Friday through to Sunday. I know it doesn't give much time for you all to organise your coops but if there is any way you can help us to re-home these girls that would be wonderful. The event dates and locations are below

Carlisle - Friday 24th September
Dumfries - Saturday 25th September
Falkirk - Sunday 26th September

>BOOKING FORM HERE<

The hens will be coming from an indoor barn-style farming system. As always, the hens will be health checked, wormed, lice and mite treated prior to re-homing and they are fully vaccinated. For more information please visit our website. Thank you to all our supporters and re-homers for helping us to change the world for thousands of hens every year.

Kind Regards,
Homes4Hens Team

​What an incredible week so far! Its been a crazy few days rescuing hens from the farm, treating them to some TLC before sending them off to loving homes at our rehoming events. 
Over 500 hens have been saved from certain death by Homes4Hens this week and we still have around 100 more girls to find forever homes for. There are still a couple of spaces left for the Bardon Mill event and we are announcing a new event in NEWTON STEWART this Sunday! If you can come along and offer a home to some hens please get in touch.
 
Upcoming Events
 
Ayr - COMPLETED
Carlisle - COMPLETED
Dumfries - FULLY BOOKED
​Bardon Mill - Weds 18th August LAST FEW PLACES
Newton Stewart - Sunday 22nd August
 
 
>BOOKING FORM HERE<
 
Since the beginning of the Covid19 pandemic our financial support has slowly been dwindling. Homes4Hens Rescue is now on the brink of financial hardship. We are in discussions at the moment about the best way forward and brainstorming some fundraising ideas but if we cannot make up the loss to our monthly donations soon we will sadly need to scale back our sanctuary and services. 
.We continue to give our best to the cause, we remain positive and passionate about our work. We know this is a hard time not just for us but for many charities and non-profit organisations across the world. If you are able, please contribute to Homes4Hens Rescue CIC, all donations big or small are gratefully received and much needed at this time.
 
Many thanks to all our supporters and re-homers for making the world a better place for thousands of hens every year.
 
Kindest Regards
Homes4Hens Team
 

We are now on Youtube!

Our latest video takes you along to one of our rehoming events. You can watch it >HERE<  
Please subscribe to the channel whilst you're there (it's free), we plan to upload videos of hen husbandry tips, rescues, rehomings and other chicken related topics.

You may wonder why we have decided to start a Patreon page. Well, we really appreciate the support we get and we wanted to give something back to those who help. Its our way of saying thank you. Join us on Patreon and you are officially a hen hero and that's something you can be proud of. 
We want to make you feel involved so in return for your monthly subscription we will upload exclusive videos and photos of hen rescues and rehoming events as well as updates and content from the homes4hens sanctuary. Our Patreon is here for you so if there is something you would like to see, let us know and we will do our best. 
Becoming a Patron costs £10 per month and you will receive instant access to all our videos, photos, updates, chats, live streams and you will receive an exclusive homes4hens branded mug! Plus, you help us to continue our work saving hens from slaughter and that's what its all about. 
To become a Hen Hero or to find out more, head over to our Patreon page here 
www.patreon/homes4hens

That's all for now, 
Kathryn Vogel, Mother Hen  of the Homes4Hens Team

If you have been following our updates you may remember that July's rehoming events had to be postponed due to a farm pulling out at the last minute. Although it was very frustrating at the time it gave us the opportunity to instead rescue 180 hens of mixed breeds from a small-holder who was retiring. These hens have kept us busy as the majority became permanent residents at the Homes4Hens Sanctuary.
We take the utmost care not to risk any spread of illness amongst our flock or to any of our rehomers so the 180 hens were tested by our Vet for any signs of ill health and treated for worms, lice and mites. The younger girls of the bunch have already been rehomed but the rest will remain at the sanctuary as older hens to live out their remaining days in luxury.
 
August brings a new opportunity to rescue hens. A large number of girls will be freed from a farm by Homes4Hens this week and rehomings will commence at the weekend. We just need homes, lots of homes! If you are able to offer some space to some hens please check below for the event dates and follow the link to the booking form.
 
