alleycat

Battery hens - yes possibly, depends what's involved.  I have kind of tested my husband's good nature recently by taking on three rescue dogs and I have been feeding the 5 feral cats we found living in the barns when we bought our place, for the past year and they keep multiplying of course!  Some would call me soft and others just plain stupid!

Thanks Clair, a starting point indeed, I shall go and look - bit new to this Forum chat but have found reading others very informative, interesting entertaining and useful - some good people contributing.

Hello - can anyone give me some clues as to where I might source some different breeds of hens - fancy ones we'd call them back in the UK..?  I would really like to have some different varieties scratching round the place if possible - if you're gonna have fowl around then they might as well be pretty!  Have found some local bantams that are a bit special and geese also, but not coming up with much in the way of dual purpose (egg/table birds) that are so easy to get in the UK.  Merci!

Does anyone in the Aveyron (12) know where I can get some unusual/fancy hens?  The French seem only to keep the run-of-the-mill 'utility' hen which you order at the local farmer's co-operative Point Vert etc.,  and look blank when I ask for Marans or such??    I would like to get my eggs from something that also looks quite interesting and attractive scratching round my orchard.  Maybe I should be on the gardening forum perhaps - any ideas?