Eight chickens are still missing after a chicken coop in a Peckham community garden was broken into.
Volunteers from the Glengall Wharf Garden in Burgess Park said their “gorgeous gothic rooster”, his sister and six red rescue chickens were stolen.
A sad sight. A once lively coop is now largely empty.
In a post on a private Facebook group they said burglars got through two padlocks to access the coop, leaving the birds exposed to fox attacks. At least three chickens have survived.
Set up by community members in 2011, Glengall Wharf Garden is run by volunteers and provides a space for locals to attend gardening sessions, grow food and participate in a variety of workshops.
The group has appealed to residents of south London to report sightings of chickens being sold or found dead.
The Glengall Wharf community garden in the heart of Peckham.
Online commenters on the garden’s Facebook group were not optimistic.
“They are on someone’s plate by now I’m sorry to say. People are broke which drives them to extreme measures,” one wrote.
Another added: “It’s the way of England now. If it isn’t chained down it will be stolen.”
“Save Our Coop!”
While there is no suggestion the theft is linked to rising egg prices, new UK figures released on 22 January show egg prices rose by 1.2% compared with the same period last year, the incident comes amid wider pressure on food costs nationally.
Greenwich Wildlife Network told City News it was an “awful situation” but did not believe such crimes are becoming more common, particularly as few people in London own chickens.
A photo taken a few months ago when the coop was bustling with red hens.
It added it was “impossible to know the motives, but there are some very cruel individuals who harm animals purely for fun, something we deal with on a daily basis through the senseless catapulting of animals.”
In an attempt to prevent rising attacks on animals, the organisation is seeking to make it an offence to carry a catapult in public without lawful defence.
A petition on the issue currently has nearly 40,000 signatures – a parliamentary debate is triggered at 100,000.
We reached out to the community garden for a comment.
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HeadlineChickens Missing after Thieves break into Peckham Community Coop
Short HeadlineChickens Stolen from Peckham Community Garden
StandfirstLocal charity says cruelty to animals is a daily occurrence
Eight chickens are still missing after a chicken coop in a Peckham community garden was broken into.
Volunteers from the Glengall Wharf Garden in Burgess Park said their “gorgeous gothic rooster”, his sister and six red rescue chickens were stolen.
A sad sight. A once lively coop is now largely empty.
In a post on a private Facebook group they said burglars got through two padlocks to access the coop, leaving the birds exposed to fox attacks. At least three chickens have survived.
Set up by community members in 2011, Glengall Wharf Garden is run by volunteers and provides a space for locals to attend gardening sessions, grow food and participate in a variety of workshops.
The group has appealed to residents of south London to report sightings of chickens being sold or found dead.
The Glengall Wharf community garden in the heart of Peckham.
Online commenters on the garden’s Facebook group were not optimistic.
“They are on someone’s plate by now I’m sorry to say. People are broke which drives them to extreme measures,” one wrote.
Another added: “It’s the way of England now. If it isn’t chained down it will be stolen.”
“Save Our Coop!”
While there is no suggestion the theft is linked to rising egg prices, new UK figures released on 22 January show egg prices rose by 1.2% compared with the same period last year, the incident comes amid wider pressure on food costs nationally.
Greenwich Wildlife Network told City News it was an “awful situation” but did not believe such crimes are becoming more common, particularly as few people in London own chickens.
A photo taken a few months ago when the coop was bustling with red hens.
It added it was “impossible to know the motives, but there are some very cruel individuals who harm animals purely for fun, something we deal with on a daily basis through the senseless catapulting of animals.”
In an attempt to prevent rising attacks on animals, the organisation is seeking to make it an offence to carry a catapult in public without lawful defence.
A petition on the issue currently has nearly 40,000 signatures – a parliamentary debate is triggered at 100,000.
We reached out to the community garden for a comment.
