Why Our Chickens Matter: Offering Sanctuary to the Overlooked

At Hope and Healing Animal Sanctuary, chickens are not an afterthought. They are not background animals or “just livestock.” They are individuals — each one deserving of safety, care, and a life free from harm. Offering sanctuary to chickens is a conscious choice we make every day, because their lives matter just as much as any other animal who finds refuge here.

Chickens are among the most overlooked animals in rescue and welfare work. Many are abandoned when egg production slows, surrendered when backyard flocks become inconvenient, or discarded when medical care is viewed as expendable. Their suffering is often normalized in ways that would be unthinkable for other animals. We exist to push back against that mindset.

When chickens arrive at our sanctuary, the expectations placed on them disappear. They are no longer valued for what they produce, but for who they are. Here, they are given safe housing, proper nutrition, veterinary care, and the freedom to express natural behaviors — dust bathing, foraging, perching, and social bonding. They are allowed to rest. They are allowed to heal.

Providing sanctuary to chickens is not a short-term commitment. With proper care, chickens can live many years, and responsible sanctuary means planning for that entire lifetime. It means daily chores in all weather, ongoing feed and bedding costs, medical treatment when illness or injury arises, and constant observation to ensure each bird is thriving. This work is demanding, but it is also deeply meaningful.

Beyond physical care, our chickens teach us — and those who visit or support our work — powerful lessons about compassion. When people slow down and truly observe them, they begin to notice their intelligence, curiosity, and complex social relationships. Chickens recognize familiar faces, form friendships, grieve losses, and experience joy. Seeing them as individuals changes everything.

We offer sanctuary to chickens because someone must. Because their lives should not be defined by productivity or convenience. And because compassion should extend to all animals, not only the ones society has decided are easiest to love.

Thank you for standing with us and helping ensure that these gentle, often forgotten souls have a safe place to land — today, and for the rest of their lives.