A farm is racing against time in an attempt to rehome 6,000 hens before Christmas to avoid sending them to slaughter.

Minskip Farm Shop in Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire, produces free-range eggs, but a flock of 6,000 are at the end of their commercial laying cycle.

If the owners don’t find new homes for the hens before December 16, they will be killed.

The farm said it’s looking for ‘kind-hearted people’ to adopt the hens, and the owners ‘feel a strong social responsibility to attempt to provide slaughter-free eggs’.

‘Lovely pets’

Owner Emma Mosey told Totally Vegan Buzz: “We don’t like the idea that they will go to slaughter.

“They make lovely pets as they’re very interested and curious. They see humans as their protectors because we’re much bigger than them, and they can recognise different people’s faces.”

Emma and Ben Mosey have owned the farm for 18 months. Minskip is new to hen farming, but has grown and sold its own vegetables for 38 years.

“We are determined to rehome all of our gorgeous girls,” Emma Mosey continued.

“We believe there is life beyond the farm, and that every back garden should have few of these wonderful creatures. There’s still so much more life in these chucks yet!”

Success

Since the couple first advertised for the hens to be rehomed, the farm has received 1,500 applications.

Last year the Minskip won the British Free Range Egg Producers Retailer of the Year Award which was previously won by Aldi, Marks & Spencer and Boots.

To adopt a hen visit www.minskipfarmshop.com and fill in a short questionnaire. If you have adequate facilities and basic knowledge, the hens can be collected from Minskip Farm Shop in Boroughbridge.

• Read: All hope was lost for these four battery hens, until a vegan opened her heart and home to them.

To help make sure all 6,000 lives are saved, share this article to reach someone who can adopt a hen!