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Erica grew up on a farm in Colombia, where caring for animals was part of daily life from a very young age. One chicken in particular ended up shaping the course of her life – a meat bird she named Chiquita. Originally bought at a local market with the intention of being raised for food, she quickly became a companion for Erica. After persistent pleading, her father agreed to spare her life. Erica reflects that this experience changed her entire perspective on animals: “Chiquita ultimately taught me the important lesson that ‘livestock’ holds far more value than simply being meant for a plate.”
That bond stayed with her long after childhood. She explains that being exposed so young to the idea of chickens as “nothing more than a food source” is exactly what later made her question it. “I knew for a very long time that I wanted chickens on my own terms – as pets – once I was old enough.” She adds, “Chiquita helped shape my mindset as a child, and that deep empathy followed me into adulthood.”
After high school, Erica joined the U.S. Army. Military life meant constant relocation and living on base, which made it impossible to keep animals. Still, she says the idea of chickens never left her and remained something she carried with her quietly through those years.
It wasn’t until Erica left the military and settled in St. Louis with her husband that things finally shifted. With stability and space, she was able to turn a long held dream into reality: a home where she could keep chickens.“The dream of having chickens on my terms was finally going to become reality,” she says. That moment became the beginning of what would grow into Second-Hen’d, a non-profit dedicated to rescuing and rehoming ex-commercial egg laying hens.
As she learned more about so-called “spent” hens (hens are often disposed of after 1-2 years when they no longer produce eggs, despite being able to live up to 10 years if properly cared for) her purpose deepened further. Since founding the organisation in 2016, she describes the biggest change in her life as internal: “Waking up every single day with a feeling of purpose.” She is also open about her past struggles: “The ‘before’ was incredibly difficult. There were days I simply couldn’t get out of bed or function at all no matter what.” What changed, she says, is responsibility and connection: “Knowing these sweet souls need me to continue saving them and educating others while telling their stories is what keeps me going.”
For Erica, the most powerful part of rescue work is watching transformation unfold. “There are so many rewarding aspects of saving and re-homing ‘spent’ hens (especially the glow ups!),” she says, but what stands out most is when the personalities emerge for the first time. She describes the hens that arrive as “scared and confused empty shells” who have never experienced open space, sunlight, or freedom. What follows is a gradual unfolding of behaviour and identity: “their first scuffles as they work out the new concept of a pecking order, their first nest building, their first attempts at ‘flying,’ their first explorations – and just ‘learning how to chicken!”.
To date, Second Hen’d has saved 1065 hens. To find out more about Erica’s work, head over to the Second Hen’d website.
When asked to complete the sentence “My life is better #BecauseOfTheChicken because…”, Erica simply says:“They are why I found renewed meaning in existence.”
This entry was posted in Chickens