That is the title of a post by Yvonne Vizzier Thaxton at Meatingplace.com. She writes:
It was inevitable. Community shelters are reporting the appearance of chickens looking for a new home.
and
The problem is that many of the people who thought having a few chickens to supply eggs and teach their children about food had good intentions but not enough information. First, several chickens can completely strip a small yard of vegetation leaving the area muddy and unattractive – gone is the image of chickens in the grass. They don’t always lay an egg a day and don’t lay many, if any, after about 2 years but they still eat.
and
Our local shelters have been struggling for years to take care of the many cats and dogs they receive along with the occasional horse, exotic bird and reptile. Finding homes for these, more common pets, is not easy. Finding a home for chickens is likely to be significantly more difficult.
Think the HSUS will help out?