Animal Treatment

[Thunder]

I love watching How It's Made on the Science Channel, but one episode is seriously disturbing. It was showing how eggs are made (or processed) with complete disrespect for the hens. Apparently, hens do not require mating in order to produce eggs (and this shocked me since I learned that hens and roosters mate, which the eggs is the result of that, and that somehow these eggs are taken away and something done to halt production inside the eggs). So, these hens are capable of laying eggs without mating. I don't know what the yellow thingy inside anymore! Okay, anyway, the video was showing thousands of hens trapped in very small spaces with no room to enjoy life. Just eat, drink, and lay eggs. What do you all think about the treatment toward these hens? At the conclusion of showing how eggs are processed, the host (man speaking) said that at about 72 weeks, the hens stop producing viable eggs safe enough for human consumption. He also said that as a reward for the hens' hard work, they are given an all-expenses-paid trip to the slaughterhouse. This is utterly disrespectful.

What is everyone's opinion on the treatment of animals?

[Uncle Slayton]

I gotta give you props for keeping up the variety. Did you truly not know how the commercial egg industry worked? (btw, female humans can make eggs without mating too, they just don't lay them...or at least not in ways that...ya know what? Never mind. Off topic.)
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In a way, the life of a caged laying chicken is a pretty good metaphor for human life, but that's maybe a politico-philosophical argument for another day.

If it bothers you, then boycott by finding you an "egg man" here in Oklahoma and buy them fresh off the farm where the chickens are usually allowed to roam freely about. The eggs are better, IMO, although you do occasionally find one with blood in it or even a chick, but if the farmer is good about keeping the eggs gathered, it's no big deal.

I have no idea how they stop (re)production inside the eggs, but if you get 'em fresh off the farm, that's not a problem at all.

They taste better, they come in a wide array of colors (shell) and sizes. (they're not always white, and sometimes there's sh*t on them...), and sometimes even a double yolk.

There's a lady at my office who lives on a farm in the eastern part of the county and she brings the excess eggs her hens lay to work and gives them away. I hope she doesn't discover a paying market for them at WF or somewhere else because the organic free range eggs fetch a premium price.

As far as your anthropomorphization of chickens and the term 'respect', well, god help them, they're just not the brightest animals in the world and they probably have no idea of what life as a chicken could be if lived to its fullest poultential.

They don't get treated all that respectfully on the farm either. What do you think happens to a hen that doesn't lay eggs? Free range or not, she's for the pot when she stops producing. And you really only need one or two roosters, so off to the pot with them when they get old or cranky, or even particularly annoying. There are few or no free rides on the farm. If you eat, you generally have to earn your keep.

I wish you could have met my old Ozark-born grandma. You'd have no doubt been salivating at the prospect of country fried chicken for dinner, but horrified when you saw this kind, sweet old lady walk out to the barnyard with a couple handfuls of feed. Two chickens would approach, then there was always this blur of motion when grandma suddenly reached out, dropped the feed, grabbed the hapless fowl by the heads, and, just a 'whirl-snap' later, she had a chicken head in each hand and dinner flopping on the ground bleeding out, pinfeathers and chicken guts definitely being a topic for another time.

[Thunder]

According to the show, hens don't require mating to lay eggs, so rather than keeping them all caged, the hens should be allowed free on a farm (with no roosters) without such worry that eggs will be fertilized. This will add more jobs with manual labor of collecting eggs daily. Or at least allow these hens freedom to enjoy the farm every other day. These hens remain trapped 24/7 and they don't constantly pop out eggs. I don't know how often hens pop out eggs, but keeping them trapped is more than amount of time hens pop out their eggs. This just seems like severe animal cruelty. Animals are a lot smarter than we think. Just because they are hens doesn't make them dumb.

[bandnerd]

I believe, when the weather is nice, that hens lay an egg a day. So, it requires quite a few hens to keep up with production. When the weather gets extremely hot or cold, though, they stop laying. There are sometimes fewer eggs through the Oklahoma Food Co-op in July-August because of this.

