Rescue & Adoptions

In Loving Memory

Alexandria

Before arriving at Farm Sanctuary, Alexandria lived in a dismal egg-production facility. Housed in filthy, crowded conditions, all she ever wanted was the freedom to go outside, scratch in the dirt and stretch her wings.

Alexandria and several other lucky hens were rescued from an egg farm that labeled itself a "free-range" operation. Sadly, the unhappy chickens forced to live there were anything but free. Pale and sickly at the time of their rescue, Alexandria and her friends were each missing more than fifty percent of the feathers on their bodies and had been painfully debeaked. Their toenails were so long and unkempt when they arrived at Farm Sanctuary, and their gaits so awkward, that is was clear they had never before been allowed to walk.

Unfortunately, because there is no uniform standard defining the term "free-range," birds purported to have been humanely raised are often mutilated, caged, and neglected just as are hens in battery cages. Whether a layer hen is classified as "free-range" or not, she is usually valued only as a commodity, a mere tool of production. Most egg farmers simply want their hens to lay as many eggs as possible, as fast as possible, and care little about the humane treatment of animals.

Sadly, Alexandria passed away in the Spring of 2006. Although we miss Alexandria terribly, we are thankful that she so greatly enjoyed her life here at our California Shelter. Supported by the affection of her caregivers and the company of her chicken friends, Alexandria recovered well after her rescue and spent her days exploring her spacious outdoor pen and dust-bathing in the sunshine. At night, she snuggled into warm, clean straw to rest, clucking softly to her companions before she fell asleep. Here at Farm Sanctuary, Alexandria had everything she ever wished for. Here she was truly free, free to live the kind of life every chicken deserves.