DVD!
Making the World Safe for Unhealthy Chickens
High Tech Chicken Wizardry Keeps Factory Farming System Humming
photo credit: Kevin Cortopassi
Well, now I have seen everything. A farm buying club manager just sent me a link to Pfizer Pharmaceuticals chicken health page. This video beats all. From it, I learned the shocking fact that for the past 20 years our poultry industry has been invading the sanctity of the eggshell, to vaccinate chicken embryos. See link to video here, for actual footage of chicken eggs being shot up with drugs.
They claim to be vaccinating 13 billion chickens this way, worldwide. Oh, my goodness.
So, I did some internet research, as I am prone to do and found out WHY. It seems that Pfizers’ goal is to make chickens strong enough to withstand their cramped quarters in feces ridden factory poultry farms. So, with this tidy little vaccine, we now know that these poor birdies will remain in unlivable conditions in an inhumane industrial system.
A web page on chicken diseases by Mississippi State University says:
“Infectious bursal disease is an acute, highly contagious viral disease of young chickens. It is most often found in highly concentrated poultry producing areas. It causes marked morbidity and mortality in affected flocks. Although the disease causes severe losses, its affect on reducing the bird’s ability to develop immunity to other diseases may be the most serious effect produced by this disease.”
Another website I found, Foothills Animal Hospital says that stress plays an important role is causing another disease that the Pfizer vaccine treats, coccidiosis (parasites which give young chickens diarrhea), and it is spread by contact with feces. The animal hospital recommends sanitation and isolation to treat this disease in house pets. But, I guess it is kind of tough to clean up a factory farm. Or, isolate 20,000 chickens.
So, now you know that your poor chicken dinner has been stressed out, in a crowded cage, rolling in parasite filled poop and he is going to be just fine. But, unfortunately, you have not been vaccinated!
Some people will tell you to become a vegetarian to end all this. My suggestion is to enjoy your chicken, and have the last laugh. Just seek out a small farm in your area, that raises chickens on pasture.
And, here’s another green business opportunity! Looks like there is a real need for hatchling producers that don’t vaccinate embryos. If a farm is raising its poultry on pasture, there is no need to vaccinate against conditions found only in factories. Apparently right now, many sustainable farms are buying these vaccinated eggs. Let’s encourage our farmers to look at this as a huge business opportunity. We need hatchling farms which supply un-vaccinated chicks to small sustainable farms. This would make a lot of sense, since they are destined to be raised on healthy green pastures.
A farmer told me his hatchlings are sent through the mail when they are one day old. So it seems like it is an easy mail order business!
For consumers, a great resource for finding humanely raised poultry is EatWild.com.
Or, contact your local Weston A. Price Foundation volunteer Chapter Leader.
2 Comments
I have been searching everywhere for accurate information about this, thanks. The wordpress theme that you are using is great too, I would be interested in getting hold of it if possible.
Excellent YouTube post ! thanks for sharing. I’ll be adding your blog to my reader.
Juan