1,000 baby chicks, rescued from 'filthy and extreme conditions' in North Philadelphia, need homes

The Pennsylvania SPCA is looking for volunteers to help saving more than 1,000 chickens rescued in North Philadelphia.

According to a statement Friday from the Philadelphia-based animal welfare organization, which also operates a shelter in Lancaster, the PSPCA responded this past week to a call for "hundreds of chickens ... in filthy and extreme conditions."

"They were quite literally running amuck, without food or water, and time was running out," the statement said.

The call was for 300 baby chicks, the PSPCA said, but they found more than 1,000 when they arrived.

The birds were taken to PSPCA headquarters for food, water and medical attention. However, the statement said, the breed of chickens grows "at a very fast pace," and they birds will soon weigh 8 to 10 pounds.

The shelter isn't equipped to keep that many large birds, the statement says.

The shelter did not identify the breed of chicken in the release, but a lively discussion on the PSPCA's Facebook page revealed them to be a Cornish crossbreed.

Some people argued the birds are bred for meat and will not survive long as pets. Others said the chickens could live for five or more years.

In any case, the PSPCA is a no-kill shelter and is not planning to slaughter the chickens, whatever the breed.

"The situation is urgent," the shelter said. "We are working the phones, reaching out to as many rescues and sanctuaries as possible, in order to provide live exits for as many birds as possible."

It's tough, the PSPCA said, because many bird-rescue organizations are at capacity already because of other rescues in New York City because of Kapparot, a Jewish atonement ritual that is part of Yom Kippur.

The shelter is seeking people with farms "where these birds can live out their lives happily, healthily and safely," according to the statement. They will consider people who are able to take a few chickens or many of them, the shelter said.

For more information contact PSPCA representatives Deanne Schmidt at dschmidt@pspca.org or Kelsie Kelly at kkelly@pspca.org.