When I read about this horrific practice, it made me ill. Thankfully, I know what happens to my hens in the backyard. Nothing cruel or inhumane happens here.
Egg producers withhold food from hens from 5-38 days in order to force hens to molt. During this time, hens lose their feathers and the hen ceases to lay eggs. Once the period of starvation is over, the hens lay more and larger eggs. All this boils down to greater profit for egg producers. The length of starvation varies.
The other way a molt is forced is to feed hens foods with little nutritional value. The hens don't starve; they are just malnourished. Malnutrition can lead to pecking, feather eating and further diminish the welfare of the flock.
Yes, chickens do die during this starvation. Chickens die every day in commercial chicken houses, but the starvation period multiplies the number of hens that die.
As for the period of starvation or malnutrition, depending on the method used, the time varies. I am quite sure that no hen is starved for 38 days, so this might be the period of diminished nutrition.
Since I have not yet found the way to copy and paste in 10, I cannot give you a link. The best was about.com. I did read Wikipedia, too, for information.
I need to go hug my hens.
Your turn
Have you ever heard of "forced molt?" Does it make you ill to think of starving an animal to increase profit?
Oh, Linda, that's so sad.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Janie,
DeleteYes, it is. I was shocked.
Somehow that doesn't surprise me. I'm nervous every for my hens now, some are molting and the temperatures are dipping down.
ReplyDeleteMichelle,
ReplyDeleteYes, I wonder why I was so shocked.
Since I have never had a chicken molt in the six years I have had hens, I did not think about naked chickens in the cold. They only need to be kept from cold and drafts. Don't keep them in an airtight place or a heated place. I hope they are okay. Protein rich food will help them grow feathers and keep them warm overnight. Corn, as bad as I hate feeding them corn, will keep them warm at night.
They have a nice coop, they sleep together so I'm sure they'll be ok. I usually give them extra food besides their feed when the temps drop. Worse case scenario, I hang up the heating lamp in there :)
DeleteHens do love to cuddle in the winter.
Delete