Upcoming Events
Ayr - Saturday 14th August
Carlisle - Sunday 15th August
Dumfries - Tuesday 17th August
​Bardon Mill, Hexham - Wednesday 18th August
 
>BOOKING FORM HERE<
 
 
Since the beginning of the Covid19 pandemic our financial support has slowly been dwindling. Homes4Hens Rescue is now on the brink of financial hardship. We are in discussions at the moment about the best way forward and brainstorming some fundraising ideas but if we cannot make up the loss to our monthly donations soon we will sadly need to scale back our sanctuary and services. Please take the time to read the 'Be a hen hero' section at the bottom of this email and please consider helping us with a small donation each month.
.We continue to give our best to the cause, we remain positive and passionate about our work. We know this is a hard time not just for us but for many charities and non-profit organisations across the world. If you are able, please contribute to Homes4Hens Rescue CIC, all donations big or small are gratefully received and much needed at this time.
 
Many thanks to all our supporters and re-homers for making the world a better place for thousands of hens every year.
 
 
Kindest Regards
Homes4Hens Team
 

Be a Hen Hero!
 
Each year Homes4Hens Rescue CIC works tirelessly to rescue and rehome hens from the farming industry. Tens of thousands of these girls have escaped certain death and are now enjoying free range life! Our life-saving work is 100% funded by donations. These donations cover everything from vehicle and equipment costs to feed, bedding and vet care for the hens.
 
As a result of the pandemic, our financial support has decreased as people and businesses that supported us have had to look after their own finances. 
 
Please consider making a one-off donation or join our monthly supporters with a small regular gift by Direct Debit to Homes4Hens each month. Please click the donate button below for more information.

We had secured a date to rescue 600 hens from a farm. That rescue was to take place on Friday and rehoming events were to be advertised this week. I'm truly gutted to report that at the last minute, the farmer has pulled out, citing only a 'change of plan'. This is a real shame because due to coronavirus delays last year farms were late in restocking hens and it has created an almost empty void were finding hens to rescue is very tricky. We are working through our contacts to locate any flocks in need of rescuing and hopefully will have some better news for you all soon.

Since the beginning of the Covid19 pandemic our financial support has slowly been dwindling. Homes4Hens Rescue is now on the brink of financial hardship. We are in discussions at the moment about the best way forward and brainstorming some fundraising ideas but if we cannot make up the loss to our monthly donations soon we will sadly need to scale back our sanctuary and services.
In the meantime we continue to give our best to the cause, we remain positive and passionate about our work. We know this is a hard time not just for us but for many charities and non-profit organisations across the world. If you are able, please contribute to Homes4Hens Rescue CIC, all donations big or small are gratefully received and much needed at this time.

Warm Regards,
Kathryn
​

What a busy week! We have battled the weather and gotten soaked in the rain but hundreds of hens have gone off to their forever homes! What an amazing feeling to be able to help these creatures that are probably the most cruelly treated animal in the farming industry.
It's been amazing seeing the girls at the farm, rescuing and transporting them to our base before giving them all a pampering and then sending them off to loving homes as pets. It's so good to be back in action!
 
We are able to run two more rehoming events starting at the weekend! This time heading to Falkirk and Carlisle. There will be limited places available and booking is essential. Please see below for dates.
 
Carlisle -Sunday 9th May 2021
Falkirk -Monday 10th May 2021
 
 
BOOKING FORM >HERE<
 
 As always, the hens will be health checked, wormed, lice and mite treated prior to re-homing and they are fully vaccinated. For more information please visit our website. Thank you to all our supporters and re-homers for helping us to change the world for thousands of hens every year.
 
Kindest Regards
Homes4Hens Team

Each year Homes4Hens Rescue CIC works tirelessly to rescue and rehome hens from the farming industry. Tens of thousands of these girls have escaped certain death and are now enjoying free range life! Our life-saving work is 100% funded by donations. These donations cover everything from vehicle and equipment costs to feed, bedding and vet care for the hens.
 
As a result of the pandemic, our financial support has decreased as people and businesses that supported us have had to look after their own finances. 
 
If you would like to help us continue our work please consider making a one-off donation or join our monthly supporters with a small regular gift by Direct Debit.  Please go to our Support Us page for more information on how to help.