By Chris R.
On May the 4th we celebrated International
Respect for Chickens Day. This is a special day for many of the Valley’s
residents, with over fifty chickens calling the Sanctuary home. Rescues from
both broiler farms, egg farms and backyard poultry breeders reside in the
Valley.
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A Sanctuary rooster with deformed feet as a result of selective breeding for meat |
Chickens are highly intelligent and social birds. Each have
different personalities, favourite foods and particular chicken friends. They are a major discussion point on our Sanctuary tours, with our tour guides
working hard to educate visitors about how special our chicken family is.
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Some of the PVAS chicken family |
Over half of the Sanctuary’s chickens are roosters. These boys are considered a waste product of the egg industry. Their
inability to lay eggs and tendency to crow early each morning are undesirable
traits for these poor fellows, who are often killed or dumped at a young
age. The Sanctuary's roosters have many stories – some are in care as a
result of irresponsibly managed school hatching programs, several have been dumped
in parks or on roadsides, while others were rescued from organic farms where they were
unwanted. A few have even fallen off trucks onto the road.
Equally sad is the story for hens. Although hens are
kept for egg production purposes for a short time, these ladies are commonly
considered a waste product at around 18 months of age when their laying ability
begins to decline. Laying hens have significantly shortened life spans
and numerous health issues as a result of selective breeding for continual egg
production. Then there are the broiler birds, with both roosters and hens
killed at just six weeks for meat, never seeing sunshine or leaving their
sheds.
Unfortunately, backyard chicken breeding may be just as sad
as those involved in production environments. Many people who wish to have
‘happy hens’ at home are unaware that for hens to be hatched, there is the
hatching of equal numbers of ‘unhappy roosters’ with no economical purpose and
little prospect of rehoming.
To learn more about the plight of chickens and how to help,
see
http://www.unleashed.org.au/animals/chickens.php
Want to learn more about chicken friendly meals? Check out our ‘recipes’ tab in
the blog index for loads of delicious recipes that don’t hurt these fabulous birds.
On this day of respect for chickens it’s a good
opportunity to reflect on how we can make the futures of our feathered friends
kinder - it can all start with us.