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The injustices inherent in exploiting non-human animals stem from seeing them as commodities having only instrumental value, lacking any inherent worth apart from their usefulness to humans.

Closely related: Chickens: Numbers and General Information | Chickens: Sentience and Cognition

Points to Consider

Loss of life is an injustice even if done suddenly and painlessly (which it is not).

• To take the life of any sentient being is to harm that being by depriving them of opportunities for fulfillment, even if it is done suddenly and painlessly.
• We have no nutritional need for any animal product, so denying chickens their lives is unnecessary, as are the other forms of suffering.
• Chickens, like all farmed animals, are allowed to live just a small fraction of their natural lifespans.^[1]“Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017
  • Layings hens are slaughtered after about 18 months, living less than 20 percent of an 8-year natural lifespan.^[2]“Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017
  • Chickens used for meat are slaughtered at about 5 to 7 weeks, after living less than 2 percent of an 8-year natural lifespan.^[3]“Age of Animals Slaughtered,” Farm Transparency Project, October 12, 2017
  • Males from laying hens are slaughtered (usually by grinding with steel blades) soon after hatching because they can’t lay eggs.^[4]What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase.”

The methods of slaughter for chickens are violent and painful.

• Several methods of killing chickens are used, including manual throat slitting, neck-breaking, decapitation, and gassing, all of which are painful.
• In the United States, where there are no federal regulations for chicken welfare, the industry claims that 99 percent of the birds are “totally unconscious” after an electrical stun, administered in some facilities just before slaughter.^[5]National Chicken Council Brief on Stunning of Chickens.” The National Chicken Council (February 8, 2013.
• A study published in The Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science revealed that the chicken industry uses low-voltage stuns in order to avoid damage that might render the carcass unsellable. The low voltage stuns are not effective, which results in many (if not most) chickens being alive and fully conscious when their throat is slit, and many remain alive as they enter the scalding tank.^[6]Shields, Sara J., and A. B. M. Raj. “A Critical Review of Electrical Water-Bath Stun Systems for Poultry Slaughter and Recent Developments in Alternative Technologies.” Journal of Applied … Continue reading ^[7]Pitney, Nico. “Scientists Believe The Chickens We Eat Are Being Slaughtered While Conscious.” HuffPost, 24:58 400AD. ^[8]Welfare at Slaughter of Broiler Chickens: A Review.” Accessed June 12, 2019.

In a violent extermination procedure euphemistically called culling, male chicks from laying hens are killed shortly after hatching.

• Because laying hens are bred specifically to lay eggs, males hatched from laying hens are not profitable—they don’t yield sufficient meat, and they can’t lay eggs.^[9]What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase.” Accessed June 10, 2019.
• Because they males hatched from laying hens are not profitable, the males are ground alive in a macerator, gassed, or suffocated—all shortly after they hatch.^[10]Aerts, S., and J. De Tavernier. “11. Killing Animals as a Matter of Collateral Damage.” In The End of Animal Life: A Start for Ethical Debate, 167–86. Wageningen Academic Publishers, 2015.
• The chicken industry refers to the practice of killing newly hatched males as chick culling. (Weak and struggling females are also discarded in this manner.)^[11]What Happens with Male Chicks in the Egg Industry? – RSPCA Knowledgebase.” Accessed June 10, 2019.
• Hatchlings are about 50 percent male and 50 percent female. So statistically speaking, every laying hen has a brother who has been violently slaughtered. This is true even for backyard chickens, as the female hatchlings are sold not only to commercial producers but also to individuals keeping backyard chickens.
• In the United States, over 375 million male chicks are slaughtered annually via culling. Worldwide, it’s in the billions.^[12]Estimated from 2017 data: “FAOSTAT.” Accessed June 10, 2019.

Chickens are subjected to overcrowding and confinement.

