It is obvious that eating eggs–whether they are from industrial, battery cage hens or backyard chickens–exploits billions of animals each year.

By going vegan, you can end your personal role in creating the demand for these products…and so creating the conditions in which hens are abused (and roosters treated as secondary waste).

But you can do more than just go vegan to help chickens. You can rescue hens and roosters, too!

If your local ordinances allow you to keep chickens and roosters, why not extend your circle of companionship beyond dogs and cats to include our feathered friends? Chickens have big personalities, including social hierarchies. There is so much reward in not eating them or their eggs, welcoming them to your family, and bonding with them.

Yes, that is right: Hens will eat their own eggs! Indeed, hens love them. Plus, eggs provide much-needed calcium and other nutrients that can help hens, who have been genetically manipulated through centuries of selective breeding, avoid problems with egg binding and other deadly conditions.

Interested in becoming a vegan with chickens? You can find ample opportunities to rescue hens and roosters, whether at local shelters, on online bulletin boards like Craigslist, or on adoption sites like RescueMe.

Triangle Chicken Advocates is happy to offer guidance and support for vegan chicken-keepers!

• Join the Facebook group Vegans with Chickens.
• Contact us with questions.