Male Chicks Macerated for Our Eggs — But We CAN Take Action!
September 8, 2009
Male Chicks Macerated for Our Eggs — But We CAN Take Action!
Do your eggs come from a certified humane producer? Please read this article anyway because it may apply to you, too.
This post is not about plastic. And the information I’m going to share is gruesome, alarming, and heartbreaking. I’ve been sitting with this knowledge all weekend but didn’t want to write a post until I had more information and ideas for action that we can take. Please read on if you care about the welfare of farm animals, and especially if you enjoy eating eggs.
A Shocking Revelation
Last Thursday, Michael forwarded me an article and video about a practice that seems so cruel it takes my breath away. The article, “” describes a video posted on YouTube by the group Mercy for Animals revealing some pretty inhumane conditions at a facility that hatches chicks for egg producers. The video, , shows chicks being roughly handled as they go down a conveyor belt as humans separate out the males from females, tossing the males down a chute where they fall into a machine called a macerator and are ground alive.
Apparently, this is a very common practice. The males are undesirable because a) they can’t lay eggs and b) the males of the species raised for eggs are not good meat producers. And apparently, this practice is considered humane by several regulatory agencies.
I was shocked, appalled, and sickened by what I saw. But I also thought I couldn’t be contributing to this problem because I get my eggs from the farmers market, from , a certified humane egg producer. But just to be sure, I made some inquiries. I called and emailed both Glaum Egg Ranch and also , the organization that certifies farms as humane. I wanted to know what standards existed about this practice, and I wanted to learn how Glaum treats its male chicks.
Certified Humane Does Not Apply to Hatcheries What I learned is that Glaum doesn’t engage in this practice because it doesn’t hatch its own eggs. In fact, few egg producers do. They buy their eggs from pullet producers which buy their eggs from hatcheries. Which means that humane egg producers may be inadvertently supporting this practice through the chicks they buy!Since this news was revealed, Glaum has been doing its own investigating. They are as concerned about this practice as we are. I’m concerned that my certified humane eggs may have originated from chicks hatched at one of these inhumane facilities. And does not have a standard for certifying hatcheries because it simply does not have the resources to do so.
I had a really great conversation this morning with Adele Douglass, Executive Director of Humane Animal Care, who explained to me a little history of the organization and how it came about. Adele had worked for many years in congress and for several organizations lobbying for the welfare of animals. Eventually, she got involved in rewriting agricultural guidelines, so she’s seen how slow the wheels of government turn. As a consumer, she felt overwhelmed and powerless by the mailings she would get from organizations like PETA, that simply offered no other alternative to consumers than complete veganism. She wanted to find a market solution, and that’s why she and several friends created the Certified Humane labelling program, investing all the money they had in something they believed in.
Humane Farm Animal Care is primarily concerned with the treatment of animals being raised for food and for eggs. You can read the details of the standards on their web site. And the organization actually audits every single farm that requests certification. Regarding hatcheries, here is what Adele wrote me:
We did not write hatchery standards because we did not have any control of the hatcheries. The farmers, as I said, purchase the birds from pullet growers. We do not have the resources to inspect all the pullet growers and then trace back and inspect all of the hatcheries in the US, considering the small number of farmers that are on our program. Every standard must be inspected and audited for. There is no point in writing standards unless you have the capacity to inspect, annually, each and every standard.
That said, the organization absolutely DOES NOT advocate the practice of live male chick maceration and would like to see it stopped.
We Can Take Action!
Besides eschewing eggs, there are other steps we can take to see that this practice is ended as soon as possible. Adele Douglass also told me that research is being done into a procedure for sexing male embryos so that the chicks do not have to actually be hatched and killed. She suggests we write to the Secretary of Agriculture to express our concerns about the treatment of male chicks and ask that funds be allocated for research into alternative methods for sexing males to avoid inhumane treatment.
