Why Do the Chickens Look Cramped?
This blog is in response to a question we received in reply to an email newsletter. First, I want you to know that I love your replies to my emails. Thank you for reading and paying attention. I get comments, accolades, feedback, and often questions.
This week we received a really great question about the picture of our pasture raised chicken:
"Is the photo in the email actually how your chickens are raised? It looks cramped and confined?"
Here is the same picture without the wording overlay for reference:
This question made me realize that two people can look at a photo and decipher completely different conclusions without the correct context. And I figured there were more of you out there thinking the same thing 😉... so let me answer for you all:
Yes, this picture is literally our chickens from this past June and I took it with the camera on my iphone.
These chickens can roam wherever they want, but most don't go too far from the coop. When I took this picture, it was late morning and the sun was hot, so most of the birds decided to hang out in the shade. Also, this is the time most aerial predators do their hunting. You can see a few on the outside in the sun. Here is another picture from a different angle:
Secondly, the chickens in this photo are almost ready to be processed. They had about a week left. Which means the birds are nearly as big as they are going to get. So going backwards in time, they only had more room as they were smaller than they were in this picture. Here's a picture of younger chickens in a coop. This coop is larger, but it's the same ratio of chickens per sq ft (with some outside also):
Thirdly, our chickens are moved every day to fresh ground. You can see how green the pasture was in that first picture. The entire ground will be covered in manure in 1 day, so by moving them, they get a clean place to chill and the grass is fertilized. Meat chickens poop SO MUCH. As time and weather permits, we even move them twice a day during the last week to keep them on fresh grass. Here's a picture showing the progression of pasture growth behind our chicken coops from last summer:
Finally... there are very few people that actually know what it's like for chickens being raised in Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO's) because only those that own the barns and wear hazmat suits are allowed in. Chickens raised in CAFO growing barns live in extremely cramped conditions and never have fresh ground nor fresh air for their entire lives. If you were to look into a growing barn during the last week of life, you wouldn't be able to see the ground and the smell would knock you off your feet. The only way chickens can survive like this is by feeding them antibiotics in their water to fend off disease and illness.
THIS IS WHAT WE ARE REBELING AGAINST:
Kelly Bennett/MCT via Getty Images
The way we raise our animals is not easy nor quick. It takes much more labor and time than throwing them in a barn and chasing problems with drugs.
I know many of you already know this. That's why we're here, going down this path, together. Thanks for supporting our mission.
Because we give a damn,
Jenni Bajema
1 comment
I always enjoy your emails! Thanks for sharing so much information that I never really thought about.