Hen Heaven: Grass Valley Animal Sanctuary Rescues 1,000 Chickens

GRASS VALLEY (CBS13) - On to a new and better life, a thousand chickens landed in Northern California on Saturday night after being saved from an Iowa slaughter by a local animal rescue.

Kelcie Leach is one of many helping the chickens "get the heck outta dodge." Fort Dodge, Iowa, that is.

"They've never spread their wings," Leach said. "They lived in a space that was just a square foot."

The hens went from living in a cage to being in their new temporary home, Animal Place, a Grass Valley-based sanctuary. The rescue team flew them from Iowa to save them from being killed.

"We had the space, we had the facilities," Marji Beach, the sanctuary's development director said. "We thought we could help."

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At Animal Place, they care for a variety of other animals, all finding relief from rough pasts.

"We just want people to be a little kinder, a little more compassionate towards other animals," Leach said.

Leach and Beach hope their sanctuary can become a temporary hen heaven.

"My heart aches for those that were killed," Beach said. "But I'm happy these girls made it."

Soon the hens will be available to find forever homes, and can frolic around in folks' backyards. Staff at Animal Place plan on checking the chickens for any health problems, and could put them up for adoption as early as next week.