Can we say they "lay" eggs instead of "pop them out?" It's the correct term. And yes, because they are chickens, they are dumb. They are definitely not bright animals. My mother had them growing up and can attest to that. I agree that they should be treated in a manner that is considered humane, and often buy my eggs through the co-op so they are cage-free or free-roaming, and supplement with cage-free eggs at the grocery store. The yolks are always richer and a deeper orange color instead of a pale yellow. So much tastier.

As for what the "yellow thingy" is in the egg, it's called the yolk, and it is the nutrient source for the potential fetus in the egg. It is there whether or not the egg is fertilized. It's full of all kinds of healthy nutrition in there for people, too. The white of the egg protects the yolk and provides more nutrition for a potential chicken fetus.

I'm really quite surprised that you didn't know this was how large-scale chicken egg farming goes. Did you think that there were just a bunch of little old ladies around the country, tossing out chicken feed to a few chickens like on a little farm, and that produced enough eggs for the country on a long-term basis?

Watch Food Inc. sometime and your eyes will be opened to the U.S. Agriculture industry and their methods.

[RadicalModerate]

Speaking of chickens . . . Did you know that the old saying, "Running around like a chicken with its head cut off" is based on an actual fact? (Rather than a non-actual fact.)

Decades ago, I knew a guy who was heavily involved in raising "Gamecocks."
One day I watched him "thin the herd" of one apparently diseased chicken--I can't recall if it was a hen or a rooster--with the blade of a shovel.

Prior to that, I always thought the phrase was just a figure of speech.
I guess the "balance center" in chickens isn't in their inner ear.
Or else their ears aren't on their heads.

BTW: He took better care of those chickens than he did his own children.

Do you realize how expensive eggs would be if Chicken Ranchers had to do a daily egg hunt to find all the places--on the north, south, east and west forty--where the wandering fowl might try to hide them? A lot more expensive, that's how.

[Roadhawg]

Speaking of chickens . . . Did you know that the old saying, "Running around like a chicken with its head cut off" is based on an actual fact? (Rather than a non-actual fact.)

Decades ago, I knew a guy who was heavily involved in raising "Gamecocks."
One day I watched him "thin the herd" of one apparently diseased chicken--I can't recall if it was a hen or a rooster--with the blade of a shovel.

Prior to that, I always thought the phrase was just a figure of speech.
I guess the "balance center" in chickens isn't in their inner ear.
Or else their ears aren't on their heads.

BTW: He took better care of those chickens than he did his own children.

Do you realize how expensive eggs would be if Chicken Ranchers had to do a daily egg hunt to find all the places--on the north, south, east and west forty--where the wandering fowl might try to hide them? A lot more expensive, that's how.

I remember as a kid we had chickens and dad was going to get one for Sunday dinner. He said come on boy's and I'll show you how it's done. He got the chicken and with a hatchet chopped it's head off... that chicken took off running and flapping it's wings with out a head and here's my dad trying to chase it down with his hatched... funniest thing I've ever seen *LOL*

Thunder, did you think the millions of eggs eaten every day come from farm hens where they walk around all day?

[RadicalModerate]

I probably should have said that the Gamecock Rancher I knew--back in the day--took better care of his chickens than his own kids. Probably on account of there wasn't nearly as much money involved in goat fighting. Oh well . . . =)

I used to drive by a sign next to the short lane into an older farmhouse on the north side of OKC that touted: "Free Range Eggs". I always imagined dozens of eggs running around on little, Loony-Tunelike chicken legs, and some of them getting run over because they couldn't see the approaching cars. Too much Gary "Far Side" Larson in the formative years I suppose.

I imagine that by now that old farm house got run over by approaching subdivisions.

[Roadhawg]

I probably should have said that the Gamecock Rancher I knew--back in the day--took better care of his chickens than his own kids. Probably on account of there wasn't nearly as much money involved in goat fighting. Oh well . . . =)

I used to drive by a sign next to the short lane into an older farmhouse on the north side of OKC that touted: "Free Range Eggs". I always imagined dozens of eggs running around on little, Loony-Tunelike chicken legs, and some of them getting run over because they couldn't see the approaching cars. Too much Gary "Far Side" Larson in the formative years I suppose.

