Today Eyes on Animals observed the catching and loading of broilers at the Aeres MBO school in Barneveld (NL). The catching and loading was part of a field-study of Aeres comparing two different catching methods: the traditional catching method (holding birds upside down by one leg) and an alternative method. Aeres calls this alternative method the ‘upright method’; … [Read more...] about Aeres field-study on catching broilers needs improvement
chicken transport
Training chicken-catchers, NL
This afternoon Eyes on Animals was asked by a large and progressive chicken- catching company to give an animal-welfare training course to their employees. The purpose was to educate their catchers on poultry behaviour, their sentience and physiology and how to catch birds keeping them upright instead of by their legs upside down. We also covered how to load the birds in … [Read more...] about Training chicken-catchers, NL
Dutch court rules: catching birds by their legs is illegal and authorities must take enforcement action
Today the Dutch court ruled that catching chickens by their legs is forbidden under EU law 1/2005, and that the Dutch Food Authority (NVWA) should enforce this. The case was filed by the organization Wakker Dier. Until now the NVWA has only given warnings to catching companies that catch and load chickens by their legs. The judge has decided that this does not suffice. The … [Read more...] about Dutch court rules: catching birds by their legs is illegal and authorities must take enforcement action
Meeting with Peer Systeem about the partial automation of catching and loading of laying hens
Today Eyes on Animals brainstormed with the chairman of Peer Systeem. Peer Systeem developed an automated system to catch, load and transport broilers. The system is currently being used in a Czech poultry slaughterhouse. The broilers are caught with a machine and transported to a mechanically ventilated poultry truck on a conveyor belt. There is little to no contact … [Read more...] about Meeting with Peer Systeem about the partial automation of catching and loading of laying hens
More and more chicken-catching companies, encouraged by the Dutch Chicken Catching Organization, refuse to catch birds upright
For more than six years we have had a positive time training chicken-catching companies on the gentle upright method of catching poultry and, together with several egg and poultry producers, have been catching the birds upright instead of inverted by the legs. Gentle upright catching was not something that could be put into place at all poultry farms in the Netherlands, as … [Read more...] about More and more chicken-catching companies, encouraged by the Dutch Chicken Catching Organization, refuse to catch birds upright
