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From the Cage to the Dinnertable
The Unknown Truths of the Egg Industry
Most of us eat eggs on a daily basis.
We cook them, fry them and add them to cakes and pies.
For most of us, the source of the eggs is the supermarket.
But what do we really know about the true source of the eggs?
What do we know about the chickens that lay them?
The only chickens that most of us know are but images.
In commercials, tales and children's books.
These chickens live in pleasant rural surroundings,
wander the yard and take care of their chicks.
Once and a while they lay an egg for us,
perhaps out of gratitude for the food and shelter we supply them.
Chickens that sit on their eggs are but tales of the past.
In these times, all chicks come from artificial incubators.
They struggle to emerge from their shell by themselves.
After hatching the chicks are sorted.
The males, which have no profitable values,
are thrown to the garbage, to suffocate or be crushed to death.
Over 15,000 chicks are exterminated like this in Israel every day.
Once they get rid of the males, the female chicks receive a vaccine.
Then, they are transferred to the cages in which they will remain to their last day.
In the tight cages, the chickens can't spread their wings
or even lie comfortably.
Under these conditions, the chickens act similarly to humans, they become violent.
They unleash frustration, fear and boredom on each other.
The weak chickens can't flee or reach food and water,
so they are left hungry and thirsty.
Some of them will die from exhaustion and injuries,
while the strong chickens continue to peck on them.
The farmers' solution to this problem is by cutting off the chickens' beaks.
The blade is a heated metal.
The beak has living tissues and nerves,
of the chicks will die from the shock,
others will suffer pain all their lives while eating.
The chickens' bodies rub against the cage's metal bars
and causes feathers loss and wounds.
The chickens' legs are accustomed to walk on the ground
and to stand on branches.
Within the cages they are forced to stand on dirty metal bars for many months,
which as a result cause injuries, bedsores and distortions.
Under natural conditions, the chickens lay about twenty eggs per year.
In modern coops the chickens are forced to lay
more than three hundreds eggs per year.
The daily laying becomes more and more painful.
Their bones' calcium is turned to egg shell,
and their legs can no longer carry their bodies.
In many cases, the chickens internal organs drop out through the laying opening,
which causes infections, pain and even death.
After a year, when the laying rate is slowed down,
a process of starving is issued in order to shock the chickens.
This will stop the laying completely
and they will eventually return to their normal laying rate.
The coop is darkened, and the chickens are denied water for two days
and food for ten days.
After that, they receive scarce amounts of food for several weeks.
The weak chickens die from the shock and the hunger.
The farmers just let them die on the floor or in the garbage.
A quarter of the chickens die in agony before the flock is slaughtered.
This is simply a cruel and unethical method,
Dr. Rafi Kishon Veterinarian to breed animals in these impossible conditions.
In many countries in Europe these methods are becoming illeagal,
as should be here as well.
A million chickens are caged in Israel.
Only one thing keeps the chickens caged.
The money that is paid for the eggs.
The birds can be released from the cages.
Refrain from egg consumption.