Write to:
Honorable Tom Vilsack U.S. Department of Agriculture Room 200-A The Whittenberg Building Washington, DC 20250
Dear Mr. Secretary:
I am appalled by the practice of live male chick maceration that is routinely practiced in hatcheries. There is promising research on sexing embryos which would eliminate the current methods of male chick euthanasia. The USDA can help end this inhumane practice by putting funds toward research into sexing embryos. I would like to see this procedure developed as soon as possible to end the suffering and waste created by the painful destruction of so many live birds.
Sincerely,
Beth Terry
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Baby Chickens By Mail in
Cedaredge, Colorado
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Cedaredge Colorado
catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await
the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and
different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to
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Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
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pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
Cedaredge Colorado * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in Cedaredge
Colorado * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Baby
Chicks In A Box in
Cedaredge, Colorado
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries
will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is
necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put
in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce
enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to
buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you
choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship
and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in
Cedaredge Colorado is easy and has always been a very pleasant
experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks
but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all
those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait
was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in Cedaredge,
Colorado Baby chicks are quite
charming and also
challenging to stand up to,
yet it's finest to plan for their
arrival prior to you get them. Prepare first
by gathering not just the
proper materials, however
additionally the correct
expertise to take care of
them. Raising baby chicks is relatively
simple, you merely should offer them with the following: A
clean as well as cozy
habitat A lot of food and water Focus and also
love Environment Your environment could be a basic box, fish tank,
feline carrier, or guinea
porker cage. Line it with old towels and
blankets (without any loose
strings!) to start, and also after a few weeks use straw over paper.
Keep in mind: Avoid using only
paper or other slipper
surfaces-- or your chicks legs could grow
misshapen. You also require
something to dish out food and also
water in, such as a chicken feeder as well as water
dish from the feed shop, or a pickle container
cover for food and also an animal bird water dispenser from a family pet shop. Also, as the chicks grow older you could introduce a perch
right into the environment to obtain them
trained on perching. Warmth To
maintain your chicks warm you have to
give them with a warmth source.
This could be as basic as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp style lamp from an equipment store, or an infrared reptile heat
bulb additionally function extremely well (my
suggestion). Chicks need this
warmth 24/7 up until their downy fluff is
replaced with feathers (which could take up to 2 months). The newly
hatched out require a temperature level
in between 90 as well as 100 levels,
and also every week this could
be reduced by
around 5 levels approximately. The heat source must get on merely one side of the cage
to enable chicks an array of
temperatures. The chicks are your finest
thermometer- if they are hiding in the
contrary edge of your warmth
light, you need to
lower the temperature level. If
they are surrounding each other under the
warmth (not merely snuggling),
you should add some heat.
House cleaning
Cleanliness is essential and it maintains your chicks healthy and
balanced. Be sure to change
the bed linens
frequently and
consistently offer clean
food and water Food and water.
Chicks grow really fast
which calls for plenty of clean
food as well as water. Provide
sufficient at all times and also inspect
usually to prevent thirsty and
starving chicks. Chick food is various compared
to adult chicken food, and it can be found in both medicated and
also non-medicated selections. Feed chick food for the
very first two months, after that
change to a raiser food (~ 17 %
healthy protein) for one more 2 months,
and afterwards to a slightly
lower healthy protein feed or a layer feed
(if you have layers). Soil Some chicks prefer to get a head start on taking
dust bathrooms, while others won't occupy that task till they are
older. If you have the room in your chick
enclosure, introduce a tray of sand or
filth for them to shower in.
Attention and love There are a couple of benefits to spending time with your chicks. First off, they will most
likely bond with you as well as
not run away as adults. Second, if you
analyze your chicks daily as well as
enjoy their habits, you can
capture disease or various
other issues previously. Watch out for wheezing, hopping, or
various other undesirable
indicators. Make certain to
also check out
their poop, as looseness of the bowels could result in matted plumes and clogged up cloaca.
Lastly, it is very
important to keep an eye out for social concerns, such as the
tiniest chick getting teased. Empty nest syndrome So your
chicks are now fully feathery
and also its time for them to leave the
safety and security of your residence
as well as move outside into a cage. Have a look at our
part on chicken coops to read more
regarding cages as well as
appropriate coop habitats.
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