Page 34 - Hillside 2015 20th Anniversary Newsletter
P. 34
Your Chance to Speak Up for Battery Chickens - A letter to your MP...
The first campaigning work and indeed To: House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA Clare Druce’s life
investigation,that Hillside carried out work is detailed in
was into the plight of caged battery Dear her book ‘Chickens’
hens. Since then,the‘enriched’ colony Lib’ which also
cage has been introduced but, in I am deeply disturbed that no steps have been taken, at governmental level, features some of
reality it has not made the dreadful to correct what is an illegal situation. In 2012 the RSPCA launched a new Hillside’s major farm
existence of the farmed hen any more campaign in opposition to enriched cages. In its press release the Society’s animal investigations.
tolerable. Senior Scientific Officer stated: “The message we want to drive home is You may order a
that, despite the new welfare law, hens will still be kept in cruel cages.” hard back copy for £14.95
Recently, when Hillside friend and
supporter, Clare Druce, who has The provision of adequate ‘litter such that pecking and See this link to buy
worked tirelessly to improve the scratching are possible’ as is demanded in Council Directive 2007/43/EC,
welfare of chickens, wrote to her MP, is impossible in the context of a building holding many thousands of
asking them to do something about hens confined in floor to roof cages. In such an environment, true dust
their suffering in so called‘colony cages’ bathing would result in heavily contaminated air, bad for both hens and
in which they are effectively being staff. Scientists have proved that lack of litter for dustbathing causes
farmed illegally, she was saddened to serious distress to hens.
see a most inadequate reply.
In its 2010 ‘Opinion on Osteoporosis and Bone Fractures in
We thought MPs might take the matter Laying Hens’, FAWC has stated that bone fractures are common in
more seriously if lots of people wrote enriched cages, pointing out that the suffering incurred will ‘severely
to them, expressing their concern and compromise at least four of the Five Freedoms, i.e. freedom from
asking that something is done. discomfort, freedom from pain, injury and disease; freedom to perform
normal behaviour and freedom from fear and distress.’
If you would like to help put pressure
on MPs to do something, may we ask Legislation demands that ‘animals kept in husbandry systems
you to cut out and sign the letter (right) in which their welfare depends on frequent human attention must be
and send it to your MP. If you are thoroughly inspected at least once a day to check they are in a state of
unsure who your MP is, or where to well-being’. The proper inspection of hens in enriched cages is unlikely
send a letter, you may look on-line to be achieved: consider for a moment the task of inspecting hens in
the lowest cages (in a five tier system, 20% of the hens would be housed
On this link at ground level). To inspect these hens ‘thoroughly’, as is required by law,
would involve the stock keeper kneeling, squatting down, or adopting a
34 backbreaking semi-upright pose , for long periods.
I should be most grateful if you would address your reply to
the issue about which I am writing to you. I am anxious to know how, in
view of current legislation, millions of laying hens are kept under
conditions which cause routine and predictable suffering.
Yours sincerely
