How strange that the hens in the polytunnel appear not only happy (and warm) but are laying eggs when they had gone “off lay” for the winter. Two yesterday and one this morning, so far. Extraordinary. And when I let the ducks out of their temporary housing and into the barn this morning, hey presto, there was an egg…….and I wasn’t expecting any eggs until the spring. So what’s going on? Phil just popped by to borrow a post rammer (look it up) and when I told him about the crazy egg laying he told me about a programme he heard on our esteemed BBC Radio 4. Apparently a bona fida animal scientist dared to suggest that birds prefer to be under cover rather than free range. Well, I don’t know about that but these Gables birds seem to be very happy in their 30 day homes.
gfreedmanblog 
Hmmm, think that depends on the quantity & the quality of the confinement.
Gill, you supply 5* luxury & your birds are very lucky birds indeed
Under the Animal Welfare Act of 2006 the minimum area required for each chicken kept indoors is the size of an A4 sheet of paper. I shall repeat that – an A4 sheet of paper. This is the ‘cage’ bird system.
The ‘cage bird’ system replaced the old ‘battery hen’ scheme and is supposed to be better for the welfare of the birds. In some ways it is an improvement; for example, ex cage birds can usually walk when they are rescued. Battery hens often could not stand. The downside of having a whole A4 sheet of space is that the bored birds around you have room to peck you mercilessly. Rescued cage hens are often in a bad way, lacking feathers and covered in pecking injuries. They grow incredibly long claws, despite the extra space, so this can still deform their feet.
Cage hen’s beaks are ‘trimmed’ in an attempt to reduce the damage they can do to surrounding birds. They are fed a mash as this is easier to digest than pellets & more cost effective. The temperature in the ‘houses’ is kept high to make sure the hens continue to lay; even in the middle of winter. This environment makes them lay intensively, but means that they start to produce less by the time they reach 18 months old. It is at this point they are culled and replaced.
Quite a number of Cage Hen Farmers are happy to cooperate and will tip off rescue organisations when they are planning a cull. A few lucky hens get rescued at this time & are rehomed by organisations such as Little Hen Rescue & Wood Green the Animals Charity.
The really good news is that chicken keeping is now incredibly popular and rescue organisations often have long waiting lists. So more chickens can be set free to have a decent life and live in luxury, even when indoors, as they do at The Gables