• Extreme crowding is the reality for the 98 percent of chickens living in factory farming conditions, regardless of whether they are in battery cages.^[18]Sentience Institute. “US Factory Farming Estimates.” April 11, 2019. or not.
• Hens in battery cages spend their lives confined to a space smaller than the size of a standard sheet of paper.^[19]Friedrich, Bruce, The Good Food Institute. “The Cruelest of All Factory Farm Products: Eggs From Caged Hens.” HuffPost, December 6, 2017
• Chickens in commercial chicken houses may not be confined to a cage, but they are still entrapped by the mass of other chickens surrounding them, which is why Consumer Reports advises you to “ignore cage-free claims.”^[20]Consumer Reports Greener Choices. “Cage-free on a package of chicken: Does It Add Value?” March 5, 2018
• Despite failed and weak legislation at the federal and state levels,^[21]A Decade Later, Another ‘Cage-Free’ Measure Is on the California Ballot.” Civil Eats, October 25, 2018. and despite the trend for producers and grocers to promise to go cage-free,^[22]Welfare Commitments, Cage-Free Commitments  as of 2014 over 95 percent of eggs involved battery cages.^[23]Table Egg Production and Hen Welfare: Agreement and Legislative Proposals, Congressional Research Service, February 14, 2014 ^[24]How Egg Production Became a $200-Billion Industry, Sentient Media, October 17, 2022

Chickens are denied natural behaviors such as preening, roosting, perching, and spreading their wings.

• Crowding prevents or hinders chickens’ ability to engage in their natural behaviors of preening, roosting, perching, spreading their wings, establishing social order, pecking and scratching for food, and teaching their young to peck and scratch for food.^[25]Prescott, N.B. and Wathes, C.M., (2002). Preference and motivation of laying hens to eat under different illuminances and the effect of illuminance on eating behavior.  British Poultry … Continue reading
• The denial of natural behaviors due to living in such close quarters results not only in discomfort but also the constant psychological stress of fear and anxiety.^[26]Eugen, Kaya von, Rebecca E. Nordquist, Elly Zeinstra, and Franz Josef van der Staay. “Stocking Density Affects Stress and Anxious Behavior in the Laying Hen Chick During … Continue reading ^[27]Marino, Lori. “Thinking Chickens: A Review of Cognition, Emotion, and Behavior in the Domestic Chicken.” Animal Cognition20, no. 2 (2017): 127–47. ^[28]Appleby, M.C. “What Causes Crowding? Effects of Space, Facilities and Group Size on Behavior, with Particular Reference to Furnished Cages for Hens.” Animal Welfare13 (August 1, 2004): … Continue reading

Chickens often live in filth and stench.

• The ammonia-laden air in the chicken houses is so noxious that the birds commonly suffer respiratory disorders, severe flesh and eye burns, and even blindness.^[29]Ammonia Toxicity in Chickens.” PoultryDVM. Accessed October 25, 2018
• Videos and investigations document the filth and stench of urine, feces, feathers, and dander in chicken facilities. They show birds covered in feces and so weak that they cannot clean themselves. Some are stuck in manure so deep it could be described as a manure pit.^[30]Direct Action Everywhere. “Truth Matters: DxE Investigators Expose ‘Humane’ Fraud at Whole Foods.“, January 7, 2015 ^[31]NowThis, “Undercover Footage Reveals Horrible Conditions of McDonald’s Chickens” September 9, 2019

Chickens commonly suffer from sickness and disease.

• Numerous research papers and undercover videos show that: ^[32]Direct Action Everywhere. “Truth Matters: DxE Investigators Expose ‘Humane’ Fraud at Whole Foods.“, January 7 ^[33]NowThis, “Undercover Footage Reveals Horrible Conditions of McDonald’s Chickens” September 9, 2019 ^[34]Adams, A. W., and J. V. Craig. “Effect of Crowding and Cage Shape on Productivity and Profitability of Caged Layers: A Survey.” Poultry Science 64, no. 2 (February 1, 1985): 238–42. ^[35]Lawrence, Felicity. “If Consumers Knew How Farmed Chickens Were Raised, They Might Never Eat Their Meat Again.” The Observer, April 24, 2016, sec. Environment. ^[36]Diseases of Poultry | Mississippi State University Extension Service.” Accessed June 18, 2019
  • Sickness and disease are common.
  • Some chickens are so sick you can hear them struggling to breathe.
  • Some hens don’t have the strength to stand on their own two legs.
  • Some are barely able to move or respond to anything around them.
  • Birds are found dead, dying, and emaciated.

