F & K Arrowsmith Glebe Farm. Animal housing & products, poultry & plants

 We normally stock a range of hens from the commercial hybrid to rare breeds such as White stars, legbars, black rock x ,Orpingtons, silkie, peking, lavanders and turkey's

Please call by the farm to see the poultry. We always have hens for sale.

Chickens as a Pet or Hobby

I can see the attraction in keeping chickens as a pet, with the benefit of some eggs as well. They may not be as trainable as a dog but they are appealing creatures with their gentle clucking.

Many people enjoy keeping and breeding fancy breeds, which they can show. Some of these are really spectacular in appearance with brightly coloured plumage.

Better Poultry Welfare Standards

The intensive poultry industry violates all the principles of sustainable agriculture. It could be argued this is the most extreme form of factory farming. The bulk of the poultry market is controlled by perhaps a dozen individuals within a handful of companies who deal directly with the major retailers. The industry is largely hidden from public view. It allows no link whatsoever between the consumer and the producer, between human and animal.

From: Too Hard to Swallow, the truth about drugs and poultry –Patrick Holden, Soil Association
One compelling reason for keeping your own chickens is that their life will be better and you need not feel the guilt of knowing your food comes from cruelty,

You can see from the economics that there is not a huge profit in keeping chickens. It’s also well known that the giant supermarket chains are not generous with their suppliers and those suppliers have additional costs for labour, labelling equipment and distribution to accept. In fact, you wonder how they do it.

Something has to be squeezed and looking at the regulations for poultry keeping, the animal welfare is one area that they squeeze.

I should make it clear that I’m not suggesting any breach in regulations or talking about small producers selling from the farm gate. I’m comparing with supermarkets where the vast majority of us buy our eggs. Even if we scrupulously buy ‘free range eggs’ rather than battery eggs, the welfare standards may well be below what we expect as lay people