BraveBirds Times Online
February 2004
Online newsletter of the Eastern Shore Sanctuary and Education Center.
www.bravebirds.org

A Day in the Life
Imagine a frigid winter morning. Thin sunlight bounces off but does not penetrate the thick layer of ice that coats the chicken yards. Slipping and sliding on the ice, to your left and to your right, are roosters of every color and kind. Black roosters, red roosters, multicolored roosters who look like they've just dropped in from the tropics... 24 roosters who have never seen snow, all struggling to negotiate the ice as they negotiate their relationships with each other and with the hens and roosters already in residence in this strange place into which, like magic, they have been dropped.

That was the scene on the first weekend in February, when 24 roosters who PETA had convinced local authorities to confiscate from an animal abuser in Alabama arrived here at the Eastern Shore Sanctuary. All of these roosters had endured deprivation and abuse and most been intended for cockfighting, as evidenced by the fact that their combs had been removed. Since very few sanctuaries take any roosters and no other sanctuary accepts large groups of roosters, these birds would have faced the usual fate of confiscated fighting cocks -- euthanasia -- had we not been able and willing to welcome them to our sanctuary.

Within days of arrival, romance bloomed. A hen who is well known to anyone who has visited the sanctuary -- Fanny, who is the oldest hen here as well as the official greeter and donation taker -- took a liking to a beautiful black rooster we call Rooftop. This was amazing to us because, in all the years since she arrived here as a "spent hen" from a North Carolina egg factory, Fanny has never shown any affectionate interest in any rooster. So, in less than a week, Rooftop went from being cruelly confined and poorly fed to living it up with Fanny and the other "special" hens who spend their days in our front yard rather than in the chicken yards. He seems pretty happy with the outcome so far, as do most of the other roosters who arrived with him.

Later that week, more than a dozen hens and roosters who had been used and abused as "breeders" for the local poultry industry arrived to live out the rest of their lives here at the sanctuary. Between them, the 'Bama Boys, and the steady stream of roadside rescues who find their way to the sanctuary every winter, we now have more birds living here than ever before.

FAQ
How much do they eat? That's one of the most frequent questions asked by visitors to the sanctuary, as they enjoy the busy sight of so many birds bustling in and out of the woods, perching on low branches, dust bathing and wading in puddles. Right now, we go through about 50 pounds of corn-wheat-oats scratch, 14 pounds of pelleted duck feed, and 10 pounds of black oil sunflower seeds every day. Prices for those staples vary according to season and depending upon what kind of crop the farmers had the year before. We supplement the staple foods just mentioned with whatever fruits and greens are cheap and in season. This summer, we'll be cutting costs, improving the diversity of the birds' diet, and helping the environment by growing our own organic greens, watermelons, tomatoes, and vegetables for the birds.

A Year Here
Our 2003 Activity Report is ready and can be retrieved from our website or requested by email.The highlights include joint events with United Poultry Concerns, Peace Alliance of the Lower Shore, Global Hunger Alliance, and the local Environmental Student Association; publication of a chapter in a book about sustainable development in South Asia; and the construction of a new coop and yard just for blind, injured, and otherwise disabled birds.

ESS Goes Multimedia
A recent WBAI-NY radio programme in which Eastern Shore Sanctuary co-founder and coordinator Pattrice Jones tells chicken stories and talks about the geopolitics of industrial animal agriculture is archived online. Visit the home page of our website and click the link for information about accessing the programme or just rev up Real Player (or your online MP3 player of choice) and point it to:
www.radio4houston.org//Sirius/wbai-20031216-1100ecologic.mp3
Be forewarned: the programme is an hour long, so it's best to listen to the stream rather than try to download the file. Also, please note that the host of the program makes some announcements and plays a song before beginning the interview.

Coming Attractions
The forthcoming book "Terrorists or Freedom Fighters: Reflections on the Liberation of Animals," which will be available from Lantern Press in April of 2004, contains a chapter entitled "Mothers With Monkeywrenches: Feminist Imperatives and the Animal Liberation Front" by sanctuary coordinator Pattrice Jones. Visit www.cala-online.org/TOFF/table_of_contents.htm to see the full table of contents and read the introduction. This book is sure to be the subject of intense debate both within and outside of animal advocacy circles. Call Lantern Press at 1-800-856-8664 to reserve your copy.

Tip
If you're a frequent visitor to our website, check in at www.bravebirds.org/new.html to see what has changed since your last visit.

PS
Does Fanny the hen really take donations? You bet! If the photo doesn't show up below, you can see her in action at www.bravebirds.org/wish.html