If you ever wanted to rescue a battery hen NOW IS THE TIME - or make them a jumper!

A Baldy Ex-Battery Hen... *brrrr*

In the run up to the new battery hen 'enriched' cages being introduced January 2012, there is a mass cull of an unimaginable number of battery hens, in response to this there is a MASS RESCUE of battery hens all over the UK.



The more hens rescued by the likes of you and me the more will be given a taste of the beauty of life, with grass under claw and wind in their combs!

**UPDATE** The BHWT's rescue dates in DEVON (7th and 17th Dec) have all been fully booked! This is an incredible response and means that the BHWT in DEVON have had to put on a new rescue day, Thursday 29th Dec! Thank you to them and thank you to the farmer for opening up the farm again for rescue. Now... lets rescue some more hens! :-D

Leo and I have booked to collect 50 battery hens on the 29th December 2011 from the BHWT in Devon. We're going to wait and see if all the hens get booked up again, if there are any hens left to be rescued on that date we'll see how many more hens we can add to our gang.  *EXCITED!*

I wrote a blog the other day that gives more details about the UK wide rescue and letting you all know that I plan to rescue 50 or 60 battery hens on the 17th December. Click here to get the low down: **Alert** Christmas cheer for battery hens?


Here's a list of just some of the rescue charities:
Battery Hen Welfare Trust (BHWT)
Little Hens Rescue
Lucky Hens Rescue Wigan

It's a good idea to ask the BHWT if there is a local charity to you.

Jo Barlow keeps a wonderful blog about her life with ex-battery hens. She is a rescuer, which means she is on of the heroines that goes to the battery farm and takes a number of hens from their cages and transports them back to the distribution farm, where you or me goes and collects our hens.

Worry not if you can't rescue any hens yourself... there's so much you can do! 

Here's another list...

1) Spread the word about this UK WIDE MASS BATTERY HEN RESCUE! Tell everyone, tell your dentist, your mum, your Twitter and Facebook friends, copy this post into your blog or write your own! There's no time to lose, tell them now! Spam if you have to!

2) Sponsor a hen! Yes, have a look at the charities listed above and you'll see you can sponsor a hen!

3) Make a jumper! These mass rescues are happening at the beginning of winter and it's going to be a cold one, there are going to be plenty of cold, baldy hens.

Work it baby, yeh!

You can follow the patterns below to make some jumpers. If you can knit scroll down and you'll see a couple of different patterns. If you can't knit or don't have much time, give the Easy Peasy Fleecy Jumpers a go!

You can either donate your jumpers to one of the charities above or make them for a friend who is rescuing some hens! ... hint hint... ;)

Another baldy Ex-Battery Hen
*brrr* Lets get a jumper on her!

Jumper Pattern's 


Easy Peasy Fleecy Jumpers Pattern:
From Little Hens Rescue

Easy Peasy Fleecy Jumper on a Baldy Hen

Dig out that old fleece jumper from the back of your cupboard or go to the charity shop & buy a couple of fleecy jumpers for a few quid.

Then follow the pattern below to make the Easy Peasy Fleecy Jumper for a Baldy Hen...

Illustration from littlehenrescue.co.uk/jumper

Knitting Patterns: 


Nanny Norths Version - has an easier neck section
Taken from: www.hencam.co.uk/hencam_forum

Some of Nanny Norths Ex-Battery hen jumpers!

Materials:-

Double knitting yarn (100g makes approximately 3 jumpers). 2 buttons each jumper

1 pair No 8 (4mm) knitting needles 4mm crochet hook

Jumper knitted in stocking stitch with garter stitch borders

Cast on 41 sts.

Knit 4 rows straight.

Tabs and button holes.


1/ cast on 10sts @ beginning of row. K14. P to last 4 sts. K4.
2/ cast on 10sts @ beginning of row. K to end
3/ (K2. yf. K2tog) 3 times. K2. P33. K14.
4/ (K2, yf. K2tog) 3 times. K to end.
5/ Cast off 10sts. K3. P33. K14.
6/ Cast off 10sts.K3. K2tog. K to last 6 sts K2tog. K4.

Dec. 1 st at each end on every following 6th row until 25 sts remain, keeping edges in garter stitch.

Divide for neck.

Work 11 sts. cast off 3 sts work to end and complete this half first.
1/ K to end
2/ P1. P2tog twice P2. K4.
3/ K to end
4/ P1. P2tog. P2. K4.
5/ K4. K2tog. K2.
Work next 4 rows straight.
10/ P2. Inc in next st. K4.
11/ K6. Inc in next st. K1.
12/ P1. Inc in next 2sts P2. K4.
13/ K to end.
14/ p7. K4.
Put these 11 sts onto holding pin.
Break yarn and rejoin to other side of neck.
Work to match, reversing shapings and ending at wing hole edge. Thats row 13.
Next row K4. P7. Cast on 3sts then from the sts on holding pin P7.K4.
Now K4. Inc into next st. K to last 5sts. Inc in next st. K4

Inc 1 st at each end of following 6th row until there are 41sts on needle.
Work 6 rows keeping to pattern
Knit 4 rows.
Cast off.
Sew on buttons. Work 1 row double crochet round neck edge if desired.




Other Version 
(can be found on Lucky Hens Rescue Wigan & Little Hens Rescue sites):

Pattern for Knitted Jumpers/Jackets.


Double knitting yarn (100g makes approximately 3 jumpers)

2 buttons or 10cm Velcro

1 pair of number 8 (4mm) knitting needles

4mm crochet hook


Knitted in stocking stitch with garter stitch borders

Cast on 41 sts,
Work 4 rows K
Increase for tabs;
Cast on 10 sts at beginning of next row, k14, p to last 4 sts, k4.
Cast on 10 sts at beginning of next row, k14, p to last 14sts, k14.
Work buttonholes; (work these 2 rows straight if using Velcro).

(K2, yf k2tog) 3 times, work to end keeping edges in garter st.
Repeat this row for buttonholes on the other tab.
Cast off 10 sts at beginning of next row.
Next row – cast off 10 sts, k4, p2 tog, p to last 6 sts, p2tog, k4.
Dec 1 st at each end on every fol 6th row until 25 sts remain.


Divide for neck;
Work 11 sts, cast off 3, work to end – complete this half first.
1)     k4, p to end
2)     cast off 2, k to end
3)     k4, p to end
4)     k2tog, k to end
5)     k4, p2tog, p to end
Work 4 rows straight
  10) K to last 5 sts, inc in next st, k4.
  11) K4, p to last st, inc in next st.
  12) Cast on 2 sts, k to end, (11sts)
  13) K4, p to end
  14) K

Break yarn and rejoin to the other side of neck.
Work to match, reversing shaping’s and ending at winghole edge.
Next row – k, cast on 3, k across sts from other side of neck.
Next row , k4 inc in next st, p to last 5 sts, inc in next st, k4.
Inc 1 st at each end of every fol 6th row until there are 41 sts on the needle.
Work 6 rows straight.
Change to gst and knit 4 rows.
Cast off.


Sew on buttons or Velcro as desired.
Work double crochet around neck.



PHOTOGRAPHS in this blog:
Photo's have been taken from Google images. Here is a list of the sites I got them from:
littlehensrescue.co.uk
animalsanctuaryuk.com
rspcanorthsomerset.org.uk
Growfruitandveg.co.uk/forum


THANK YOU!!

hen xx