A t one point, their sole purpose in life was to be slaughtered in the streets of Brooklyn, as part of a religious custom. An annual event, seeing thousands of chickens brought to the city, crammed in cages and deprived of food and water for anything up to a week before they face their grisly fate. I won’t go into too much detail as it is rather distressing but please visit endchickensaskaporos.com for more information. Every year, activists work tirelessly to bring this “tradition” to an end, as well as rescuing as many chickens as they can find loving homes for.

Which brings me to the JP 6…

Sunshine, Joy, Isabella, Savannah, Rene and Hope – The newest lights of our lives at JP!

It’s easy to forget these guys are still babies as they’ve been through so much already; factory farms to transport trucks; crates in city streets to a basement and finally, they’ve made it to their permanent home with us. In anticipation of their arrival, JP co-founder, Oscar, renovated the chicken barn to accommodate the new residents. They now have their very own house, space to potter about in the grass and a dirt patch for dirt baths!

Taking care of Cornish Cross hens is not without challenges. They have been bred to put on so much weight, so rapidly, their legs can struggle to support their oversized bodies and if not properly handled, even their organs can fail them. This being said, it is paramount we restrict and monitor their diets closely, which isn’t always easy because they LOVE their food and we love giving them what they love!

We also had to adapt their house – the chickens already living at JP (Victor and Ava) love to perch on a high beam or nestle on top of hay bales but that’s not an option for the cornish girls as they can’t jump or fly very far, because of all that weight. We had to ensure they could still make themselves comfy though, so instead of high beams and bales they have groundlevel cubby holes and loose hay to snuggle in.

Safe & together at JP Farm Animal Sanctuary!

It is somewhat bittersweet when we think of those who were not so fortunate but having these survivors makes us want to do more for the millions of animals out there who need help.

Logistics aside, I think I speak for all the JP crew when I say, having these 6 little ladies come into our lives has been an absolute pleasure. Watching them become comfortable in their new surroundings, growing in confidence and beginning to show off their own quirky personalities leaves us all sharing constant updates on the new things they’ve done. Sitting in our laps, chasing us through the grass, eating new foods, walking up the ramp… each and every milestone is celebrated here at JP and it is not lost on us just how close they came to a very different, devastating end. It is somewhat bittersweet when we think of those who were not so fortunate but having these survivors makes us want to do more for the millions of animals out there who need help. We are forever grateful to all the New York activists who dedicate so much of their time, money and compassion to the animals and who went above and beyond to help us bring these girls home.

Love to All Beings,
Jenny & the JP Farm Animal Sanctuary Family

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