I imagine that by now that old farm house got run over by approaching subdivisions.

[Richard at Remax]

It's disturbing that someone uttered the phrase "disrespect for the hens"

[RadicalModerate]

What's that old saying about "Great Minds Running Around Like Chickens With Their Heads Cut Off" . . . ?
(And did it have something to do with the "Republican" slate of candidat.....never mind. Too "political".)


It's disturbing that someone uttered the phrase "disrespect for the hens"
Word on the street--excuse me, country lane on the edge of Mayberry--has it that Oprah and The View are getting with Jerry Springer and Maury Povitch to invite Sarah Palin and Nancy Pelosi to "debate" that very slur. A cameo appearance by Michelle Bachmann is possible. And Rachel Ray will show how to make a fine road-kill omelet. Ellen DeGeneris has been signed as the umpire.

Thunder: If you have ever been around a "free-range" mother hen with newly hatched chicks in the front and side yards of your grandma and grandpas house in the country when you were about five years old you would realize that they are meaner--and more protective--than a feral cat or rabid pit bull.

[Thunder]

I know the yellow thingy is called a yolk. Other than that name, I was saying/meaning that I have always known the yellow thingy was to be the baby that never got to start development. Then I learned yesterday that hens lay eggs without mating, so it got me confused as to how the yellow thingy got inside the eggs. :-(

[Uncle Slayton]

I know the yellow thingy is called a yolk. Other than that name, I was saying/meaning that I have always known the yellow thingy was to be the baby that never got to start development. Then I learned yesterday that hens lay eggs without mating, so it got me confused as to how the yellow thingy got inside the eggs. :-(

Wait...what?

[kevinpate]

I probably should have said that the Gamecock Rancher I knew--back in the day--took better care of his chickens than his own kids. Probably on account of there wasn't nearly as much money involved in goat fighting. Oh well . . . =)

I used to drive by a sign next to the short lane into an older farmhouse on the north side of OKC that touted: "Free Range Eggs". I always imagined dozens of eggs running around on little, Loony-Tunelike chicken legs, and some of them getting run over because they couldn't see the approaching cars. Too much Gary "Far Side" Larson in the formative years I suppose.
...

I've been having a bit of a bad day. Then I sign on and I read these.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU !!!

[RadicalModerate]

Yer welcome.
Ya' shure . . . yew betcha . . .

So . . . Whut's that wacky n weird white stuff in thar nex t' the joke?
Sorry . . . I meant yolk.

But it's Scandinavian-American Appreciation Day so . . .
Please forgive me in the Lutrin sense o' the term. OK? =)

[JayhawkTransplant]

Awwwww. Growing up, I raised hens and sold their eggs. We had about 40 acres, and around 100 hens (and a rooster)...the chickens were locked up at night to keep them safe from predators, but other than that, they were free to roam. I wish we still had the land, because I'd invite you out to check out the chicken farm, Thunder!

You're right,many farms keep hens in close quarters, which is very stressful for them. They will even use lights to confuse the hens' "schedule" and influence them to lay more eggs. Just like anything else, capitalism seems to be the name of the game in the egg industry--keeping costs to a minimum. As such, free-range chicken and eggs are more expensive, as it costs a bit more to keep fewer chickens per acre.

[Bill Robertson]

So Thunder, and this is just an innocent question. Does this mean you don't eat eggs or chicken?

[bandnerd]

Yeah, the yolk isn't the fetus. It's just the nutrient sac. Kind of like a placenta in a human baby, if you think about it. Hope that clears up any "yellow thingy" confusion. If you know what it's called, then call it that.

[Questor]

Thunder, it bothers me too. I vote with my wallet and only buy "certified humane" free range chickens and eggs. Certified by third party auditing organizations. You'll find them at the more modern grocers like Whole Foods and Natural Grocer. Not gonna lie, it's a lot more expensive.

I think the OKC Food Co-op probably also sells eggs and that might be a good bet too.