8/31: Update
A massive rescue effort by local animal protection groups initially hoping to save 300 hens from an egg farm has freed 1,800 lucky birds. While that’s only a little more than one percent of the 160,000 white leghorn hens who populated the egg factory farm in Santa Clara County, California, it is still a substantial number. Moreover, this may be the first time in California that agribusiness has allowed groups to come onto a factory farm to save as many animals as they can carry while documenting the process. Leading the weeklong liberation that began on August 13 was Animal Place, a farmed-animal sanctuary in Vacaville, about 45 miles northeast of San Francisco. Kim Sturla, Animal Place’s director, worked with other local organizations to coordinate the rescue and find homes for the hens. Sturla says those groups included the Center for Animal Protection and Education (CAPE) of Santa Cruz, East Bay Animal Advocates of Oakland, the Marin Humane Society, Viva!USA of Davis, United Animal Nations of Sacramento, and many others. “This is really the first rescue of its kind,” said Sturla. “We had permission to go in and bring out as many hens as we possibly could. To accomplish this, we had some amazing cooperation among local sanctuaries and humane societies. And now we’re getting tremendous support from the public. Because of this rescue, many people are just learning about the horrors these birds suffer, and they are opening their hearts and homes to them.” Read More

8/16: Local Sanctuaries Rescue Hundreds of Hens
It began with a phone call from PETA’s Bruce Friedrich. An egg farmer in California’s Central Valley had 160,000 “spent” hens he was about to send to slaughter. In other words, they’d been exploited to the point where their eggs were no longer valuable, so, after less than two years of life, it was time to move them out. Since he’d only get a penny each for them (they’d end up as dog and cat food), the farmer had told PETA they could take as many as they wanted. With the help of Animal Place and other rescuers, around 700 hens were saved and most have found good homes. Rescuers are asking for help in placing the last of the hens in suitable homes. Read More with Photos