Rescue & Adoptions

2005 Featured Rescues

An Unlikely Trio Finds Sanctuary Together

Huey, Duey and Sidekick Chick came to live at our New York Shelter in April of 2005. Huey, the larger duckling and Sidekick Chick, the rooster chick, were rescued from a pet store in Queens that was selling young birds as part of an Easter promotion. Sadly, many pet stores across the country profit from the sale of live chicks, bunnies and ducklings, especially during the Easter season. Customers purchase the baby animals as cute "gifts," but soon after the holiday is past, many realize they are unable or unwilling to care for them. As a result, countless animals are abandoned outdoors to fend for themselves or condemned to live out their lives in lonely, cramped backyard hutches and cages.

Thanks to the kindness of a few animal lovers in New York City, Huey and Sidekick Chick escaped this fate, but just barely. The two baby birds watched as, one by one, all the other chicks and ducklings in the store were sold and removed from their respective pens, until finally, Sidekick Chick was the last chick, and Huey the last duckling left in the store. Seeing that there were only two birds left to sell, the store owner moved Huey and Sidekick Chick into a pen together.

Having lost all of their other friends, the two formed an instant bond with one another. By the time their rescuers visited the store one day in April, the two were inseparable. Recognizing immediately the friendship that existed between the odd pair, the kind-hearted animal lovers knew they had to save both birds, and keep them together. Thankfully, once confronted about the practice of selling the animals, the storeowner agreed to give them up.

Huey and Sidekick Chick arrived at Farm Sanctuary shortly after their rescue, along with another duckling named, Duey, who had also been rescued in New York City. The three made the happy journey to our New York Shelter together and settled in to the comforts of sanctuary life right away. Latching on to one another, they became an inseparable trio. Sadly, Sidekick Chick has since passed away. But thankfully, Huey and Duey have remained close pals. When Sidekick Chick died they turned to one another for comfort, and are still best friends to this day.