The selective breeding of chickens is debilitating.

Laying Hens

• A laying hen produces more than 300 eggs a year, but the jungle fowl from which they are bred lay fewer than 10 eggs in a year. This causes both physical and psychological stress.^[37]Cheng, H.-W. “Breeding of Tomorrow’s Chickens to Improve Well-Being.” Poultry Science 89, no. 4 (April 1, 2010): 805–13
• The large increase in the number of eggs laid is from a combination of selective breeding and hens’ tendency to lay more eggs when eggs are removed so they can follow their instinct to form a proper brood.^[38]Rutherford-Fortunati, Rutherford-Fortunati on. “Do Chickens Mourn the Loss of Their Eggs?” June 29, 2012
• Laying hens are also bred to lay large eggs for which they have not naturally evolved, which stresses their reproductive system and causes such problems as osteoporosis, bone breakage, and uterus prolapse.^[39]Jamieson, Alastair. “Large Eggs Cause Pain and Stress to Hens, Shoppers Are Told,” March 11, 2009, sec. Finance

Broiler Chickens

• The modern broiler chicken is unnaturally large and has been bred to grow at an unnaturally fast rate and have large breasts.^[40]Stevenson, Peter. “Leg and Heart Problems in Broiler Chickens.” Compassion in World Farming, January 2003.
• The selective breeding of broiler chickens comes with serious welfare consequences, including:(Stevenson, Peter. “Leg and Heart Problems in Broiler Chickens.” Compassion in World Farming, January 2003.))
  • leg disorders,
  • skeletal, developmental, and degenerative diseases,
  • heart and lung problems,
  • breathing difficulty,
  • and premature sudden death.

Chickens are commonly debeaked, causing pain and lasting suffering.

• The debeaking of chickens:^[41]Welfare Implications of Beak Trimming.” American Veterinary Medical Association, February 7, 2010
  • is painful,
  • causes lasting suffering,
  • impairs feeding,
  • eliminates exploratory pecking,
  • and contributes to lice from impaired preening.

Chickens are subjected to rough handling and transport.

• When chickens raised for meat reach their desired slaughter weight, they are caught, crated, transported, unloaded, and placed in holding pens until slaughter.^[42]Chickens Suffer during Catching, Loading, and Transport.” Accessed June 12, 2019
• Videos of chickens being transported or being prepared for transport shows squawking birds being grabbed four at a time by their feet and roughly thrown or shoved into crowded crates, birds suffering dislocations and broken bones, wings and heads crushed in crates, birds dying from suffocation, hot and cold conditions, and birds unable to stand from exhaustion.^[43]Chickens Suffer during Catching, Loading, and Transport.” Accessed June 12, 2019
• A study published in Poultry Science reveals that in addition to the psychological stress of chickens being transported, it is not unusual for a chicken to experience dehydration, disease, injury, pain, and even death.^[44]Jacobs, Leonie, Evelyne Delezie, Luc Duchateau, Klara Goethals, and Frank A. M. Tuyttens. “Impact of the Separate Pre-Slaughter Stages on Broiler Chicken Welfare
• Injuries from rough handling and transport of chickens include wing and leg fractures, lesions, bleeding, and bruising.^[45]Jacobs, Leonie, Evelyne Delezie, Luc Duchateau, Klara Goethals, and Frank A. M. Tuyttens. “Impact of the Separate Pre-Slaughter Stages on Broiler Chicken Welfare

Related Links

• On this website
  • Chickens: Numbers and General Information
  • Chickens: Sentience and Cognition
• On other websites
  • Articles
    • How Egg Production Became a $200-Billion Industry, Sentient Media
  • Videos
    • Costco Chicken Providers Exposed for Animal Cruelty, Now This News
    • Undercover Footage Reveals Horrible Conditions of McDonald’s Chickens | NowThis
    • DxE Investigators Expose ‘Humane’ Fraud at Whole Foods, DxE

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Footnotes