Long-Distance Rescue: Chickens Fly Crystal Meth Coop!
On Sunday, January 31, Catskill Animal Sanctuary welcomed forty-one starving chickens seized after a Kansas City woman was arrested for operating multiple crystal meth labs on her property. Sanctuary heroes Vanessa and JR VanNoy flew to Terre Haute, Indiana and met the birds for the second and final leg of their 1,300-mile journey, and the entire exhausted party arrived safely early Sunday morning.
When authorities raided the drug den, they discovered dozens of chickens in an abandoned house, with no heat, electricity or water. A local dog and cat shelter took temporary custody of the birds, while the search for a permanent home began in earnest. The owner is awaiting trial.
Having recently completed a new 60-foot chicken barn, CAS was delighted to offer assistance.
When Catskill Animal Sanctuary sent out an on-line plea for assistance in picking up the birds, sanctuary volunteer Vanessa VanNoy and her husband JR stepped forward. As volunteer coordinator Julie Barone explained, “They flew to Indiana at their expense, rented a cargo van at their expense, and drove twenty-four hours straight through, stopping only for pit stops and to check on the birds. What a gift to us and to these lucky birds.”
As she helped Sanctuary staff and volunteers unload one chicken at a time, a tired but smiling Vanessa said, “Individual lives matter. We believe that forty-one chickens count just as much as forty-one dogs or forty-one horses, and hope that these lucky ones will be ambassadors for their species.”
The emaciated birds are being given thorough health exams and any necessary medical treatment. Blood work will ensure that they have no communicable diseases. As soon as they’re healthy, all forty-one of them will be available for adoption within a two-hour radius of CAS. Since there are 17 roosters (all of whom are happily living together) in the group, adoptive homes must take a rooster -- no "hens only" groups can be accommodated.
Donations to support the care of the chickens and the rest of the 200+ CAS residents can be made at casanctuary.org
