1,000 chickens that rode out the storm now escape the frying pan / Vacaville woman leads rescue effort at Mississippi farm

Hurricane Katrina left behind a still untold death toll, but it apparently spared the lives of some 1,000 lucky chickens.

Now, instead of meeting their fate in a Mississippi slaughterhouse, the birds are on their way to the Bay Area and other parts of the United States where they will live out the rest of their lives in sanctuaries and backyards.

'Some folks say, 'Why save chickens when there are people and dogs and cats to save?' '' says the birds' savior, Vacaville resident Kim Sturla, who traveled to Mississippi to rescue the chickens after learning about their plight on television.

'I'm looking at it from the perspective of their lives,'' she said. 'The life of the chicken is as important to him as the life of the dog or cat is to them.'