2 day old chicks (nasty warning)

[Smotheroffive]

...being crushed alive en masse!!

I know this from films shown in my DCs schools.

AIBU to be so shocked and upset about this, or wondering if enough people know and it doesn't even bother them, or perhaps have no idea this goes on.

I have always tried to buy free range eggs, and bacon, etc, but also organic assuming their standards of animal welfare would prefend such awful treatment of live young.

Does this happen routinely in organic farming too? surely not, or I think I might have to stop buying eggs! AIBU to consider doing that?

Hugh Fearnly Wittingstall did a good programme series on Ch4 (probably about the same time as the Jamie Oliver ones) about raising chicks for the broiler market. He could not get farmers to help as they were wary of being filmed, so did his raised his own in the different densities allowed (minimum, RSPCA, and 'free range') and explored the economics of it. Many of them died on the way or injured and had to be gassed.

This would probably be far more use to children in schools to watch.

Thanks for that balanced view of yours Heyha

There is simply no point in nasty shouting,but to talk about realities of what's going on and make sure we know what's happening.

I hadn't even thought about zoo and exotic pets. All our reptiles and carnivores have to be fed somehow, and I have seen frozen mice and chicks for sale for as long as people have been keeping snakes, etc. I don't agree with keeping an exotic pet so far removed from its environment and it can potentially be a threat to our native environment no dangerous snake has ever escaped no never

My DCs ages are irrelevant, I wouldn't be posting them on here.

What's the broiler market?

Of course the DCs ages are relevant. I am also a bit confused as to how this is the fault of 'schools'. Are you saying that your DCs school is showing them videos of animal slaughter? In what context? It's not something I have come across working in education or with my DCs schools, so I'm assuming this isn't standard.

Other than to say its not in primary! No, its not relevant specifically my DCs ages!

I was not saying it was age inappropriate was I, so again, not relevant to the discussion.

There's a lot of birds of prey in captivity that are fed in day old chick's. We used to by them frozen in big cardboard boxes, hundreds of the little fluffy yellow things.

It was quite sad, but no different to any other meat I guess.

Broiler chickens are the chickens we eat. Egg laying chickens are the type which, well, lay eggs. Different types of chickens for different purposes.

I've never had a Capon chicken, and now I'm glad, after reading what makes it a Capon.

I had a friend that kept her horse on a farm ( Essex)
Went with her once and in a barn near her horse field they were gassing ( hundreds) of male chicks. And there were boxes and boxes of already dead ones. This was a good 10+ years ago so don't know if it still happens.

I don't think broiler means that. Broiling is a way of cooking isnt it? Like mutton would be cooked longer/differently.

Broiler seems to be a n
American term for a way of cooking, with specialist broiler pans as opposed to grilling or roastiroasting (from my search of the webs)

Definition of a broiler OP

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broiler

I just wondered DC age (not specifically) because I was curious if it was being shown to 5 year olds, or 15 year olds. Not relevant to your aibu but don't most conversations drift in various directions?

Broiler is a chicken raised for consumption. You need to Google op, theres lots of information out there.

Dairy cows suffer all their lives. repeatedly impregnated, calves not allowed to feed, bred for unnatural yield stuffed full of drugs, cruel

I don't think it's true that's these chick are then raised organically, as that would contravene the rules around organic farming. Where did you get that.from?

Did you read the fact sheet I linked to, Smotheroffive? It tells you exactly what a broiler chicken is (a chicken bred for meat) and gives extensive detail on the life of chickens in the meat industry.

Missing not organic, certainly.

"Where did you get that.from?"

The internet, I used it to double check.

Sorry, meant North American term

I often prefer real to wiki, and there's a flag on there of unbalanced view. I don't take everything i read on the internet (or hear from.school) as fact, I'd rather discuss with others for their views and research sources.

I think if the DCs were five and seeing this that would definitely have been the point if the thread!! Don't you?

^Where did you get that.from?^

That was to onebadhatHarry sorry, thread suddenly.moved faster.

To note: shock surprise Wiki cannot be labelled fact sheets.

You just need to Google "broiler chicken"

Why would i assume you were ok, or not, with your 5 yo seeing it? I wouldn't really care, like I said, just curious if this was normal in schools, I'd be unhappy at my 7 yo being shown it without prior warning, so just wondered again

Oh sorry op!

Broiler is a term sometimes used for the meat chicken (I think it probably originates from the American cooking, though!)

@missingstreetlife you're right that cows are mated as often as biology dictates but for the most part that's the same as would happen in nature although i appreciate it would be after they had naturally weaned their calf so a slightly longer gap. Beef cows definitely get a better deal in that respect.

Post- war selective breeding has led to some seriously high-yielding farm animals and I also see why people have issues with that (I keep rare breeds which are much closer to their historic relatives so don't have that to contend with!) but the trouble is, we're at that point now where we've bred these animals to be the norm, you can't really go back and stop it so it's difficult to see what happens next. Obviously I'd like to see more rare breeds used but food prices would be much higher as a result.
Although interestingly lots of sheep farmers are going for 'wool shedders' now as the wool price is so low compared to 50 years ago that if the sheep can ditch it themselves it makes them much easier and cheaper to look after. For a rare breeds person like me that is a good thing as some of mine have old-fashioned fleeces that craft people will pay a fortune for!

Yes but you said your children weren’t at primary. I think it’s entirely appropriate to prompt a discussion as secondary level.

Not sure what you mean by that Ruru8

It seems that it the supermarkets aggressive commercial pratices weren't involved this actually wouldn't be an issue
Heyha as the farmers would yield more income! I'd also far rather go direct to a farm for their produce than the bullying monopolising supermalrets any day, plus avoid all the packaging and plastic!

Heyha - cows have a 9mo gestation so in order to keep to the usual annual calving pattern they come into season while lactating, as opposed to sheep, who do not. Farmers merely provide semen at correct time with AI, nothing is 'forced' as is commonly asserted. Putting semen into a non cycling cow would be a waste of time, money and effort.

Male calves in the UK are mostly reared for 'bull beef', so not slaughtered until at least 9mo, more likely 12-14mo. A small minority are shot at birth and a limited amount are slaughtered as ruby veal - not crate reared, just reared like any other calf.