RESIDENTS at RMBI Care Co. Home Cornwallis Court in Bury St Edmunds, recently started a chick hatching programme with Incredible Eggs, an ethical provider of high-welfare hatching kits throughout England and Scotland.
Residents at Cornwallis Court, which supports older people with residential care, nursing care and residential dementia support, received two incubators containing 15 eggs, which they had to nurture.
Eventually, after much anticipation, they were able to watch the baby chicks hatch from their eggs. The residents were delighted to meet the affectionate animals, who were happy to be petted and stroked.
Activities coordinator Emma Gibson said: “I did a sponsored walk last year, trekking 75 miles over four days around the Isle of Wight and raised £650, which we used to hire two egg hatching sets for our residents.
“There was a real buzz around the Home and our residents and staff had so much fun caring for the chicks, watching them hatch and grow. It also prompted stories from residents who had fond memories of keeping chickens when they were growing up.”
Each farm is family run with many years of small-scale poultry keeping/breeding experience, and Incredible Eggs focuses on education, animal welfare, safeguarding biodiversity, welfare conservation and supporting charities and social enterprise.